Collier County teachers were surprised by Champions For Learning board members, staff, volunteers and supporters as they received funds for their classroom grants.
During the course of the day, Champions For Learning awarded a record-breaking 280 grant checks that totaled $166,288 to 55 schools in Collier County. The checks will provide teachers with the funds needed to implement creative and innovative learning experiences for their students.
These classroom grants were requested by Collier County teachers through the online grant portal on Champions For Learning’s website. The community can go to the website and fund requests. This online grant program began in 2003 to enable the community to directly support teachers.
“We’re thrilled to be delivering more grant checks than we ever have, a 63% increase in funding,” said Barbara Evans, President & CEO, Champions For Learning. “That says a lot about how much our community supports and appreciates our Collier County teachers, especially while we’re all still recovering from the storm.”
Thanks to a charitable gift from Suncoast Credit Union, which supports the technology and capacity for the classroom grant portal, 100% of community contribution goes into supporting teacher grants.
The following provided significant contributions to fund specific teacher grants: Suncoast Credit Union, Florida License for Learning License Plate Fund, Florida Power & Light (FPL), Harry Debes Family Foundation, Lipman Family Farms, Lucie Jenny MacCarthy Music Fund of the Collier Community Foundation, Naples Luxury Builders, Judith Palay, Perna-Rose Foundation for Hope, Publix Supermarkets Inc, Women In Naples Giving Support (WINGS). This is in addition to numerous contributions from individuals in the community who view and fund grants for which they have an interest.
The community still has an opportunity to provide life-changing learning experiences to students! There are over 100 grants remaining to be funded. Teachers still have an opportunity to submit new grant requests to be considered by the public. Especially now in the wake of Hurricane Ian, teachers may have new post-storm needs.
Click here to fund a Classroom Grant today!
You can also help fund Classroom Grants through the License to Learn Fund (Florida Education Tag). When Collier County residents purchase or renew the Support Education tag, $20 of the annual fee is donated to Champions For Learning and 100% of the funds directly support classroom grants.