Looking for additional funds for your classroom? How do you get started? If you ask, will they give? Following are some hints and ideas for making a compelling case. 

Donations from a local company can come in the form of In-kind Goods/Services, such as printing up tee-shirts for a sports team or donating a computer, or Cash. If you can succinctly state your need and the reasons why a business should help out ("what's in it for them"), a local company might just match your project funds. 

Remember, the folks that sell it might not be the best ones to approach to give it. A business that is seemingly unrelated to your project might be just the one that gives. For example, say you need flower seeds and clay pots. If the local garden shop turns down your request for a donation, try your insurance broker or branch bank for cash to help buy what you need.

Before you head out to talk to local business people, friends and family about why they should want to donate to your classroom, take a few minutes to develop your tools. We recommend coming up with an "elevator speech" and writing a solicitation letter before talking to prospective funders. 

The "elevator speech" is a brief, carefully constructed statement used by sales people, entrepreneurs and job seekers to tell people the most important information quickly. Click on Ride an Elevator to Fame and Fortune to read about the six elements of an "elevator speech" and to try out their "elevator speech" generator which you can adapt to your situation and print out.

Where are your "elevators"? Where will you run into folks who can help you out…the gym? A PTA meeting? The grocery store? The bowling alley? A neighborhood cookout? It's all fair game.

Preparing short solicitation letters for a foundation, a corporation, or a local civic group can be more difficult in some respects than writing a big proposal. This letter should relay the request and describe the project and its outcomes concisely, but persuasively. 

There are some common elements to successful proposal letters, whether submitted to a foundation, a corporation, or a local civic group. Follow the link for advice on drafting your solicitation letter (look under Chapter Four in the Table of Contents) prepared by the by the National Clearinghouse on Families & Youth. Included are examples of good and not-so-good letters.

There is plenty of information on the Internet about grants and how to apply for them. It is a tough funding climate right now, so the better prepared you are, the better your chances. On the right side of this page are some web sites to start off your search. Your first stop should be the SchoolGrants web site (http://www.schoolgrants.org). It is tailored to the education field and very easy to use. 

Don't forget the power of looking locally. There are thousands of small private or community-based foundations that give smaller grants in their region. For example, as part of the Business-School Partnership program, every ExxonMobil gas station gets $500 a year to give locally for education projects, on a first-come, first-serve basis. Ask about it at your next fill-up!

To find foundations in your region, search at the Foundation Center's web site (http://fdncenter.org/). On the left side of the page, look for the "Foundation Finder" button. Then pick "Grantmaker Websites" - a list will appear underneath this section with the following choices: Private Foundations, Corporate Foundations, Grantmaking Public Charities and Community Foundations. Clicking on any of those choices will bring up a search field. Search for your state or city first. That will bring up foundations that are based there as well as those that give to programs in your region. When you check out a foundation web site, first look to see if they give money to education projects. 

Talk to your school district grants office or check the district web page to see if anyone has compiled a list of local grant and donation resources.

If you or your school district are thinking about applying for an National Science Foundation Grant, be sure to review the NSF "A Guide for Proposal Writing" which is available on-line as a .pdf doc or in HTML format. GuideStar.org provides a grantwriting tips and wisdom in its "Grantwriting 102: Tips from Successful Grantwriters" feature.

If you are thinking about developing a bigger grant project, don't wait until you sit down to write proposal to plan the project. There's great project planning basics information at Plan Your Project from the Tucson-Pima Public Library that will help you get organized. Get the scoop from a grant-seeking pro with David G. Bauer's Grantseeking Primer for Classroom Leaders. Another helpful article about what a grant can and can not do for your school/district/classroom is "Why grants don't cover operating expenses".

The Let's Write Your Grant to Win You $$$! Guidebook (.pdf) is a great tool for planning and writing your proposal. The guide which has clear and simple directions and worksheets was developed for a grant writing workshop given by The K12 Explorers Guild of  Foundations for the Future (F3), a Georgia-based group with a focus on technology access and effective use in school systems.

Another valuable tool is the APS "Planning an Effective Program Evaluation" web site and CD-ROM! Evaluation provides formative feedback that helps guide a program as it is being implemented. It also provides summative data that clearly demonstrates that the program is accomplishing its stated goals and objectives. Funders are as interested in the assessment and evaluation of how their money was spent as you are in your students' work and progress. 

The Funding Center section of the eSchool News web site is a rich resource, especially for technology funding. Features include upcoming grant deadlines, funding news and advice on planning and writing your grant proposal. A recent article provides advice for school districts on "How to find grants if you're not very poor". Even if your district has relatively favorable socioeconomic standing, the author highlights ways to help funders see that populations or programs within your school/district are deserving of financial support.

While you're on the eSchool News site, be sure to check out Deborah Ward's latest article. Her articles are full of great tips and advice culled from her own experience as a grant writer. Here's a good one about beating grant deadlines: http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showfundStory.cfm?ArticleID=5545.

Useful Sites

"Business needs to help students in the classroom" 

Article to print out and take with you when you "pitch" a local business. 

"Sources of Funding for Technology in the Classroom"  

Article with links and ideas for funding sources other than grants. 

iLoveSchools.com is a free matchmaking service for education! Teachers request materials and supplies while school supporters search for a school in need of their gifts of money, new or used goods or other educational supplies. iLoveSchools.com supports any institution that educates children, including pre-schools, home schools and private and public schools.

SchoolGrants

Excellent site with tons of resources that offers a vast array of information to elementary and secondary school grant seekers at no cost.

eSchool News' Grants and Funding Clearinghouse

Register for on-line section for free to explore ongoing grant awards and opportunities and get insights on grant seeking. 

eSchool News' Finding Technology Funding is a rich resource for technology grant sources and tips. Scroll past the News section to get to the good stuff.

Teachers Network's Grants: "How To"

This nationwide, non-profit education organization has lots of resources. They also list specific grants in the Science and Technology sections.

Great Grant-Related Links

Compiled by the South Washington County Schools in Minnesota

A source of lots of information about grants, awards and fellowships…you just have to dig it out. When you click on the NSTACalendar section of their web site, look on the right side of the page for "Events by Category." Check under Awards/ Competitions and Grants/ Fellowships. 

"Living In a Material World" Grant from the ASM International Foundation. The purpose of these grants is to enhance awareness of materials science and the role of materials scientists in society. 

The Jordan Fundamentals Grants are awarded to 6-12th grade teachers in a U.S. public school who also demonstrate instructional creativity and exemplify high learning expectations for economically disadvantaged students.

The ING Unsung Heroes awards program is designed to recognize classroom heroes who "take teaching to new heights and make learning fun." Through the program, financial services company ING annually presents a total of $240,000 in awards to one hundred K-12 educators across the United States to help further their projects within their school or school system.

YES Student and Teacher Competitions

The YES Competitions invites high school teachers from a variety of disciplines to submit models for innovative classroom curricula that incorporate epidemiological methods.

The Braitmayer Foundation funds K-12 education projects throughout the United States.

Best Buy Children’s Foundation's te@ch program will provide a $2,500 Best Buy Gift Card to schools in recognition of programs or projects that creatively integrate interactive technology into the curriculum.

PLUS Vision Corp. has developed a special grant program for primary and secondary schools. Their "Education Spotlight" program gives one projector and an electronic copyboard to a selected school each quarter.

Want a mimio? Each month, the most original, innovative or creative entry that incorporates the use of mimio will win a free one. 

The SMARTer Kids Grant assists educators in purchasing SMART products for their classrooms. Grant amounts are 20% to 70% of the suggested list price.