Georgia United Credit Union Awards DeKalb County’s Snapfinger Elementary 2026 School Crashers Grant

DECATUR, GA (March 16, 2026) – Imagine you are an elementary student who learns best by doing. You are curious and eager to build and explore, but most days, STEM learning happens at a desk instead of through experience. Your teachers are passionate and engaging, but without a space built for hands-on exploration, it’s hard to fully bring to life the concepts you’re learning. A dedicated STEM classroom changes that. It’s a space designated for hands-on experiments, teamwork and collaboration where you work with your classmates to solve problems together. With accessible materials and flexible spaces, you now can engage deeply with science, technology, engineering and math. With the right tools and environment, high-quality STEM education is within reach.

Science Academic Coach Imen Edmond strongly believed that her students deserve a Georgia United School Crashers makeover, because Snapfinger Elementary’s students have made strong, intentional gains in science achievement through focused instruction and data-driven practices over the last few years.  “Our students are ready for the next level of learning, and our spaces need to catch up to their potential.  We are poised to build on that success by transforming our learning environments to support deeper engagement across science, math, literacy, and problem solving. Students learn best when they can move, collaborate, explore, and create. Unfortunately, our current science learning area has not been updated in years and does not fully support hands-on investigation, teamwork, or flexible learning. For our Title I students, this limits access to the interactive, experiential, and wellness-centered learning opportunities that help them thrive.”

We propose a “Snappy 21st Century Learning Environment Update” will transform underutilized indoor and outdoor spaces into vibrant STEM learning environments. Flexible seating and refreshed science lab areas will promote curiosity, collaboration, and project-based learning aligned to the Georgia Standards of Excellence. A new STEM Classroom will extend learning beyond four walls, encouraging exploration, movement, and nature-based inquiry while supporting students’ social-emotional growth. While our budget is limited, our commitment is limitless. With the help of School Crashers volunteers and community partners, this makeover will create welcoming, high-impact spaces where students feel inspired, supported, and excited to learn every day.”

Thanks to Ms. Edmond’s 250-word nomination and a photo of their science lab which has had minimal changes since 1966, Snapfinger Elementary earned one of five coveted Georgia United School Crashers projects scheduled for this summer.

Georgia United Credit Union CEO Laura King said, “We are looking forward to serving our communities and strengthening our school systems through our thirteenth annual School Crashers program. This program is made possible by the Georgia United Foundation, credit union team members, generous donors, community partners and volunteers. We are especially excited about the Snapfinger Elementary project in DeKalb County, as we have four branch locations in DeKalb, so we anticipate good volunteer support to transform this underutilized classroom into something special for the students.”

“Whenever members use Georgia United for a car loan, home loan or checking account, a part of those funds are given back to the community through scholarships, financial education or through programs like School Crashers that deliver inspiring learning spaces that strengthen schools. By the end of the summer, School Crashers improvements will have impacted a total of 86 schools with improvement estimated at over $3.2 million since 2014.”

Today’s announcement took place at the school, where Principal Karen Stancil was attending a DCSD principals’ meeting with Interim Superintendent Dr. Norman Sauce III, so there were a large number of county school administrators in the building.  Principal Stancil expressed her gratitude to her science team for nominating Snapfinger, “My school and I are beyond honored that we were selected from hundreds of applications, and our students are going to benefit from a fresh, new STEM learning environment.” Following this morning’s announcement at the school, Georgia United’s community development representatives met with the school to begin setting priorities and planning everything from paint and flooring to equipment and comfortable seating. All facility upgrades to the space will be administered during summer break to ensure that regular instruction is not impacted. The new STEM Classroom is scheduled to be ready for students and faculty to use by the start of the 2026-2027 school year.

Funding for the School Crashers program is provided by the Georgia United Credit Union, their 501c3 charitable Foundation, and generous donations made by community partners, with labor provided by volunteers. If you or your organization would like to contribute to this summer’s makeover program, visit www.gucufoundation.org/donate. To learn more about the School Crashers program and view photos of past School Crashers recipients, visit gucufoundation.org/schoolcrashers, where additional 2026 grant recipients will be listed as they are announced during the month of March.