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NEA Foundation News Releases
The NEA Foundation, Microsoft-US Partners in Learning Seek Solutions Using Technology to Engage Students
Monday, January 23, 2012
How can interactive technology and game-based learning help students learn? In its latest Challenge to Innovate (C2i) initiative, the NEA Foundation has partnered with Microsoft – US Partners in Learning to encourage public school educators to explore, share, and discuss their responses to this question on the Department of Education’s Open Innovation Portal.
The NEA Foundation Awards $1M for Union-District Plans
Friday, November 4, 2011
The NEA Foundation today announced that it has awarded grants to partnerships of local education associations, school districts, and community leaders for five-year $1.25 million action plans to use progressive, union-led policy and practice to improve student achievement.
The NEA Foundation Names Four New Board Members
Thursday, October 27, 2011
The NEA Foundation today announced four new members named to its board of directors: Donna Meacham Blackman, Vice President, Finance for Marriott International; Crystal Brown, Vice President of Widmeyer Communications; Lola Kelly, a high school educator; and John C. Stocks, Executive Director of the National Education Association.
Union-District Leadership Teams focused on Student Achievement by Sharing Policies and Practices Being Used to Improve Teaching
Friday, October 14, 2011
Fifteen union-district partnership teams, all supported by the NEA Foundation, met from Oct. 12-14 in Columbus, Ohio, to share and build upon approaches that teachers, their unions, district administrators, and communities have created and are using to improve the quality of teaching and student performance.
Five Educators to Receive National Education Award
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Five educators will receive The Horace Mann Award for Teaching Excellence, $10,000, and recognition as one of the nation’s top educators at the NEA Foundation’s Salute to Excellence in Education Gala to be held on Feb. 10, 2012 in Washington, D.C.
California Casualty Awards for Teaching Excellence
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
The NEA Foundation today announced that California Casualty is the title sponsor for one of the nation’s most prestigious awards for public educators, to be known as the California Casualty Awards for Teaching Excellence. Public school educators who are selected for this honor will be recognized at the NEA Foundation’s Salute to Excellence in Education in Washington, DC on February 10, 2012.
35 Educators to Receive National Recognition with The California Casualty National Education Award
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
The NEA Foundation today announced the names of the 35 public school educators who will receive the California Casualty Awards for Teaching Excellence, one of the nation’s most prestigious awards for public educators. These educators will be honored at the NEA Foundation’s Salute to Excellence in Education Gala to be held in Washington, DC on February 10, 2012. Known as the Academy Awards of public education, the gala attracts more than 850 of the nation’s leaders from public education, philanthropy, and the private sector.
The NEA Foundation Partners with Nickelodeon’s The Big Help to Award $169K in Grants to Educators
Thursday, May 19, 2011
The NEA Foundation announced today that it is partnering with Nickelodeon’s The Big Help to award 41 grants totaling $169,000 to support public school educators’ efforts to increase academic achievement and strengthen their own practice. The grants of $2,000 or $5,000 will be awarded to educators in 24 states.
The NEA Foundation Funds Union-District Plans to Close Achievement Gaps in Nebraska and Florida
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
The NEA Foundation announced today that it will build on the success of its Closing the Achievement Gaps Initiative by awarding a public education partnerships in Lee County, Fla. and Omaha, Neb. $50,000 planning grants. The partnerships, comprised of leaders from the local education association, school district, and community partners will use the funding to support joint work that will improve the quality of instruction to increase achievement rates for low income and minority students, while raising performance for all students.
The NEA Foundation Asks How Mobile Phone Technology Can Transform Teaching and Learning
Monday, April 4, 2011
Through its newest C2i challenge, the NEA Foundation in partnership with the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) wants to know how mobile phone technology can be used to transform teaching and learning. The Foundation will award up to five individuals $1,000 for the best ideas posted on the C2i page on the U.S. Department of Education’s Open Innovation Portal.
Educators Receive $2,500 from the NEA Foundation for Solutions to Classroom Challenges
Friday, March 25, 2011
Four educators have received $2,500 awards from the NEA Foundation for sharing their solutions to classroom challenges through the NEA Foundation’s Challenge to Innovate (C2i). C2i is an incentive-driven networking site open to public school educators and others with an interest in improving public education by offering solutions to pressing classroom challenges.
Union and District Leaders Help Lead National Collaborative Effort to Improve Student Learning
Thursday, March 10, 2011
The NEA Foundation has selected 12 teams of teacher union and school district leaders from across the country to participate in a national effort to address challenges facing public education. On March 7 and 8, the teams joined the NEA Foundation staff in St. Louis, Mo. for the launch of the NEA Foundation’s Institute for Innovation in Teaching and Learning.
The NEA Foundation Partners with Nickelodeon’s The Big Help to Award $238K in Grants to Educators
Thursday, February 17, 2011
WASHINGTON, DC (February 17, 2011) - The NEA Foundation announced today that it is partnering with Nickelodeon’s The Big Help to award 56 grants totaling $238,000 to support public school educators’ efforts to increase academic achievement and strengthen their own practice. The grants of $2,000 or $5,000 will be awarded to educators in 32 states.
Missouri Educator Receives Top Honor at the NEA Foundation’s Salute to Excellence in Education Gala
Monday, February 14, 2011
On Friday, February 11 at the NEA Foundation’s Salute to Excellence in Education gala, Kathy Steinhoff, a math educator from Columbia, MO, received one of public education’s top honors: The NEA Member Benefits Award for Teaching Excellence and $25,000.
Adora Svitak to Receive the NEA Foundation Award for Outstanding Service to Public Education
Friday, February 11, 2011
On February 11, when Adora Svitak walks on stage at the NEA Foundation’s annual Salute to Excellence in Education Gala, she may be smaller in stature than the other awardees. But she will take home one of public education’s highest honors, The NEA Foundation Award for Outstanding Service to Public Education, which recognizes a commitment to advancing public education. And she will be accompanied by one of her favorite teachers, Julie Vindivich, who couldn’t be prouder of her star student.
The NEA Foundation to Honor Pearson Foundation for Commitment to Education
Monday, February 7, 2011
The Pearson Foundation helps teachers, schools, academic leaders and local communities do all they can to help young people succeed. For this work, the organization will receive the NEA Foundation Award for Philanthropy in Public Education. One of public education’s most prestigious honors, the award will be presented on February 11, 2011 at the NEA Foundation’s Salute to Excellence in Education gala in Washington, DC.
The NEA Foundation Hires Liz Dunning as Director of Programs
Friday, January 21, 2011
The NEA Foundation today announced that Liz Dunning has been named its new Director of Programs. She will guide the design, implementation, and management of programs affecting the Foundation’s mission and activities to strengthen public education reform.
Seattle Students to Study in the Middle East or China
Monday, November 29, 2010
Up to a dozen Seattle high school students will spend next summer studying abroad in the Middle East or China, thanks to a grant from the NEA Foundation. “Study abroad inspires students’ curiosity about and knowledge of their world and gives them a competitive edge in today’s workforce,” said the NEA Foundation President and CEO, Harriet Sanford. “The NEA Foundation supports powerful educational experiences, like these, that nurture the holistic development of students because we believe they better prepare students to learn and thrive in the 21st century.”
Educators from 40 States Identify Most Pressing Classroom Problems; Solve Them and Receive $2,500
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Educators from more than 40 states responded to the NEA Foundation Challenge to Innovate’s (C2i) call to post their most pressing classroom problems and to form a virtual community where their views and experiences are being shared, discussed, evaluated, and rewarded.
The NEA Foundation Awards $252K in Grants to Educators
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
The NEA Foundation announced today that it is awarding 57 grants totaling $252,000 to support public school educators’ efforts to improve student achievement and strengthen their own practice. The grants, of $2,000 or $5,000, were awarded to educators in 33 states.
The NEA Foundation Names New Board Officers, Members
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Elizabeth Oliver-Farrow, Chairman and CEO of The Oliver Group, has been named Chair of the NEA Foundation Board of Directors. Mark Chichester, Executive Vice President of Atlas Research LLC Group, has been named Vice-Chair.
The NEA Foundation Announces $1000 Challenge to Educators: Identify Your Most Pressing Classroom Problem
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
WASHINGTON, DC (September 7, 2010) - Beginning Sept. 7, the NEA Foundation, in partnership with the US Department of Education, is inviting all public school educators to join the Department’s Open Innovation Portal community to identify and solve education’s most pressing classroom problems. The NEA Foundation will provide cash awards for the best responses
NEA Foundation Awarded $550K to Develop National Model for Service-Learning
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
School begins this year in Columbus, Ohio, with the kick-off of “Bringing Learning to Life,” a teacher-led project to create a model of K-12 service-learning — using academic knowledge to solve real-life problems — that can be replicated nationwide. Service-learning has long been recognized as an effective strategy for motivating students. Evidence is mounting that it also improves academic performance, raises high school graduation rates, and encourages students to aspire to a college education. Spearheaded by NEA’s Public Engagement Project, the endeavor has been awarded an initial grant of $550,000 from Learn and Serve America, a part of the Corporation for National and Community Service, the U.S. government agency that also houses Americorps and Vista.
The NEA Foundation Awards $217K in Grants to Educators
Monday, June 28, 2010
WASHINGTON, DC (June 28, 2010) -- The NEA Foundation announced today that it is awarding 50 grants totaling $217,000 to support public school educators' efforts to improve student acheivement and to strengthen their own practice. the grants, of $2,000 and $5,000, were awarded to educators in 28 states.
NEA Foundation Names Nation's Top 31 Educators
Monday, June 28, 2010
WASHINGTON, DC (June 28, 2010) -- The NEA Foundation today released the names of 31 educators who will receive the 2011 The NEA Foundation Awards for Teaching Excellence, a prestigious national honor and public education’s only peer-nominated award that recognizes both outstanding instruction and advocacy for the profession.
NEA Foundation Hires Betty Paugh-Ortiz as Director of Innovation and Strategic Partnerships
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
The NEA Foundation announced today the hire of Betty Paugh-Ortiz as Director of Innovation and Strategic Partnerships. In this newly created position, Paugh-Ortiz will lead the development and advancement of innovation initiatives that support the mission of the NEA Foundation. She will initially invite educators to identify innovative solutions to instructional practices as well as provide opportunities for the public to support educator efforts to close the student achievement gaps.
Burt’s Bees Recognizes Innovative Public Educators
Friday, May 7, 2010
Thirty-eight of the nation’s top educators, selected by their state associations, received the Burt’s Bees Greater Good Foundation Awards for Teaching Excellence at the NEA Foundation’s annual Salute to Excellence in Public Education Gala held in Washington, DC on April 30. Gala honorees also included Nickelodeon and Jane Goodall, and the night’s eco-friendly production was emceed by Philippe Cousteau, CEO of EarthEcho International, Correspondent for Planet Green, and Spokesperson for Discovery Education.
Utah Educator Receives Top Honor at the NEA Foundation's Salute to Excellence in Education Gala
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
On Friday, April 30, at the NEA Foundation's Salute to Excellence in Education Gala, Salt Lake City educator, Sharon Gallagher-Fishbaugh, received the top honor, the $25,000 NEA Member Benefits Award for Teaching Excellence. At this annual celebration of the men and women who work in America's public schools, the Foundation presented more than 40 awards to exceptional educators and dedicated supporters.
NEA Foundation Applauds Educational Philanthropy
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Nickelodeon will receive The NEA Foundation Award for Philanthropy in Public Education for its commitment to children and to education at its annual Salute to Excellence in Education Gala to be held in Washington, DC on April 30, 2010. This award recognizes businesses and philanthropic organizations for their significant commitment to improving public education or supporting public schools, students, and educators.
Washington Educator Receives the NEA Foundation’s Inaugural Green Prize in Public Education
Monday, April 19, 2010
The NEA Foundation presented Mike Town, a high school environmental science teacher at Redmond High School in Redmond, Wash., with its inaugural Green Prize in Public Education, which includes a $25,000 award and national recognition. Town was selected to receive this honor for his Cool School Challenge program and curriculum that has helped students, teachers, and school districts reduce more than 1.5 million pounds of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions in over 150 schools.
NEA Foundation Celebrates Efforts in Hamilton County to Improve Student Achievement
Monday, March 22, 2010
WASHINGTON, DC -- An $8.5 million effort to boost achievement for Hamilton County middle school students is being recognized and celebrated as a national model by the NEA Foundation at an event in Chattanooga, Tenn. today. The effort began in 2004, when the Foundation awarded a $2.5 million, five-year grant to a partnership of the Hamilton County Education Association, Hamilton County schools, and the Public Education Foundation. The efforts have led to improvement in student test scores and classroom instruction.
NEA Foundation Awards $211K in Grants to Educators
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
The NEA Foundation announced today that it is awarding 50 grants totaling $211,000 to support public school educators’ efforts to improve student achievement or strengthen their own skills. The grants, of $2,000 or $5,000, were awarded to educators in 33 states.
NEA Foundation Awards $3.75M to Close Achievement Gaps in Three Communities
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Three partnerships bringing together the local education association, the school district, and community leaders, each have been selected by the NEA Foundation to participate in a five-year, $1.25 million effort to transform sets of the nation’s most challenged schools into local and national models for teaching and learning as part of the Foundation’s Closing the Achievement Gaps Initiative. The partnerships selected to receive funding are: Columbus, Ohio; Springfield, Mass.; and Durham, N.C.
GE Foundation Awards $1M to Fund NEA Foundation’s Institute for Local Innovation in Teaching & Learning
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
The NEA Foundation announced today that it has received a $1 million, two-year grant from the GE Foundation to support the launch of the NEA Foundation’s Institute for Local Innovation in Teaching and Learning. The Institute, which is also funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, will serve as a capacity-building engine for collaboration and reform between education unions and their school districts.
New England College Celebrates Founders Day; NEA Foundation President and Alum Serves as Keynote Speaker
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
The New England College community will celebrate Founders’ Day 2010 on Tuesday, January 26 at 11:30 a.m. in the Field House. The keynote speaker is Harriet Sanford, a graduate of the NEC Class of 1974 and the President and CEO of the NEA Foundation. Ms. Sanford will receive the honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree.
NEA Foundation’s Institute for Local Innovation in Teaching & Learning Plan Awarded $358K from Gates
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
The NEA Foundation announced today a $358,000 grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to plan the creation of the Institute for Local Innovation in Teaching and Learning. The Institute will serve as a capacity-building engine for collaboration and reform between education unions and their school districts.
NEA Foundation Awards $1.12 M to Close Gaps
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
The NEA Foundation announced today that it is funding $1.12 million for projects in Milwaukee, Wis., Seattle, Wash., Connecticut, and rural Ohio. These projects are all part of the Foundation’s signature Closing the Achievement Gaps Initiative, a set of ground breaking union-district partnerships collaborating to develop and implement comprehensive, sustainable approaches to close the achievement gaps and advance academic achievement
The NEA Foundation Awards $234K in Grants to Educators
Friday, October 23, 2009
The NEA Foundation announced today that it is awarding 51 grants totaling $234,000 to support public school educators’ efforts to improve student achievement or strengthen their own skills. The grants, of $2,000 or $5,000, were awarded to educators in 29 states:
NEA Foundation Announces Finalists for National Education Award
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
The NEA Foundation announces today the five national finalists for The NEA Foundation Awards for Teaching Excellence. These five educators will be recognized as the top professionals in their field and the national winner will be announced at the Foundation’s Salute to Excellence in Education awards gala on Feb. 12, 2010 in Washington, DC.
NEA Foundation and Nickelodeon Partner to Award The Big Green Help Grants to Public Schools across the Country
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
The NEA Foundation and Nickelodeon’s The Big Green Help campaign have partnered to award $200,000 in grants to public educators across the country. Forty The Big Green Help Grants in Public Education, ranging up to $5,000 each, will be awarded to support the development and implementation of programs teaching “green” concepts to public elementary and middle school students. The partnership is part of Nickelodeon’s The Big Green Help initiative, which connects kids to energy-saving and earth-friendly activities in their everyday lives, and the NEA Foundation’s grants program that helps prepare the next generation “green” workforce.
NEA Foundation and Staples Foundation for Learning Partner to Award $50,000 in “Green” Grants for Educators
Monday, August 17, 2009
Staples Foundation for Learning (SFFL), a private foundation created by Staples, Inc., today announced it is awarding a $50,000 grant to the NEA Foundation. Funding from SFFL will support Green Grants, a program that provides support for educators to develop and implement ideas, techniques and approaches that integrate environmental education into the classroom to increase student engagement and improve academic achievement.
NEA Foundation Promotes Grant Program; Presents Nobel Prize nominee at 2009 NEA Expo
Friday, July 3, 2009
Thousands of educators visited the NEA Foundation’s booth at the NEA’s 2009 Expo in San Diego to learn more about the Foundation’s grants, for a chance to win an iPod Touch, and to pick up a coveted NEA Foundation “Need a Grant?” bag.
NEA Foundation Funds Five Urban School Districts
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
The NEA Foundation announced today that it will build upon the success of its collaborative Closing the Achievement Gaps Initiative by awarding five urban public education partnerships $50,000 planning grants. These partnerships will develop proposals to demonstrate how they will work together to improve achievement rates for low income and minority students, while raising performance for all students.
NEA Foundation Supports New K-12 Service-Learning Curriculum
Monday, March 16, 2009
Through Greg Mortenson's best-selling Three Cups of Tea and the author's Pennies for Peace organization, thousands of educators are inspiring young people nationwide to raise money to build schools in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The NEA Foundation announced today that educators hoping to join this movement can download a free K-12 service-learning toolkit designed to help them create effective penny-raising campaigns as part of their schools' curriculum.
NEA Foundation Video Provides Detailed Guide to Online Grant Application
Friday, March 13, 2009
The NEA Foundation has posted a video that provides a guided tour and detailed instruction of its new online grants application process for its popular $2,000 and $5,000 Learning & Leadership Grants and its Student Achievement Grants. Applications are accepted, reviewed, and granted three times a year. Deadlines are June 1, October 15, and February 1.
New Grants Support Teaching Improvisation in Middle and High School Music Education
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
The NEA Foundation, in partnership with MENC: The National Association for Music Education, today announced 10 new "Teaching Improvisation Grants," earmarked to support public educators' work to teach improvisation to middle and high school music students. Part of the NEA Foundation's popular Student Achievement and Learning & Leadership grants program, the $2,000 and $5,000 grants will be awarded over the 2009-2010 school year.
Illinois' Effingham High School Teacher Joseph Fatheree 2009 Member Benefits Awardee for Teaching Excellence
Monday, February 9, 2009
lllinois' Effingham High School teacher Joseph Fatheree won top honors at the NEA Foundation's annual Salute to Excellence in Education Friday night, taking home the coveted $25,000 Member Benefits Award for Teaching Excellence and sharing the stage with Cookie Monster, Elmo, and Sesame Street's Bob McGrath in front of 900 leaders from public education, business, philanthropy and the government. The gala, which is held in Washington, DC, is a national celebration of the men and women who work in America's public schools.
NEA Foundation Honors Sesame Workshop, Verizon at February 6 Gala in Washington, DC
Saturday, February 7, 2009
The NEA Foundation presented its inaugural Award for Philanthropy in Public Education to Verizon Communications and its 2009 Award for Outstanding Service to Public Education to Sesame Workshop at its annual Salute to Excellence in Education awards gala held on February 6 at the National Museum Building in Washington, DC. Known as the Academy Awards for public education, the Foundation's gala attracted more than 900 leaders from public education, business, philanthropy and the government.
NEA Foundation Applauds Educational Philanthropy
Monday, January 19, 2009
The NEA Foundation announced today that it will present its inaugural Philanthropy in Public Education Award to Verizon Communications in recognition of the company's support of public education and literacy.
NEA Foundation Announces Grants for Technology Teaching
Monday, December 15, 2008
The NEA Foundation's Board Chair, Lauri Fitz-Pegado, Partner of The Livingston Group, announced the receipt of a bequest to the Foundation from the estate of Corene Griffin, of Malibu, CA. The gift will total over $181,000 and will support technology in education.