School psychologists may apply:

The National Association of School Psychologists is seeking proposals for its Service Grants program, which provides support for projects that directly benefit children. Eligibility: School psychologists who are members of both NASP and The Children’s Fund. Recent grantees received awards for the following initiatives: a districtwide community reading day, a project focusing on the prevention of bullying and a project that provides a gifted and talented lending library and resource bank for families of gifted children in an economically underprivileged neighborhood. Grants up to $3,000.

DEADLINE: Rolling.
CONTACT: lynthies@gmail.com; Children's Grant Fund Opportunities

Fill your ‘Toolbox’:

Lowe’s is looking for applications for its Toolbox for Education grants program. The program seeks to provide tools to help educators and parent groups through today’s challenging times efficiently while providing the greatest impact, with basic necessities taking priority. K–12 public schools and public school parent-teacher groups can apply for grants ranging from $2,000 to $5,000. Eligible projects include, but are not limited to, the following: reading gardens, vegetable gardens, physical fitness areas, school landscaping projects, school nature trails, parent involvement centers, peer tutoring centers, playgrounds and rotating student art exhibits.

DEADLINE: Feb. 13.
CONTACT: info@toolboxforeducation.com; Toolbox for Education

Got milk cartons?

Evergreen Packaging seeks entrants for its 2014 Made By Milk Carton Construction Contest. The contest asks K–12 classes to create themed sculptures from empty milk cartons saved from their school lunches. K–12 schools can apply for funds ranging from $1,000 to $5,000. To enter, classroom teams must collect empty milk cartons to use in their carton creations and write a 200-word essay about how their school will utilize the prize money.

DEADLINE: Nov. 19.
CONTACT: Made by Milk contest

Seeking unsung heroes:

Are you an educator with a class project that is short on funding but long on potential? Do you know a teacher looking for grant dollars? ING Unsung Heroes could help you turn great ideas into reality for students. For more than 15 years, and with more than $4 million in awarded grants, ING Unsung Heroes has proven to be a popular program with educators. The program’s "alumni" have inspired success in the classroom and affected countless numbers of students. Each year, 100 educators are selected to receive $2,000 to help fund their innovative class projects. Three of those are chosen to receive the top awards of an additional $5,000, $10,000 and $25,000. Note that ING is transitioning to Voya Financial in 2014. Therefore, this program will also change its name to Voya Unsung Heroes.

DEADLINE: April 30.
CONTACT: Unsung Heroes

Help save the environment:

Lexus and Scholastic request entrants for the Lexus Eco Challenge. The challenge is an educational program and contest for teens across the U.S. in grades 6–12 that inspires and empowers young people to learn about the environment and take action to improve it. Awards are as high as $30,000 and will be shared by the students, their teacher-advisers and their schools. Eligibility: Middle and high school teams composed of five to 10 students and one to two teacher-advisers. Teams can enter one or both of the first two challenges, which are focused on land and water, and air and climate. This year, the challenges will run simultaneously, allowing the teams a wider window to complete their action plans.

DEADLINE: Dec. 8.
CONTACT: ecochallenge@scholastic.com; Lexus Eco Challenge

For problem-solvers:

Lemelson-MIT is seeking entrants for the Lemelson-MIT InvenTeams program. The program encourages teams to invent technological solutions to real-world problems of their own choosing. Grants up to $10,000 are offered. Educators who facilitate the project outside of the school day may allot up to $2,000 of an InvenTeam grant toward fellowships. Eligibility: High school science, technology, engineering and math educators. Funds may be allocated for research, materials and learning experiences related to the project. Funds may not be used to purchase capital equipment or professional services.

DEADLINE: Feb. 28.
CONTACT: The Lemelson-MIT Program, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, 77 Massachusetts Ave., Building 10-110, Cambridge, MA 02139; 1-617-253-3352; info-lemelson@mit.edu; InvenTeams

Back to the future:

All inventions and innovations result from creative thinking and problem solving. The Toshiba/National Science Teachers Association ExploraVision Awards Program encourages kids to create and explore a vision of future technology by combining their imaginations with the tools of science. Maximum award: $10,000 bond for each student. Eligibility: K–12 students. The top 23 teachers who submit more than 23 eligible online entries will receive a Toshiba Tablet, so submit your teams today.

DEADLINE: Jan. 30.
CONTACT: ExploraVision

Read all about it:

The Laura Bush Foundation Grants seek to provide books and reading materials to school libraries and students that most need them. The foundation provides grants of up to $7,000 to help school libraries expand, update and diversify their book collections. If your school previously received a grant from the foundation, you are ineligible to apply. Grants are made to individual schools, not the school district. More than 200 grants will be awarded. See the criteria for applying online.

DEADLINE: Dec. 15.
CONTACT: LBF Grant Application

Lawyers in the classroom:

The Law-Related Education Committee at the New York County Lawyers’ Association continues its outreach program to schools and community groups. The longtime program consists of attorneys and judges visiting classrooms, speaking on a variety of topics regarding the law, the courts and the justice system. Among the topics are: Jobs in the Justice System; Law as a Career; Immigration Law; Criminal Law; Civil Law; Family Law; Commercial Law; Constitutional Law; Cheating; Bullying; Fairness/Justice; When Do You Need a Lawyer? A class visit to an active courtroom may also be requested.

CONTACT: Justice Richard Lee Price, chair, Committee on Law-Related Education, at 1-718-618-3646 or rprice@nycourts.gov.