The Montclair Fund for Educational Excellence (MFEE) is excited to open its call for Montclair Public Schools teachers to apply for educator grants for the 2026-27 school year! Each year, MFEE awards between $50,000 - $75,000 in grants to educators in four categories: Educational Excellence Grants, Greenwald Professional Development Grants, Social-Emotional Learning Grants, and IdeaLab Grants. This year, IdeaLab Grants focus on a new theme: Teach Your Passion. The theme i

This is the latest in our series spotlighting the 2026 winners of the Judy Weston Awards for Inspired Teaching. Follow along each week to learn more about the impact these educators are making in the Montclair Public Schools. +++ “Every so often, a teacher enters a child’s life whose influence feels like quiet magic. Not the kind that announces itself loudly, but the kind that gently and steadily reshapes how a child experiences learning and how they see themselves within it.

Students engage in hands-on science at MFEE's learning center during Oruguitas de Verano. Summer days have been anything but slow at the Montclair Fund for Educational Excellence. In addition to gearing up for the 2026-27 school year, the nonprofit education fund is keeping busy creating summer enrichment opportunities for more than 100 students. The programs reflect MFEE’s mission to remove barriers to learning and create equitable access for Montclair Public Schools studen

This is the latest in our series spotlighting the 2026 winners of the Judy Weston Awards for Inspired Teaching. Follow along each week to learn more about the impact these educators are making in the Montclair Public Schools. +++ If you asked Buzz Aldrin Middle School students to describe a great teacher, you might hear things like this: “He is super nice.” “He helps everyone, not just people in his study skills class.” “He makes class feel better. He doesn’t just stand the

On a recent visit to Montclair Summer Fun Camp at Northeast Elementary School, a fourth grade Montclair Public Schools teacher joined a group of students for a spirited game of basketball on the blacktop. There were good moves and serious defense, plus lots of laughter. Inside the gym, an MPS dance teacher was leading a zombie-inspired movement game. The kids were having a monstrous amount of fun. On the same day at the Summer Sports Camp at Watchung Elementary School,

This is the latest in our series spotlighting the 2026 winners of the Judy Weston Awards for Inspired Teaching. Follow along each week to learn more about the impact these educators are making in the Montclair Public Schools. +++ Positive. Happy. Bubbly. Authentic. These are words shared in Weston Award nomination letters for Glenfield Middle School teacher Elizabeth Cario. And they’re traits that set an excellent example for middle school kids who are experiencing a tremen

Dr. Twana Davisson leads Algebra Kickstarter. “When will I ever use this in real life?” It’s a question many students may be thinking when learning algebra. Making foundational math skills feel relevant is one of the goals of “Algebra Kickstarter,” a new MFEE summer math program for 20 rising ninth graders. The three-week intensive is designed to give students a head start and help them succeed in Algebra 1 at Montclair High School. Students were recommended to the program

This is the latest in our series spotlighting the 2026 winners of the Judy Weston Awards for Inspired Teaching. Follow along each week to learn more about the impact these educators are making in the Montclair Public Schools. +++ In the halls of Buzz Aldrin Middle School, Michele Campbell Kinnas is affectionately known as “Ms. Kindness.” It’s a well-earned nickname. Parents, students, and colleagues alike praised her compassionate approach and positive attitude. She was reco

This is the latest in our series spotlighting the 2026 winners of the Judy Weston Awards for Inspired Teaching. Follow along each week to learn more about the impact these educators are making in the Montclair Public Schools. +++ A word that came up repeatedly in nomination letters for Nishuane second-grade teacher Jenna DePasquale is “genuine.” It describes the care this veteran educator shows for each individual in her class, her approach to creating a learning environment

This is the latest in our series spotlighting the 2026 winners of the Judy Weston Awards for Inspired Teaching. Follow along each week to learn more about the impact these educators are making in the Montclair Public Schools. +++ “[Christen Berman-Schiralli] is exactly the kind of teacher every child deserves.” That’s the opening line of a Weston Award nomination letter for this Watchung Elementary School fourth grade teacher. And it’s not hyperbole. That letter, and several

This is the latest in our series spotlighting the 2026 winners of the Judy Weston Awards for Inspired Teaching. Follow along each week to learn more about the impact these educators are making in the Montclair Public Schools. +++ “Shannon Becker-Fyfe is one of those teachers who just gets it. She sees your student as they are, and meets them there.” That’s how a parent described this Montclair High School special education teacher in a 2026 Weston Award nomination letter. Th

This is the latest in our series spotlighting the 2026 winners of the Judy Weston Awards for Inspired Teaching. Follow along each week to learn more about the impact these educators are making in the Montclair Public Schools. +++ Cary Bangs has an amazing ability to bring learning to life for her second grade students at Bradford Elementary School. For example, around Thanksgiving, she had her students make shopping lists with prices, providing a practical example of how her

MFEE is celebrating Montclair Public Schools educators during our annual Toast to the Teachers, a community tradition going back more than 30 years. Hosted by local families and supporters – now through June 28 – these gatherings honor teachers, staff, or administrators, while also raising critical funds for MFEE educator grants that boost student learning. Here are 10 cool grants that Teacher Toasts helped make possible in 2026: Hands-on Science at Montclair High School M

This is the latest in our series spotlighting the 2026 winners of the Judy Weston Awards for Inspired Teaching. Follow along each week to learn more about the impact these educators are making in the Montclair Public Schools. +++ At Nishuane Elementary School, school counselor Amillah P. Williamson is known for running her "Compliment Club.” A peer who nominated Ms. Williamson for the Weston award explained: “When students are the 'chair' of Compliment Club, they report feel

This is the first in our series spotlighting the 2026 winners of the Judy Weston Awards for Inspired Teaching. Follow along each week to learn more about the impact these educators are making in the Montclair Public Schools. +++ Ashley Dorian Storfer, this year's winner of the Peer Inspiration Award, is a valued member of the teaching team at Montclair High School’s Civics & Government Institute (CGI). Ms. Dorian, an English teacher, is deeply respected by students and her co

The 2026 winners of the Judy Weston Awards for Inspired Teaching, pictured with MFEE Executive Director Masiel Rodriquez-Vars, MPS Superintendent Ruth B. Turner, and Josh Weston. (Photo by Erik Ekroth) Friends, family, colleagues, and members of the Montclair Public Schools community gathered to celebrate the 17 winners of the 2026 Judy Weston Awards for Inspired Teaching on Tuesday, June 9, at the Montclair Public Library. See photo gallery below. The 16 winning teachers an

Thank you to Erik Ekroth and Lucas Hubbard for helping us capture the magic of this event! At MFEE, we know our supporters are willing to jump through hoops to ensure students in the Montclair Public Schools receive a high-quality education. Turns out, many of you were up for much more… Because adults need recess, too. Hula-hoop races? Check. Waddling like a duck with a rubber ball between your legs? Check. Donning giant granny pants and playing catch? Check. Laugh

2026 Weston Award Winners Sixteen teachers and one counselor to be awarded $2,000 and honored at public ceremony Sixteen Montclair Public Schools teachers and one school counselor have been named winners of the 2026 Judy Weston Awards for Inspired Teaching, selected from hundreds of nominations submitted by MPS parents, students, and staff. The awards recognize master teachers and emerging educators who inspire learning, value students, and support individual needs and st

MFEE Executive Director Masiel Rodriquez-Vars was honored to be the first guest on the 'Glenfield Pod!' When Glenfield Middle School students were seeking their first guest for their very first episode of the "Glenfield Pod,” they turned to Masiel Rodriquez-Vars, executive director of the Montclair Fund for Educational Excellence. That’s because their school’s new podcasting studio was made possible by an MFEE IdeaLab grant, which this year focus on the theme “civics in our s

The Montclair Fund for Educational Excellence recently staged its Intergenerational Story Slam, where participants shared stories they wrote at a performance at Van Vleck House & Gardens. The April 23 event for friends and family was the culmination of a semester-long project led by Montclair High School English teacher Jessica Buel, in collaboration with Dory Hack, program director at MFEE, and Michelle DeWitt, senior citizen coordinator at Lifelong Montclair. Now in its fo