Huntsville, AL-- Lee High School is proud to announce that Mr. McDonald has been awarded a five-thousand-dollar TVA STEM Grant, making Lee the only high school in Madison County to receive this honor.
His project will establish the district’s first student-managed native grassland restoration and outdoor classroom. Students will transform Bermuda lawn into a thriving pollinator habitat while using Vernier LabQuest 3 devices to measure soil and environmental conditions before and after restoration. The restored grassland will serve both Lee High School and New Century Technology High School and will bring sustainability, research, and hands-on STEM learning directly into campus life.
This initiative will feature native plantings, soil rehabilitation, weather-resistant educational signage with QR-linked student-produced videos, and a student-maintained native seed bank. Multiple Arts Conservatories will contribute through graphic design, media production, and photography. Partners such as the Land Trust of North Alabama, Green Team of Huntsville, and others will support students throughout the restoration process.
This is Mr. McDonald’s second major grant this semester, bringing his total to fourteen thousand dollars this fall and nearly forty thousand dollars in grants and in-kind donations secured for Lee High School and the science department since January 2025. Mr. McDonald leads our science department and was selected as Lee High School’s Teacher of the Year for 2024–2025.
We celebrate this achievement and the opportunities it creates for our students, our campus, and our community.