Naperville Education Foundation
2015-16 Grant Application
Instructions
The Naperville Education Foundation’s mission is “to encourage creativity, innovation, and excellence in
our students” and our purpose is to support the mission and goals of District 203.
Grant proposals may be initiated by students, faculty, staff, parents and community members in District 203.
All proposals must be associated with at least one SD203 school. Proposals are reviewed by teams made up of
NEF Trustees, District 203 faculty, staff and administration, community members and District retirees. The
Naperville Education Foundation Annual Grant Awards are funded by community donations.
The NEF supports projects that correlate to District 203 curriculum including but not limited to the following
areas:
 Cultural Studies
 Math/Science
 Fine Arts
 General (nonspecific to content area but
 Health/Physical Development
aligned to District 203’s mission and vision)
 Literacy
Grants are not awarded for fundraising efforts. All grant applications must be signed by the Principal,
Sponsoring Teacher (if applicable), the Proposal Originator, and the Project Lead—the person primarily
responsible for ensuring that the objectives are met and for submitting the report at the end of the project
year. For awarded grants, it is the responsibility of the student applicants to fully meet the objectives of the
funded project under the supervision of the sponsoring teacher or administrator.
The grant review teams evaluate proposals on the following criteria, weighted equally:
(1) Relevance to district programs
(2) Level of active engagement of students
and effect on student learning
(3) Level of innovation and creativity
(4) Number of students affected
(5) Quality and detail of the evaluation
(6) Clarity of the budget
Please be very specific and provide as many details as possible to assist with the thorough evaluation of your
application by the grant proposal review teams.
IMPT: At the conclusion of your project, you will be required to submit a report consisting of an evaluation form
and financial recap. Please remember to keep any documentation (invoices, receipts, surveys, videos,
photographs, etc.) that may be needed to complete this report. Any unused project funds should be
returned to NEF.
Receiving an NEF grant is normally a one-time funding source. If you are interested in a longer term, multiple
year initiative that aligns with District 203’s strategic plan, please elaborate under question #12.
The Foundation anticipates distributing $45,000 in grants this year. Grant amounts vary. Applicants must
submit the complete application packet: Cover Page, Project Description and Budget. Incomplete applications
will not be considered. Applications are available on our website at www.nef203.org.
Applications will be accepted from January 2, 2016 until February 1, 2016 by 4:00 p.m.
Please submit electronically to NEF at nef@naperville203.org.
Only electronically submitted proposals will be accepted.
Questions? Call Ann E. Spehar, Executive Director, NEF, at (630) 420-3086
2015-16 Grant Application
Cover Page
(1) Project Title:
(2) Project Summary (no more than 3 sentences).
If you are a grant winner, this summary may be used for publicity purposes:
(3) Total requested from the Naperville Education Foundation: $ ______________
(4) Please check the ONE category that best fits your project:
___
___
___
___
___
___
Literacy
Math/Science
Fine Arts
Health/Physical Development
Cultural Studies
General (nonspecific to content area but aligned to District 203’s mission and vision)
(5) Grade(s) proposed project serves:
(6) Name(s) of School(s):
(7) Total number of students affected:
(8) Is this a pilot project?
(9) Technology
NEF may fund the purchase of technology only if it will be essential to implement a new or creative
project in the classroom.
** If your project includes technology—hardware and software—it must be approved by the Department
of Technology. There are two ways to get your project’s technology needs approved by Roger Brunelle,
Chief Information Officer.
1. Email your project description to Roger at rbrunelle@naperville203.org. Attach his approval
response to your application.
2. Meet with Roger (630) 420-6473 to discuss your project. Attach his approval response to your
application.
(10)
Authorizing Signatures (A, B and C are required)
A. Proposal Originator (name of one person submitting this grant proposal)
Name
__________________________________________________
Signature
Date: ____________
__________________________________________________
You are: (Check one, please)
___
Student
___
Parent
___
Staff (includes teachers, administration and support staff)
___
Community Member
B. Project Lead (name of one person implementing the grant at the school)
Name
__________________________________________________
Signature
Date: ____________
__________________________________________________
You are: (Check one, please)
___
Parent
___
Staff (includes teachers, administration and support staff)
___
Community Member
C. Principal
Printed Name
Signature
__________________________________________________
Date: ____________
__________________________________________________
D. Sponsoring Teacher or Administrator (if applicable)
Printed Name
Signature
__________________________________________________
Date: ____________
__________________________________________________
Important: Signatures indicate that the project fits with the
curriculum of the school(s) identified above, and that NEF will be credited on
all project materials, publicity, signage, etc. Suggested credit line: “X was made possible by
community supported Naperville Education Foundation.” Also, that if you are a grant winner,
your name(s) may be used for publicity purposes.
2015-16 Grant Application
Project Description
(11) Define your project.
Consider and answer the following questions:
a. What is your project?
b. What is its purpose—the “problem” it is solving?
c. What is the project’s relationship to existing programs?
d. What is the duration of the project?
e. How is your project above and beyond the current curriculum?
(12) Describe your project’s innovation and/or creativity.
Consider and answer the following questions:
a. How is it different than anything else that might be available?
b. How could it be “scaled up” to be implemented district-wide?
c. If requesting technology, explain how/why it is essential to the success of your project.
(13) Describe the project leaders’ expertise, talents or skills as they relate to the project.
This includes but is not limited to direct experience with a project like this one, volunteer service in classrooms,
or previous professional experience.
(14) Project Evaluation
Consider and answer the following questions:
a. How will you measure the success of your project?
b. How will you connect your results to the NEF mission?
c. Describe the benefits received by the project’s participants.
d. How will you determine that you have accomplished what you’ve proposed?
IMPT: At the conclusion of your project, you will be required to submit a report to NEF consisting of an
evaluation form and financial recap. Please remember to keep any documentation (invoices, receipts,
surveys, videos, photographs, etc.) that may be needed to complete this report. Any unused project
funds should be returned to NEF.
2015-16 Grant Application
Budget
Title of Project:
Detail your items in these categories. BE SPECIFIC. Additional
categories may be added at the end if needed to make your
budget as detailed and clear as possible.
Total
Requested from
NEF
Instructional Supplies: Books, preparation materials, etc. You must
be specific, listing titles and individual cost.
Project materials: Crafts, etc. You must specify types and quantity.
Technology:
Transportation:
Copying/Printing:
Consultants: Artists in residence, writer, etc.
Other: (Detail) Please provide adequate details.
Totals
Total Requested from NEF: $________________
IMPT: At the conclusion of your project, you will be required to submit a report to NEF consisting of an
evaluation form and financial recap. Please remember to keep any documentation (invoices, receipts,
surveys, videos, photographs, etc.) that may be needed to complete this report. Any unused project
funds should be returned to NEF.