The Money Mom: Are these grants for you?

Posted by Jennifer Freeman at 12:12 AM

If your school has a high needs population and you can think of something to buy that would improve teaching and learning, you stand a good chance of getting your idea funded.

The start of the school year is a time when education foundations send out notices asking people to apply for their grants. In the past week or so I’ve received at least three grant announcements from the family engagement office in my district. The NEA Foundation for the Improvement of Education is looking to give away $1,000 worth of books to schools with 70% or more students eligible for free or reduced price lunch (deadline: 11/12). Lowe's, the home improvement store, offers a grant called Toolbox for Education, worth up to $5,000 for schools doing building or renovation projects, such as gardens and community rooms (10/12). The third grant notice that came my way was New York’s perennial Parents as Arts Partners, which funds programs aimed at getting parents and families involved in school arts education, such as visiting artists and art shows for parents mounted in school hallways (pre-application deadline: 10/19).

I will be submitting a proposal for the Lowe’s grant, for a small but important improvement that my principal would like to build. I won’t be applying for the other two this year because my children’s schools are not high-needs enough to be chosen. But especially if your school has 70 percent or more high needs children, small grants like these are a great way to fill gaps in your funding. Many are quite easy to apply for. The hardest part about the NEA book grant, for example, is getting someone to take the time to make a list of $1,000 worth of books that meet the school's needs.