Teacher Incentive Grants

• Purpose
• Description
• Eligible Applicants
• Eligible Activities
• Amount of Assistance
• Deadlines
• Criteria for Evaluation
• Application Review and Payment Procedure
• Application

Purpose
To provide financial assistance to classroom teachers (PK-12) to develop creative projects which link the arts with non-arts curricula or non-arts learning objectives.

Description
This grant category offers financial assistance to individual teachers to provide arts resources or programming for a classroom project which links the arts win non-arts curricula. Projects may involve visual art, creative writing, theatre, music, dance or a combination of artistic disciplines.

To read sample project descriptions, click here.

Eligible Applicants
Elementary and secondary classroom teachers, in any discipline, currently employed by Virginia educational institutions (PK-12) which meet the Basic Eligibility criteria may apply for funding through this program. An individual teacher may receive only one grant award during each grant period. More than one teacher in each school is eligible to apply.

NOTE: If for any reason the teacher selected cannot initiate or complete the project described, the funds must be returned to the Virginia Commission for the Arts.

Eligible Activities

• Artists
• Arts Consultants
• Consumable supplies for the arts project described in the proposal

Amount of Assistance

Up to $300

Deadlines
October 15, 2008, for activities between January 1 and June 30, 2009

Criteria for Evaluation

• Arts at the Core - applicants must describe how the arts project will be integrated with non-arts curricula or a non-arts unit of study; cite and describe connections with Virginia’s Standards of Learning objectives in nonarts subjects; describe expected results; describe an artist’s or consultant’s qualifications; and must include a budget detailing expenses and all sources of income.
• Creativity, Innovation, Learning - applicants must describe how/why the project is unusual/unique; the expected benefi ts of the project for participants, and its impact on instruction and the school.

Application Review and Payment Procedure

1. Teachers submit completed application forms and required photocopies by the deadline (not a postmark deadline). The Commission does not accept application materials via facsimile transmission or other electronic means (e.g. e-mail).
2. All Teacher Incentive Grant proposals are reviewed by a statewide panel which makes funding recommendations.
3. The board of the Commission for the Arts makes the fi nal decision on all grant applications.
4. Grant awards will be paid in full by the end of January. Payments to public schools may be made to the school division office.