Funds for field trips: Looking for funding for your scholastic outings, trips to museums, projects and other activities off school grounds? Check out Target Field Trip Grants. A maximum award of $700 can be used for field trip-related costs such as transportation, ticket fees, food, resource materials and supplies. Covered outings can include trips to art, science and cultural museums; community service or civic projects; or career enrichment opportunities, for example. Eligibility: teachers, principals, paraprofessionals and classified staff in any K–12 school.
DEADLINE: Oct. 1
CONTACT: Target Field Trip Grants
Inspirational? Sensational! The Kennedy Center seeks nominations for Kennedy Center/Stephen Sondheim Inspirational Teacher Awards, which go to K–12 teachers and college or university instructors in the United States in recognition of their outstanding impact on the lives of students. Maximum award is $10,000. Nominees must be legal residents of the United States. Nominations must be based on experience as a full-time classroom teacher in a K–12 school or as a college or university instructor. Nominators must be 18 years of age and must have been a student of the nominee.
DEADLINE: Dec. 15
CONTACT: Kennedy Center/Stephen Sondheim Inspirational Teacher Awards
Visit 9/11 Tribute Center — from your classroom: The 9/11 Tribute Center in Manhattan now offers a video chat program in which classes are able to have a remote dialogue with a guide who presents a slideshow while sharing their personal 9/11 story. Students will receive a short biography of their guide ahead of time to prepare insightful questions for the session. This one-hour option is ideal for classes that cannot make it to lower Manhattan for a field trip. Email education@tributewtc.org for more information or to set up a time to chat with one of the experienced guides.
Never forget: The 9/11 Tribute Center annually presents awards to teachers who have created exemplary educational projects that help sustain the memory of 9/11. Innovative teachers are honored for how they have engaged their students in the discussion of the ongoing impact of 9/11 and for their focus on humanitarian responses to the attacks on the World Trade Center. Projects selected have introduced 9/11 through curricula in the arts and humanities: history, language arts, and visual, media and performing arts. Each school receives a $500 gift for their school and framed certificate of merit, presented during a formal award ceremony. All applications should include a project description, the inspiration for the project, examples of resources or lessons plans used, photos of the students working and samples of their project(s), and reflections on the experience. Please also include your name, school name and address, grade(s) involved in project, and number of class periods used for this project.
DEADLINE: Jan. 27
CONTACT: Submissions can be emailed to education@tributewtc.org. For more information, visit 9/11 Tribute Center Teacher Awards.
Engineering contest: Vernier Software & Technology is soliciting applicants for its 2014 Engineering Contest. The contest seeks to recognize STEM educators for introducing students to engineering concepts and practices through innovative uses of Vernier sensors. Grants consist of $1,000 in cash, $3,000 in Vernier technology and $1,500 toward expenses to attend the 2014 National Science Teachers’ Association STEM conference or the 2014 American Society for Engineering Education conference. Current instructors of engineering or STEM subjects in middle school, high school or college can apply. Applicants are asked to submit videos that describe the Vernier sensors and the engineering concepts or practices that are being addressed. Applications will be judged on innovative ideas, engineering objectives, and the ease for others to replicate the project.
DEADLINE: Jan. 15
CONTACT: Vernier Software & Technology, 1-888-837-6437; info@vernier.com; Vernier Engineering Contest
Got milk cartons? Evergreen Packaging seeks entrants for its 2013 Made By Milk Carton Construction Contest. The contest asks classroom teams to design and construct creations made from empty school milk cartons, which students save from their school lunches. Grants range from $1,500 to $5,000. Grades 1–12 can apply. To enter, classroom teams are required to collect a minimum of 100 empty milk cartons to use in their carton creations and write a 200-word essay about how their school will use the prize money.
DEADLINE: Nov. 15
CONTACT: Made by Milk