At the Leander Educational Excellence Foundation (LEEF), we believe that when educators collaborate, students thrive. That’s why we are thrilled to announce the recipients of our 2025 Collaborative Grants—teams of passionate, creative Leander ISD staff members who came together across campuses, grade levels, and departments to dream big and design solutions that will directly impact their students.
This year, LEEF is awarding more than $128,000 in Collaborative Grant funding to support 36 collaborative projects across the district. From hands-on STEM experiences to resources that support inclusive classrooms, these educator-led initiatives reflect the heart, expertise, and vision of Leander ISD.
We’re proud to support these teams as they bring their ideas to life—and grateful to our community of donors who make this investment in public education possible.
| Leander ISD Campus or Department | Grant Applicant Names | Grant Name | Amount |
| 18+ Transition Services | Crystal McCarthy, Jimmy Guzman and Kelley McCollum | 18+ Coffee Cart Enterprise | $1,500.00 |
| 18+ Transition Services | Justin Pine, Emily Voges and Meagan Williams | Self-Determination Tool Kits for Elementary SCSS | $5,000.00 |
| Block House Creek Elementary | Gina Geerts, Sarah Johnson and Maggie Barker | “Building Emergent Writers through Play, Wonder, and Storytelling” | $4,153.83 |
| Cedar Park High School | Sarah Cable, Keri Burns and Lauren Pfledderer | Crafting Calm: Student-Made Therapeutic Resources for Mental Health Support | $300.00 |
| Cedar Park Middle School | Julie Robledo and Jeanette Courtright | Leopard Lab To Go | $3,200.00 |
| Cedar Park Middle School | Kendall Hiott | The Summit on RTI at Work | $5,000.00 |
| Cox Elementary | Amanda Trimble, Mukti Thakkar and Kelly Fitzgerald | Innovation in Action: STEM Lab for Tomorrow’s Thinkers | $4,976.99 |
| Deer Creek Elementary | Kristin Britt, Faith Rodriguez and Jennifer Atkinson | From Garden to Greatness | $2,174.30 |
| Early College High School | James Lemuel and Victor Hicks | Can You Hear the Music? Supporting Performing Arts at Early College High School | $4,352.00 |
| Glenn High School | Alexis Huddleston, Patricia Sales and Sheri Richmond | Dream Boldly: Improving Literacy Outcomes | $1,890.00 |
| Henry Middle School | Lorri Boyd and Laura Van Vliet | Amplifying Excellence: Supporting the Student Voice for Theatre and Beyond | $5,000.00 |
| Henry Middle School | Darolyn Gonzales, Mandy Broker and Nora Chou | “Unlocking Language for All: A Districtwide Collaboration Using Wordless Books for Speech and Language Growth” | $4,994.72 |
| Leander High School | Kathryn Naron and JoDee Wilson | ICAP Hydroponic Tower Gardens | $3,000.00 |
| LEO | Becky Calzada and Brenda Marfin | Turning Pages, Building Futures: Enhancing the LEO Library Collection | $5,000.00 |
| LISD – Adapted PE | Allison Goewey, Ryan Gough and Charles Wilkerson | Unlocking Movement: Equipping Adapted PE for Every Learner | $4,300.00 |
| LISD Fine Arts Dept | Megan Liles and Mary Ann Loesch | Empowering Leander ISD Performing Arts Teachers through Orff Schulwerk Training | $5,000.00 |
| LISD Plant Services Dept. | John West and Joey Garner | ACC Partnership | $5,000.00 |
| LISD-Early Childhood Dept. | Sarah Wilson, Ana Zepeda, and Sarah Walker | Empowering Early Childhood Teachers Through Collaborative CLASS Coaching to Increase High Quality Instruction | $5,000.00 |
| LISD-Special Education | Denise Geiger, Jenny Blackmon and Ashley Anderson | Deepening Transition Systems across LISD in Special Education from 3–22 years old | $5,000.00 |
| LISD-Special Programs | CiCi Fritts, Stacey Haydel and Jenny Blackmon | Inclusive Literacy Kits with Switch-Adapted Toys | $3,661.01 |
| LISD-Special Programs | Cici Fritts, Carlie Yeager and Shea Davis | Equatio: Include Everyone in Your Math Classroom | $3,400.00 |
| LISD-Special Programs | Laura Castellanos and Susan Neil | Enhanced bilingual assessment tools | $5,000.00 |
| LISD-Special Programs :State and Federal Programs | Shannon Jacque and Kristen Sterling | Building Bridges to Build Futures | $4,983.00 |
| North Elementary | Nicole Wright, Becky Warren and Veanne Torrez | Gestalt Goodness-First Phrases Cards | $4,050.00 |
| Parkside Elementary | Corinne Burkhart and Abbie Scott | Logic Lab | $705.00 |
| Parkside Elementary | Ally Walker, Abbie Scott and Hilary Davis | Depth and Complexity | $3,898.00 |
| Pleasant Hill Elementary | Lisa deCaussin and Nancy Zerega | Purposeful Play for Early Learners | $5,000.00 |
| Pleasant Hill Elementary | Laura Miotin, Beth Lee and Cara Massey | Zen Den (Sensory Room) | $1,111.31 |
| Reagan Elementary | Alison Pennington, Chelsea Murphy and Shauna Allen | Leader in Me at Reagan Elementary | $4,000.00 |
| Reagan Elementary | Chelsea Murphy, Alison Pennington and Paige Winks | Regulate and Rejuvenate: Sensory Solutions for Reagan | $1,024.00 |
| Reagan Elementary | Chante Dennis and Daniel Blanchard | Powwow Day at Reagan Elementary | $1,250.00 |
| River Ridge Elementary | Katie Haedge and Sally Sosa | The Genius Project: Empowering Learning Through Genius Hour | $5,000.00 |
| Tarvin Elementary | Shelley Roberts | Capacity Coaching | $4,025.00 |
| Vista Ridge High School | David Burdick, Keith Allen and Paul Tarwater | US History Enrichment Reading Grant | $3,431.25 |
| Vista Ridge High School | Julie Ranelli and Joy Kulis | Community Transportation for Vocation Learning | $700.00 |
| Wiley Middle School | Angela Haas, Cheyenne Aguilar and Erica Collier | From Talk to Transformation: A Campus-Wide Approach to Student Engagement | $2,500.00 |
