New Funding Opportunities for Ohio

There are three new grants available for Ohio that help bring technology into the classroom, and we wanted to give you some details about them.  

Straight A Fund

The Straight A Fund was created by Governor John R. Kasich last summer to enable schools to improve innovation in the classroom. The application period for the next round of the $250 million grant is this spring. Funds will be provided to Ohio educational institutions that are trying new approaches such as:

• Meeting the learning needs of students
• Reducing the cost of running a school or school district
• Driving more dollars to the classroom

The intent to apply period ends March 7, 2014, and the deadline for submitting an application is April 3, 2014. Most of the grant recipients from the first round were focused on 1:1 initiatives, blended learning, earning college credit during high school, district-owned virtual education, and virtual courseware to replace textbooks. Additional application information can be found on the Ohio Department of Education website.

eTextbook Pilot Program

The Ohio Electronic Textbook Pilot project will be awarding $3 million in grants to public and chartered nonpublic schools in fiscal year 2014 for the purchase of digital texts, electronic educational content, or professional development and training materials. The first phase of application submissions ends March 7, 2014. There will be additional phases in summer and fall of 2014 as well. To apply, visit iLearnOhio.

Grow Rural Education

America’s Farmers Grow Rural Education program focuses on rural public school districts that are improving their math and science programs. Schools from 39 different states, including Ohio, can apply for either $10,000 or $25,000 merit-based grants to enhance their math and/or science programs. To encourage participation from the farming community, each district needs to be nominated by a local farmer before they can apply. Farmers must nominate their school district by April 6, 2014, and funding will be announced in August. For more details visit America’s Farmers website.

Application Assistance

These are three great grants that incorporate the use of educational technology in the classroom. Edmentum has helped other districts to win grant funding to implement 1:1 initiatives, digital curriculum conversions, individualized learning programs, virtual academies, adaptive intervention solutions, third grade reading preparation, and more. If you are interested in applying for any of these grants to use with Edmentum solutions, we are happy to assist you with the grant application process. If you’d like more information or grant assistance, you can find your Edmentum representative information on our Ohio webpage.