Grants

EDUCATIONAL GRANT PROGRAM

Excellent education requires great ideas, creative teachers, engaged students and up-to-date facilities/equipment. The Educational Grant Program was developed in 1999 to help fund projects that support the mission of the Elmbrook School District by helping innovative staff implement and share ideas that enhance the education of Elmbrook students. Sharing their successes serves to inspire others and subsequently benefits the entire District.

Without the EEF, these projects may not be pursued due to budget constraints resulting from the changes in public school funding models. Communities wishing to sustain the level of excellence of their public school system have developed similar programs to offset the impact of these funding changes. Our hope is that offering another avenue for funding will provide the needed support to make new ideas come to life! These projects typically can not be funded by building operating budgets or Parent/Teacher Organizations on their own and therefore would not happen without the Foundation's help.

Since 2001, the Foundation has funded over $226,000 in grants benefitting eleven schools across the district. "Innovation grants" help students and staff get their ideas off the ground. "Continuation grants" help the rest of the district benefit from their experiences. Innovation/Continuation grants are open to students, teachers and community members within the Elmbrook School District.

The EEF also awards "Super Grants" for larger programs. The Foundation partners with the School District and building principals to identify needed projects that support the District's strategic plan but could not be funded by the current operating budget. This program strives to have a meaningful impact on instruction for the largest possible group of students and is awarded to an entire level of the District (El, MS, HS) vs. an individual school.

Beginning in 2010, the EEF no longer is placing a dollar limit on innovation/continuation grant requests or supergrant proposals. Grant awards will be based solely on the merit of applications received in relation to the total grant budget set by the EEF Board for the given school year.

The Foundation's grant review committee includes Principals and PTO representatives from each level and consults with the district's Chief Information Officer, Chris Thompson, to ensure the Foundation retains a District-wide focus and that grant recipients are able to receive preferred pricing and required technical support.

The EEF's grant program is primarily funded by proceeds from the Foundation's community events and direct donations to the grant program.

For a listing of the specific grants awarded to date, please refer to the Grant History. Please note that the Foundation's grant programs have evolved along with the needs of the District; consequently, past grant awards may not be representative of the types of projects that the Foundation is now supporting. Please refer to the Grant Application page for more information.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON SUPER GRANTS

The first super grant was developed in partnership with the District and the principals at both High Schools. It resulted in a Technology Grant of $15,000 to each High School to fund Technology Projects that were long overdue but could not be funded out of the District/Building Operating Budget nor the PTO. Ryan Kolter (BCHS, Class of 2009) produced an EEF Documentary Video to summarize the impact of these grants.

In 2009, the Foundation partnered with the District and the principals at both Middle Schools to develop the focus of the next Super Grant. The 'Middle School Math Technology Grant' will fund $30,000 in SMART Response systems to benefit the implementation of the new Middle School math curriculum. Please refer to the following article entitled Foundation Engages Middle School Students with SMART Response for more information.

Once the Middle School Math Technology Super Grant campaign is complete, the Foundation plans to work on a Super Grant for the Elementary Schools.