PORT NECHES — Port Neches Elementary fifth-grade teacher Kaylee Konidis received $495.28 to fund her DonorsChoose project during Horace Mann’s You Are Awesome Sweepstakes.

DonorsChoose provides a way for teachers to post classroom project requests, allowing donors to identify and choose projects to support.

Konidis submitted her iPads request to give students easier, in-class access to the accelerated reader (AR) test technology.

Port Neches Elementary fifth grade teacher Kaylee Konidis helps student Parker Ross, 11, navigate one of the new iPads purchased with a grant received from Horace Mann’s You Are Awesome Sweepstakes. (Mike Tobias/PNGISD)

“Since the first day back after the quarantine, the students have wanted to take the AR tests over the books they read during the shutdown,” Konidis said. “I’m so excited for them, especially after last year — with all the disruptions we had. The kids deserve everything they got for this.”

Said Quinton Mayer, Horace Mann agent for Southeast Texas: “Horace Mann is always looking for more ways to support educators, and here at the Lumberton

office we’re excited to help the educators of Southeast Texas however we can.”

The You Are Awesome Sweepstakes will award $10,000 in DonorsChoose funding to educators nationwide.

Student Parker Ross, 11, navigates an iPad received with grant funds presented by Horace Mann’s You Are Awesome Sweepstakes at Port Neches Elementary. (Mike Tobias/PNGISD)