PURPOSE

The Manassas City Public Schools Education Foundation (MCPSEF) is a nonprofit organization committed to improving student achievement in the Manassas community. The Foundation sponsors the Teachers’ Grants program to encourage educators to identify and develop innovative solutions to educational challenges.

It is the pleasure of the MCPSEF to offer grant opportunities to the Manassas City Public Schools Division. In fulfillment of our mission, we work to provide financial assistance to the schools to assist in educating the children of Manassas.

TIMELINE
There is one cycle for the 2016-2017 school year. The schedule for Grant requests is as follows:

Teachers’ Grant Application Deadlines / Due to Building Principal: November 4, 2016
Due to MCPSEF: November 18, 2016
Decision communicated to applicants / January 13, 2017

Please note: Late entries will not be accepted

ELIGIBILITY

Any employee of Manassas City Public Schools is eligible to apply for funding from MCPSEF. Collaboration is encouraged; applicants may apply individually or as team members. Proposed projects may benefit individual classrooms, an entire school, a cluster of schools, or the School Division.

Applications for continuation of current grants will be considered once the current grant has expired, and the final grant report has been submitted and accepted.

GUIDELINES

The MCPSEF Teachers’ Grants program seeks to support the broader school improvement agenda. Successful applications will incorporate elements of school improvement, which directly impact student achievement. All applications should be consistent with School Improvement Plans, Division Strategic Plan and the Virginia Standards of Learning.

MCPSEF is interested in funding innovative projects and ideas; projects that challenge learners to think at higher levels, are cross-curricular, are learner centered, develop 21 century skills, and that achieve outcomes effectively and imaginatively.

Typically, MCPSEF does not fund:

·  Salaries for school division personnel, including substitutes;

·  Transportation portion of program, including field trips (unless integral to the project);

·  Non-instructional expenses such as travel, lodging, or food;

·  Graduate study or study abroad;

·  Activities, events, or projects already completed

·  Not already supported though the Manassas City Public Schools budget

PRIORITIES

MCPSEF seeks innovative projects that challenge students to excel personally and academically, particularly those that are designed to “close the achievement gap.” The Foundation recognizes that many strategies may be employed to accomplish this goal, including those that address family involvement, staff development, student learning, and school-to-business/community partnerships. Most favorable consideration will be given to those projects that have specific performance or outcome measures and can be replicated.

APPLICATION FORMAT and REQUIREMENTS

Applications must be typed on the forms provided on the MCPSEF website or applicants can request a copy via email. Please send your request to . Please use the criteria listed below to submit a completed application to be reviewed by your building principal, Director of Information Technology, Superintendent of Schools, and members of the Manassas City Public Schools Education Foundation.

FINAL REPORT

·  If expanding a project, please attach the final report from the previous year as part of the application process.

·  All previous grantees must have submitted a final report for eligibility in this grant cycle.

SELECTION CRITERIA

·  The application must be completed in entirety.

·  The educational need must be clearly defined and establish connection to developing 21st century life skills.

·  The grant request must be for projects other than those typically funded through the school division or local school budgets.

·  The strategy must be fully described and an action plan included to state:

o  What do you want to achieve by attaining this grant?

o  What are the expected result/s and/or potential impact/s? How will they be measured?

o  What steps will you take to implement your plan?

o  Why is this funding important?

·  Budget is cost efficient and clearly support the project tasks.

·  Grant request must be aligned to school improvement goals

·  Application must be free of educational jargon so that non-educators may easily understand the scope of the project.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

·  Grant funds are released directly to a school or department, not to an individual(s). If the applicant(s) leaves the school or department after the grant has been awarded, the grant remains with the school or department.

·  Any grant involving technology must also be reviewed by the Director of Information Technology. Superintendent of Manassas City Public Schools, Dr. Magouyrk, will review all applications prior to being evaluated by the Education Foundation. Reviewers from the MCPS Education Foundation will be referencing the above selection criteria when evaluating a grant application.

MCPSEF Teachers’ Grants Applications must be submitted to

MCPSEF by November 18, 2016

in order to be considered for this school year’s funding cycle.

APPLICATIONS MAY BE SENT TO:

MCPS Education Foundation, Grants

8700 Centreville Road, Suite 400

Manassas, VA 20110

or email your application to .

Thank you for your interest in submitting a grant request to the MCPS Education Foundation. We are very excited to review your application.

Sincerely on behalf of the Board of Directors,

Zuzana Steen
President


MCPSEF TEACHERS’ GRANTS APPLICATION

q  This grant does not include a request for the purchase of technology. (Approval page Section H)

q  *This grant involves a request for purchase of technology. (Approval page Section H)

A. Summary Information

Project Title:

Contact Person/Title:

School/Department:

Address, City, Zip:

Telephone Number:

E-Mail Address:

Program Location(s):

Grade Level(s) Served:

Area(s): Please check the category that applies.

q  Arts & Humanities
q  Business & Finance
q  Health & Human Services
q  STEM & Technology
q  Leadership
q  Literacy

*Any grant requiring technology components must also be approved by the Director of Information Technology. Please see Approval/Signature Page (Section I) for grant applications involving technology components.

Estimated Number of Participants:

Total Amount Requested: $ ______ by number of participants = $ ______per student.

Project Summary

Briefly summarize your project (This summary will be included in publications if the project is selected):

Will grant funds be used to:

□ Start new project □ Maintain existing project □ Expand existing project

If grant funds are requested to expand or maintain an existing program, please attach the most recent program evaluation. Any grant requiring technology components must also be approved by the Director of Information Technology.

*************************************************************************************

B. Need Statement

Identify the need or issue that the project will address. Explain the impact of the need on the school/community. Identify the target/recipient of project services. Use statistical data to support the need for the project.

C. Project Description

Identify what is to be accomplished or what changes will occur. (Start your sentence with “The purpose of the project is to provide…”. Then briefly describe the project).

Make certain there is a clear link between what is being proposed and how it will address the need that was described in section B.

D. Project Impact

List the anticipated outcomes. What will change as a result of the project? Outcomes are defined as the changes/benefits in skill, knowledge, behavior, attitude, condition, status or awareness that participants experience as a result of project activities. What are the metrics by which this program’s success will be measured? Delineated metrics are required for the processing of this application.

E. Project Timeline

Use the table below to describe the activities/events required to meet your desired outcomes, including target dates.

Activity/Event Target Completion Date

F. Project Evaluation

How will this project be evaluated? Explain what will be measured, who will do it, and what methods or instruments will be used. Describe how the results will be used to improve the project. A clear connection should be maintained with the need that was identified in section B and the outcomes anticipated in section D.

Note: MCPSEF requires completion of the Final Report for Grant Recipients at the end of the grant period. In addition, a final interview may be required for selected projects.

G. Project Funding

Identify how MCPSEF dollars will be used. Indicate the impact of partial funding on the delivery of the program. Indicate how successful projects will continue without further Foundation funding. Attach a detailed budget listing the materials, equipment and/or resources needed to carry out the project. Be specific.

H. Approvals/Signatures for Grants NOT involving technology

We, the undersigned, authorize the submission of this grant application to MCPSEF and confirm that the information contained herein is accurate.

Participant #1: ______Date:______

Participant #2: ______

Participant #3: ______
Participant #4: ______

Principal: ______Date:______

Principal’s signature certifies that this project is approved

AND will be supported in its implementation.

Superintendent: ______Date:______

MCPSEF Received: ______Date: ______

I. Approvals/Signatures for Grants involving technology

We, the undersigned, authorize the submission of this grant application to MCPSEF and confirm that the information contained herein is accurate.

Participant #1: ______

Participant #2: ______

Participant #3: ______
Participant #4: ______

Principal’s signature allowing evaluation of the proposed project by the Director of Information Technology:

Signature: ______Date: ______

Principal’s signature certifies that this project is approved

AND will be supported in its implementation.

All technologies utilized for the proposed grant must function with, interoperate with, and be in accordance with current MCPS hardware and software standards supported by the Department of Information Technology and Instructional Technology. Any proposals including technologies new to MCPS are subject to further review prior to Information Technology approval of the grant application. Current technology standards are published online at: http://www.mcpsva.org/pages/Manassas_City_Public_Schools/Departments/Technology_Services/standards

______Approved ______Not Approved

Comments:

Director of Information Technology: ______Date: ______

Principal: ______Date: ______

Superintendent: ______Date: ______

MCPSEF Received: ______Date: ______

8700 Centreville Road, Suite 400, Manassas, Virginia 20110 | 571-377-6014 MCPSEdFoundation.org