[Brandon Martus]

I just got an e-mail from Gail, asking to post this:

We have some very exciting news. Thanks in part to so many of you who wrote letters to your legislators, the State of Michigan has just finalized a $150,000 grant to help start 25 new teams in Michigan.

I need your help to ensure we find enough new teams this year to use all the money set aside so the State will agree to set aside this much and more in the years to come.

So please, put on your thinking caps and let me know right away of any schools that might want to start a new team this year with the State providing the registration fee. Better yet, get the word out to your team members, their family and friends, and especially to your sponsors, school principals, teachers and administrators to see if they can help get new high schools interested in participating.

To read more about what's being offered or to download the application go to:
http://www.mi.gov/mde/0,1607,7-140-5236---,00.htm

The application is similar to the one used by NASA. In fact, rookie teams should be able to use many of the same essays to apply for both grants. While there is a requirement for matching funds, we've set it up so teams can use the fair market value of engineering time and donations of materials/facilities to meet this requirement.

Again I thank you for making this grant possible. Should you have any questions, feel free to contact me day or night either here or on my cell.

Best Regards,
Gail Alpert
cell: 248-425-4148
gail.alpert AT gmail DOT com