Sasone awarded $6,000 in grants to community projects to help support students with diverse learning needs.
Sasone, run by Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City, is the Kansas City Jewish community’s program to support access to Jewish education for students with special needs
"These grants are so important to help sustain our commitment to being an open and inclusive community,” Sasone Director Lindsey Lipsky said. “Needs are constantly changing from year to year, and these microgrants allow schools and staff to be more creative in how they provide support."
Thanks to generous funding from Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Kansas City, Sasone is able to fund small projects of up to $1,000 to help congregations and classrooms be more inclusive and accessible. This year, six organizations applied and received awards.
The recipients, announced on Nov. 15, are:
- Child Development Center at The J, for a new sensory-friendly space.
- Congregation Beth Shalom, for equipment for a student with special needs.
- Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy (HBHA), for new learning tools for lower school students.
- HBHA, for a social emotional curriculum and teachers’ library.
- J Camp and After-School Program at The J, for sensory equipment to help students and campers with emotion regulation.
- Kansas Jewish Preschool, for a sensory center for each of five classrooms.
“These microgrants will help provide much needed resources to support the academic and social emotional needs of our diverse student body at Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy,” said Wendy Snitz, director of student services at HBHA.
“We have found that in J Camp and our After-School Program, an increased number of kids have sensory issues or behavior concerns,” said DD Gass, director of camps and school-age services at The J. “Having tools that will help support them is something that will really help our staff process with the children. The fidgets and other sensory items will help our children who are struggling to calm down and be able to participate with their group.”
Grants from Sasone are only given for projects that help support access and directly impact students with diverse learning needs. Applications, which will be accepted on a rolling basis, can be filled at https://form.jotform.com/JFEDKC/Sasone-micro-grant-application.
Those with questions or needing help filling out the form can email Lipsky at .