The Ultimate Guide to Funds, Grants & Financial Support for Teachers
This article was written by Alex J. Coyne — a journalist, writer and language practitioner with ten years' experience. His features have been published People Magazine, Funds for Writers, Great Bridge Links and Moneyweb, among others.
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Sometimes teachers need a little help. This could be a leg up to help finish or further their studies, or it could mean needing funds or financial support for teaching supplies & classroom resources. We’ve collected some funds, grants, and financial support channels for all teachers in need to check out.
ART & SUPPLIES
1. Crayola Creative Leadership Grants
Amount: $2,500 and products with the value of $1,000
The Crayola Creative Leadership grant is sponsored by stationary giant Crayola and available to K-12 teachers. This grant offers $2,500 cash to allocate to the classroom and Crayola supplies, with a value of up to $1,000.
2. National Art Education Foundation
Amount: $500 to $10,000
The National Art Education Foundation (NAEF) awards a grant of between $500 to $10,000 to a school or teacher for the purpose of classroom art supplies, resources for students, or classroom management. Several grant categories are available to apply for, and their website recommends teachers download the Booklet first before applying.
3. Philanthropic Ventures Arts Resources Grants Program
Amount: Up to $500
The Philanthropic Ventures Arts Resources Grants Program is specifically for grades K-8, and is aimed at teachers who are in need of art resources for their students. They offer up to $500 per grant to a single teacher, with a maximum of three per school.
4. Pets in the Classroom
Amount: $50 to $150
We’ve heard of the "teacher’s pet" before, but this puts a completely new spin on it. This grant supports teachers nationwide who would like to get “aquarium fish or small pets” for their classroom, as a teaching tool. Cool! Three to four weeks response time, and an amount of $50 to $150 could be offered to fund your new friend in the classroom.
BOOKS & LITERATURE
5. Scholastic Book Grant
Amount: Donations of Books
Scholastic is one of the largest academic publishers in the world, and they’ve put their weight behind providing literary resources to teachers in the form of the Scholastic Book Grant. You can apply directly through their website, and this grant comes in the form of books donated to your chosen school.
6. Snapdragon Book Foundation
Amount: $800 to $20,000
The Snapdragon Book Foundation was founded in 2008 by a teacher from Texas. They offer a grant of between $800 to $20,000 for teachers in need of literary resources. Yup, you read right! Their maximum grant could potentially set up an entire library for your school. All you have to do is fill in the forms, submit your application, and keep your fingers & toes crossed.
7. Dollar General Literacy Foundation Grant
Amount: Maximum of $15,000
As part of their corporate responsibility, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation grant offers a maximum of $15,000 in cash to educators, schools and organizations who would like to start a literacy program – their grant is completely regardless of age or location. As their website notes:
"Literacy is a worldwide issue to be tackled."
MATHEMATICS & SCIENCE
8. National Council for Teachers of Mathematics
Amount: Up to $3,000
The National Council for Teachers of Mathematics encourages mathematics as a direction of study amongst students and teachers alike. They offer several grants through their website, including “Teacher Professional Development Grants”, “Using Music to Teach Mathematics Grants” and “Improving Students’ Understanding of Geometry Grants”. They offer up to $3,000 per grant.
9. AIAA Foundation Classroom Grant Program
Amount: Up to $250
The AIAA Foundation is at the helm of space exploration in the classroom – and they’d like to encourage education in the field by offering up to $250 for projects each year. Their mission is to further a student’s education and maybe give them the leg-up they need to stick with science.
10. American Association of Physics Teachers
Amount: $500 or $1,000
The American Association of Physics Teachers offers a High School Physics Teacher Grant, awarded to a chosen teacher every year. The grant is either one of $500 or $1,000 – or two grants of $500 each. You must be a member of the AAPT to submit.
FIELD TRIPS & TRAVEL GRANTS
11. The Walmart Community Giving Program
Amount: $250 to $2,500
The Walmart Community Giving Program offers a grant of $250 to $2,500 to educators who would like to fund a field trip for their students. This grant is only valid to educators and schools who are within an area close enough to a local Walmart.
12. Target Field Trip Grants
Amount: Up to $700
Target Field Trip Grants first started in 2007, and they offer grants of up to $700 for teachers to fund an educational field trip for students that ties into the school’s curriculum.
13. Teacher Traveling Grants
Amount: By Request
Want to travel, so you have more cultural experiences to share with your students? Teacher Traveling makes this possible by listing grants and opportunities related specifically to world travel for teachers. These include ways to study for free in places like Germany, Spain, or Norway, in exchange for your qualified teaching skills abroad. Who could say no to that!
TECHNOLOGY GRANTS
14. Toshiba America Grant for Teachers
Amount: $5,000
The Toshiba America Grant for Teachers is for teachers of grades 6 through 12, only. They offer $5,000 to educators to help furnish their classrooms with the latest technology resources, in order to give their students an advantage. Applications can be made through their website, with grants given out once a year.
15. Verizon Educators Grant
Amount: Up to $10,000
The Verizon Educators Grant is intended to support, projects that promote Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM), including summer/after school programs, teacher training, and research on improving how students learn STEM through the use of technology. They offer up to $10,000 to teachers to fund technology like tablets and personal computers to students.
16. Educators of America
Amount: Undisclosed
Educators of America offers a technology grant, aiming to help teachers bring tech into the classroom as a teaching tool – something most students and teachers could benefit from. The grant not only provides the teachers with the technology, but also teaches them how to use it and integrate it into the classroom environment. Go to the link, download and submit the forms. The amount is undisclosed on the website.
GRANT LISTING SITES
17. GetEdFunding
GetEdFunding is set up for institutions and teachers to find funding for their educational projects. It’s updated daily with new opportunities, funds and grants, each listed with the grant’s particulars, submission requirements and deadlines. The grants they offer are vast, and include everything from grants for supplies, to grants for funding studies or field trips.
18. Grants for Teachers
Grants for Teachers’ description notes them as a “free resource for K-12 teachers”. You can search through their database of funds and grants by state, grade, or topic. A cool feature of the site is that you can register and receive up-to-date alerts in your inbox the moment a new grant is uploaded or a deadline comes up.
19. Grant Watch
Grant Watch catalogs grants for teachers that are uploaded directly to the website. They have sections for different professions including disaster relief, farming & agriculture, health & medical – as well as elementary education, and a section for teachers. Grants are listed with their details and deadline. It’s extremely comprehensive, which is great if you’re looking for something specific.
CROWDFUNDING FOR TEACHERS
Crowdfunding (or crowd sourcing) is a way to secure funding from multiple people or organizations who support your cause. Lucky for you, there are a few for teachers, too. The best thing about it? You get to set your project goal and amount, depending on what you need most.
20. DonorsChoose.org
DonorsChoose is a crowdfunding platform specially set up for teachers. You can upload your own project and get support directly from donors who believe in your cause. Make sure you describe your concept in detail and tell potential donors exactly what you’ll need to get your project off the ground.
21. GoFundMe
GoFundMe is one of the more popular, general crowdfunding options, along with Indiegogo and Kickstarter. They have special sections for teachers and educational projects. One essential tip for crowdfunding — make sure the crowdfunding platform you choose supports your chosen payment gateway for receiving your money!
22. MyClassNeeds
MyClassNeeds is a community crowdfunding classifieds site (see what we did there?) for Canadian teachers. It’s much like DonorsChoose, except set up exclusively for teachers based in Canada.
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