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Application Guidelines

Silicon Valley Education Foundation (SVEF) awards a limited number of Teacher Innovation Grants each year. The two types of grants available are Classroom Grants and Field Trip Grants. Educators can also apply for each type of grant as an individual grant or a collaborative grant using the same application. Go to the application forms to apply now.

Eligibility

Grants are available to PK-12 teachers who work in a school district or charter school in Santa Clara County that has a signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with SVEF. If your district is not shown on our MOU list, contact your Superintendent about this opportunity and request that an MOU with SVEF be signed.

Previous grant recipients are eligible to apply again, although SVEF reserves the right to give priority to new applicants if applications exceed available funds. If you are awarded a Teacher Innovation Grant, you will also be eligible to be selected as a KBAY Teacher of the Month.

Grant Purpose and Usage

Teacher Innovation Grants are intended to inspire student learning, by supplementing rather than replacing regular district funding. SVEF will support the purchase of equipment and materials which go beyond school budgets, but funding is not intended for the purchase of ordinary school supplies such as paper, pencils and pens which are part of the regular school budget. Additionally, SVEF grants will not be awarded to pay teacher stipends or other remuneration.

Grant applications with a science, technology, engineering or math (STEM) component will be given special consideration, with approximately 75% of all grants to be awarded for STEM education. Field trip grants must be directly related to the curriculum and classroom activities. These would include science camps and college tours, but not trips such eighth grade trips to Washington D.C. and Disneyland. Teacher Innovation Grants are not intended to become regular funding stream for ongoing projects. At the SVEF’s discretion, an ongoing project or trip may be funded no more than twice.

How to Apply

The application is completed online. Teachers are asked to provide some general information about themselves, their school and the classes they teach. Classroom Grants and Field Trip Grants both require:
- A descriptive project title
- Specific project/trip details
- An implementation timeline
- Budget information

Lessonopoly - As an important part of the application, educators must also submit two lesson plans to the Lessonopoly site as a sample of their professional work. Lessonopoly is our free online library with thousands of lesson plans for PK-12 teachers. All grant recipients must also submit another lesson plan based on their funded project. Read carefully below for other required information that is specific to certain types of grant applications.

Additional Information Required

Collaborative Grant applications must discuss how the applicants will collaborate to further the goals of the project. This discussion must be included in the “Innovation” section of the PK-12 application or the “Curriculum Enhancement” section of the Field Trip application. If the costs of the project exceed $500 (or $1000 for collaborative grants), the applicant(s) should explain the source of the funds beyond the amount of the Teacher Innovation Grant.

Classroom Grant requests for equipment (projectors, document cameras, etc.) should include descriptions of how the equipment will be used to transform student learning. Elementary and multiple subject teachers should describe how the equipment will be used in several disciplines (Math, Science, English Language Arts, etc.).

When to Apply

There are two grant cycles this school year. Be sure to submit your application before the deadline to be considered for that round of funding.

Grant Cycles for 2011-12 School Year

Application Deadline	Grant Notification
September 30, 2011	October 21, 2011
February 3, 2012	February 24, 2012

Apply Now

When ready to apply, first time applicants must complete an Online Application Form. Begin by creating a user name and password to start the application. Please note that it is possible to partially complete the application, save it and return later to complete the process. Submission of the two required lesson plans to Lessonopoly requires creating a separate profile on that site.

The Teacher Innovation Grant Application Forms are also available in MS Word format. We highly recommend that first time applicants fill the form out prior to transferring the information to the Online Application Form. It is also recommended that applicants save a copy of the MS Word version of their application. Download the application forms for the Teacher Innovation Classroom Grant or the Teacher Innovation Field Trip Grant.

First time applicants - Register and begin
Returning applicants - Log in to reapply

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