Concern for Community is one of the Seven Cooperative Principles guiding South Plains Electric Cooperative. Giving back to our community gives our Cooperative the opportunity to support community efforts that enhance the quality of life for members and their families. Operation Round Up helps provide funding for community members in need.

Operation Round Up is funded by Cooperative members rounding their bill up to the nearest dollar.

Lindsey Sexton, a teacher from Southcrest Christian School, was one of 19 area teachers who received an Operation Round Up Teacher Mini-Grant last year.

With the grant, Sexton was able to purchase Keva Planks for her students. These planks are open-ended engineering tools that allow students to use their creativity in the classroom. Students built animal habitats, robot mazes and other structures. Students from various grade levels in Sexton’s STEM classes use the Keva Blocks daily to learn problem-solving skills.

More from Southcrest Christian School

Kelly Victory, an FFA teacher, was another recipient from Southcrest Christian School to receive an Operation Round Up Teacher Mini-Grant.

Victory’s FFA students used the funds to establish an Urban Poultry Husbandry Program. The program included incubating and hatching chicks of different breeds. Students gained hands-on experience in caring for the chicks, creating shelters and implementing strategies to avoid diseases amongst the chicks.

The chicks were used to better support other programs in the school. For example, the eggs laid by the chicks are used for the culinary science classes, and the waste from the chicks is channeled through a composting process and then used as a fertilizer for the school’s raised garden beds.

Click here for more information about the program.