A nationwide grant program awarded Chesapeake High School a new $4,000 piano for its choral students last week.

The Pasadena school was one of 20 winners nationwide to receive grants from My Hometown Helper, an arm of General Mills. The piano was unveiled Wednesday in a ceremony that also included a mini-concert by Rachel Franklin, a classical and jazz chamber pianist and Baltimore Symphony Orchestra lecturer.

A new grant cycle began Friday. Communities can apply for one-time grants for projects such as building playgrounds, buying band uniforms and expanding town sidewalks.

Grants range from $500 to $15,000. All requests for funding must be sponsored by a charitable organization, a municipal or civic organization or a public school.

Information: www.my HometownHelper.com.

Evening high school adds another site

The Anne Arundel County public schools are expanding their evening high school program to a fifth location this week.

Classes at the new Annapolis Evening High School, to be held at Annapolis High School, begin Tuesday and will be held from 3:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Evening high school is designed to give students enrolled in high school during the day an opportunity to make up courses that they did not pass. Students who have difficulty in the traditional school setting can transfer into the evening high school to complete the requirements for a high school diploma.