2018 Grant Recipients

The following organizations received $35,000 in grants:

ICivics

$35,000
Support to develop a full instructional unit on a core civic subject: Foundations of Government. This unit will be the basis for any government class. It explores the principles and philosophies behind modern political institutions. The unit will have 5-6 individual lessons, including case studies, assessments and activities that strengthen primary source reading and media literacy.

Profound Gentlemen,

$35,000
Support for a 12-month project to develop, support and retain highly effective male teachers of color across the nation to positively impacting the academic achievement of all children in traditional public and charter schools, with special attention to the achievement of boys of color.

1881 Institute,

$35,000
Support for a STEM program for vulnerable populations by integrating  STEM into school curriculum and preparing youth to enter STEM fields, specifically entry level engineering and technician positions.

University of Vermont

$35,000
Support to use exploratory findings to collaboratively develop an intervention that would guide families and educators to new pathways for effective communication and engagement. Developed collaboratively with families, community members, and education professionals, an intervention that would build capacity of both teachers and families to partner to improve educational outcomes for vulnerable students in Vermont and elsewhere.

2017 Grant Recipients

Advocates for Youth, DC

$35,000
Support teachers to deliver a new and comprehensive sexuality education curriculum in schools across the country.  The curriculum is age and developmentally appropriate, sequential, LGBTQ inclusive and mapped to the National Sexuality Education Standards (www.advocatesforyouth.org/3rs-curriculum). This enables educators in any school district, with any budget to have unfettered access to a high quality sexuality education curriculum and supporting resources from which to tailor to meet their unique needs

KQED, CA

$35,000
To support KQED in creating a series of self-paced and synchronous online professional learning courses, produced alone and with partners, that will be free and accessible for educators to help them learn and practice the digital media literacy skills and strategies they need to be excellent teachers – engaging students in collaborative, meaningful learning experiences and developing their communication and technology skills. These skills will impact learning across all subject areas. The courses will be offered in an online environment that tracks user progress, awards open badges for achievement, and encourages sharing and feedback through an integrated online community space.  UPDATE: KQED has received  the Media Literate Media award from NAMLE, the National Association for Media Literacy Education for this project.  It’s in recognition of KQED Teach, their service to help teachers bring media literacy skills and tools into the classroom.

NACA, NM

$35,000
Support for NISN (NACA Inspired School Network) Fellows to launch new schools in three New Mexico communities. Schools will be community-designed and led, responding to and nurturing Native culture and sustained by the collective vision of their community. These schools will be part of NISN’s national educational reform demonstration project, sharing best practices and expanding successful educational approaches for Native students across the United States.  The schools will provide a rigorous education while integrating Native American culture, identity, and community investment.

Community Guilds, GA

$35,000
Support for a classroom model STE(A)M Truck program in the Metro Atlanta area. The STE(a)M Truck is a blue and green van filled with things like band-saws and 3- D printers, and can set up a mobile innovation lab at any school property.

urban college of boston, MA

$35,000
To support The High School to Teacher dual enrollment program which is a career-focused study in high school that leads to an early-career certificate and accelerates students’ completion of an Associate’s degree in Early Childhood Education (ECE) at UCB, The students are then qualified to work as a paraprofessional in Boston Public Schools (BPS) classrooms. Students who continue their studies and earn a Bachelor’s degree will be qualified as full classroom teachers. The program is designed for juniors and seniors reflecting the diversity of BPS students. Participants for this spring’s inaugural class are from our target audiences: 50% African-American, and 50% Hispanic. The program is free to students, including their books.

2016 Grant Recipients

PROJECT H, OAKLAND, CA

$35,000
To support Studio H, a rigorous and nationally recognized design/build academic program for high school students.  Studio H applies core subject learning to teach creative fundamentals, industry-relevant design and construction skills, community development, and service through the lens of public architecture. Each year, Studio H students research, prototype, design, and construct a full-scale piece of public architecture for their community. Over the past five years, students of Studio H have constructed a farmers market pavilion that created 4 new businesses and 15 new full-time jobs, shipping container classrooms and their own school library, tiny homes for the homeless, and more. With integrated science, technology, engineering, math, and social science content, Studio H elevates high school learning for students through relevant social projects and prepares them for the rigor and research-based inquiry of their college education, careers, and beyond.

STORY SHARE, BOSTON, MA

$35,000
Support foran outreach campaign to partner with more schools, educators, and students. Story Share exists to help struggling readers beyond elementary school. Their goal is to improve literacy skills, and therefore academic and life outcomes more broadly. To do so, they are training and motivating authors to create content that is appealing to older readers who read below level and distributing the content to teachers and students on an accessible digital platform with built-in supports and assessments.

SUNDOG THEATER, STATEN ISLAND, NY

$35,000
Support to expand 3D LIT during the 2016-17 school year, the 6th year of the program. Sundog’s 3D LITERACY (3D LIT) is an integrated theatre/literacy program designed to help students who are behind in literacy learning to improve their ability to read, write, learn, and communicate. Rooted in brain development science, 3D LIT makes literacy learning a physical experience by incorporating novel ideas and whimsical games that stimulate brain neurons to help students better retain information. By boosting their capacity to learn, 3D LIT builds students’ confidence, empowering them with skills needed not only to master language, but also help create successful and meaningful lives.