Deadline: 14-Jan-22
The Gray Family Foundation is now accepting request letters for the 2022 Outdoor School Grant Program.
The Gray Family Foundation’s Outdoor School Grant Program seeks to increase the capacity of schools and outdoor school providers to deliver high quality outdoor school experiences to all Oregon 5th or 6th grade students. Because of the investments, they anticipate:
- more districts and Education Service Districts’ (ESD) will apply for outdoor school programmatic funding from OSU-Extension in future years,
- improved access to outdoor school programs for 5th and 6th students throughout the state,
- systematic integration of environmental education in the K-12 system will increase,
- outdoor school providers will be more prepared to effectively engage and support the diverse populations of Oregor%
- and, the outdoor school experience will increasingly reflect the diverse perspectives, traditions, knowledge and relationships all people in Oregon bring as active stewards of their natural and built environments.
Types of Funding
Gray Family Foundation is accepting three types of funding requests in support of outdoor school:
- Planning grants for schools or districts. These grants will support the planning required to launch or revise an outdoor school program in geographic regions or amongst communities currently with limited or no outdoor school opportunities. Schools, districts or ESDs can submit a request for a planning grant to support launching an outdoor school program with the intention of applying for programmatic funding from Oregon State University (OSU)-Extension in the future.
- Planning grants for outdoor school program providers. Current or prospective outdoor school program providers may request funds to plan how to better serve all 5th and 6th grade Oregon students. Specifically, Gray FF seeks to increase the capacity of program providers to deliver high quality, culturally responsive programming to better serve all Oregon communities.
- Program grants to schools or student groups currently ineligible to apply for OSU Extension outdoor school funding. Gray FF acknowledges that there are limitations of how OSU Extension funds may be distributed which may exclude private, charter and home school students from eligibility. Gray FF will accept requests for programmatic grants to help these students participate in the outdoor school experience.*
*Please note that Gray Family Foundation will be re-evaluating the Outdoor School Grant Program in 2022 and they anticipate that beginning in 2023 the funding priorities in this area may not include support for private/independent schools.
Eligibility Criteria
- The Foundation will consider proposals submitted by schools, districts, colleges, government agencies or 501(c)3 non-profit organizations serving Oregon.
- Any sponsored program provider activities should align with the applying organization’s mission.
For more information, visit https://grayff.org/grants/outdoor-school/