DO YOU HAVE A GREAT IDEA FOR THE NORTHAMPTON SCHOOLS?
The NEF Endowment Fund has up to $35,000 available for grants for the academic year. Over the past ten years, grants have financed a wide range of programs and projects in the Northampton schools, including: a three year garden project in all four elementary schools, support for a multi-disciplinary group of NHS teachers to prepare modified Biology and Math curricula, and a collaboration between the Northampton Schools and the Hitchcock Center to develop an exciting new curriculum about energy. This year, the Endowment Fund is seeking to fund one to three innovative projects aimed at having a lasting impact on our schools. We encourage new participants and, while we welcome proposals across all spectrums, we are particularly interested in projects based on the theme of Building a Hopeful Future. We hope this theme sparks creative ideas that will enhance our students’ educational experience!
A Proposal May be Submitted by Any Group or Individual with Demonstrated Support from School Personnel.
We are seeking proposals with the following attributes:
- Innovation – A proposed project should bring something new and different to current practice or curricula in Northampton schools. (Applicants may be asked to demonstrate that an approach or technique is supported by research.)
- Broad Based –We prefer programs affecting large numbers of students, such as system-wide, school-wide, multi-grade programs, or those involving multiple schools.
- Enduring and Continuing Impact – We favor programs that create lasting benefits to students, curriculum and programming that enrich, enhance and support the goals and priorities of the Northampton School Department and the School Councils.
Your preliminary proposal of no more than five pages must be submitted by March 1st and should include the following information:
- A succinct description of your project.
- Identification of the group or individual making the proposal.
- Identification of the school or schools the program will target.
- A statement of when the program will begin and how long it will last.
- Identification of the school personnel who support your proposal.
- An assessment of the resources needed for the project.
- An outline of your preliminary budget.
- A description of your project’s value to Northampton Schools.
- A description of the continuing and lasting contribution your project will make.
- An explanation of how you will measure and assess this program.
The NEF Endowment Fund Distribution Committee will screen preliminary proposals. If your proposal is selected for review, Committee members may work with you to refine your final submission. Finalists will present their proposals to the Distribution Committee. We will announce awards by the end of this school year.
Send proposals electronically to: Stan Schapiro at joanandstan@gmail.com. If you have further questions feel free to contact us.
The Endowment Distribution Committee will review proposals and make recommendations to the NEF Board on what proposals should be funding from the NEF Endowment Fund and for how much . This committee consists of a parent representative from each school, one or two students from Northampton High School, Northampton public school alumni, community members (i.e., Northampton residents who are not parents, teachers, or students), and members of the NEF Board. The NEF Board will take the committee’s recommendation and make the final decisions regarding funding of all projects.
Reporting and Monitoring Progress
Grantees are expected to provide an annual report to the Distribution Committee describing their accomplishments and their progress towards fulfilling the goals of the proposal. For multi-year projects, the annual report will also include plans to further meet the goals and any modifications of the project.