Catalyst for Change

Grants are awarded to teacher and schools at the $2,000 – $5,000 level for innovative projects specifically focused one of the following priority areas: Career/Technical Education, Literacy, Low-Performing Students, Teaching Quality/Improving Classroom Instruction, Increasing Graduation Rates and/or Student Resiliency.

The application should be completed by using AwardSpring. The application cycle for the 2025-2026 school year is now closed. The next cycle for Catalyst for Change applications will open in July, with applications due in September 2026.

Apply

Who May Apply

Individual teachers, teams of teachers, principals, and other educators (e.g., guidance counselors, media specialists) may apply on behalf of their school and district-level staff.

Click the links below to view summaries of past Catalyst for Change funded projects, examples of successful applications, and terminology to help you with getting your desired project results.

Resources to Use When Applying

The Florida Gap Map from the Florida Chamber of Commerce
Creating Strategic Impacts from The Florida Department of Education
Using EduData in Program Planning from the Consortium of Florida Education Foundations
Maximizing Your Classroom STEM Investments from the Consortium of Florida Education Foundations
Outputs and Outcomes from the Florida Consortium of Education Foundations
2020-2021 Catalyst for Change Project Review from The Education Foundation of Alachua County

Projects

Mid-Year Report Highlights for Catalyst for Change Grants awarded in the 2024-2025 School Year

6 STEM grants at $27,598.14, 13 Traditional grants at $47,430.58, and 5 district projects at $23,500 for a total of $98,528.72

Supporting the Growth of Buchholz Robotics Club

Jessica Campbell, Buchholz High School, $4160.00 2 teachers, 25 students

The Buchholz VEX Robotics Club, re-founded in 2021-22 by motivated students, competes in the high school VEX VRC league. Despite initial successes, including placing 11th in the Regional Championship, the club faces financial challenges in competing against well-funded teams. With limited resources, student dues cover less than half of one team’s registration fee, and attempts to secure local sponsorships have failed. The club aims to expand, enhancing STEM engagement in line with the district’s goal to increase student participation in STEM programs by 10%. This grant helps fund essential equipment, including a pneumatics kit and portable field perimeter, and cover competition registration fees, allowing for more inclusive participation and forming an additional competitive team.We were very successful in last year’s implementation of our grant, with two of our three teams earning a spot in the state tournament. This year we have added several new members and are officially fielding 4 teams! This year we want to continue that momentum by recruiting more new members, funding at least one out-of-district tournament for every team, and preparing ahead of time for the higher cost of attending the state tournament. We are also hoping to increase participation from the AFROTC program by appointing an official liaison student between the clubs who will help generate interest in that group.

Coastal Engineering PBL

Maureen Shankman, Santa Fe High School, $4964.66 2 teachers, 120 students

Students (120 students grades 9-12) enrolled in Biology and AICE Marine Science will participate in a coastal engineering project where students will evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the 4 major world-wide coastlines including: sandy shore, coral reef, mangrove forests, and rocky shores. Working with UF professors Dr Gurley and Jeremy Waisome at the College of Engineering students have guidance to create their model coastlines and test them at the Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure (NHERI) at the University of Florida. The NHERI facility has a wind tunnel where students’ models will be placed to determine the viability of their coastlines and the impact that has on the human population. Similarly, the students will work with staff from UF IFAS at Seahorse Key in Cedar Key, Florida to witness the biological and physical aspects of a coastline that already exists with structures impacted by natural hazards. Upon completion, students’ scores will increase by 10% on the Biology End of Course Assessment and the Cambridge College Level Assessment. Student engagement is the key, and with an exciting project such as this, they are more likely to attend school which will help increase the attendance rate by 10%.

Improving Literacy Skills Through STEM Education

Kerry Vellake, Meadowbrook Elementary School, $4,500.00 7 teachers, 820 students

This project is designed to bring STEM opportunities and hands-on science learning to all the 5th grade students at Meadowbrook Elementary. This project will allow each 5th grade student to attend a 45 minute STEM Lab class every 6 days on a rotating basis. The STEM Lab will be a part of the 5th grade Resource Rotation (Art, Music, PE, etc.) There will be one teacher, the STEM Lab teacher, who will be in charge of teaching the curriculum and collecting data. This project has the potential to increase literacy skills, math skills, and science literacy across all of the 5th grade classrooms. There will also be opportunities throughout the remainder of the school day for Kdg.-4th grade classes to engage in STEM instruction in the lab.This project will address the need for more opportunities for hands-on science with our 5th grade students. This project will also address the need of increasing our 5th grade proficiency scores of the ELA, Math, and Science standards. Many of our students do not come in with the background knowledge that they need to successfully navigate the 5th grade science standards. A large portion of the time in the regular science classroom is spent working on building the background knowledge and vocabulary. This often does not leave time for hands-on activities and projects. By having a separate dedicated time and space for STEM lessons and hands-on science I am hoping to engage the students with the content in new ways. By comparing our schools FAST and FSSA data from the 2023-2024 school year to the 2024-2025 school year I will be able to determine if the project was successful in meeting our needs of increasing student mastery in ELA, Math, and Science proficiency and also decreasing the achievement gap.

Inspiring Mathematics Performance through Aerospace Topics Integration

Rachael Hartley, Resilience Charter School, $3,750.00 2 teachers, 100 students

Nearly 70% of students at RCS require foundational skills math courses due to low scores on the FAST mathematics exam. Students struggle to understand and apply grade level concepts, especially when asked to make real-world connections. The mathematics teachers are tackling these barriers from the research-based approach that real-world connections strengthen student interest and performance by integrating aerospace engineering into the mathematics curriculum as a motivating factor. This integration will show students how the math they are learning in their classes is foundational math for arguably the greatest feat of human engineering – space travel and research. Students will apply the knowledge they gain from the program to hands-on projects involving model rocketry that directly integrate aerospace engineering principles into their math classes. Problems from NASA’s Space Math booklets will be regularly incorporated into instruction as students investigate careers in aerospace engineering and science. Through NASA’s Surprisingly STEM videos, students will gain an understanding of the careers available within the aerospace engineering field, and investigate how mathematics is part of the foundational study for these careers. The culmination of the project provides students with the highest growth on their FAST math test an opportunity to visit the Kennedy Space Center.

Alachua County Teacher Leadership Council

Mission

To identify, recruit, and edify teacher leaders via outreach efforts to school based leadership teams. Relevant professional development initiatives will be offered at the school level and district level which will encompass on site activities as well as follow-up activities to reinforce skills fostering growth in leadership.