Traditional Grants / Educational Leadership Grants / Collaborative Innovation Grants

Traditional Grants / Educational Leadership Grants / Collaborative Innovation Grants is sponsored by Edward E. Ford Foundation. The Edward E.

Ford Foundation aims to improve secondary education by supporting U. S. independent schools and encouraging promising practices, with a strategic emphasis on best practices for teaching and learning, sustainability, and institutional collaboration.

The Edward E. Ford Foundation The Edward E. Ford Foundation seeks to improve secondary education by supporting U.S. independent schools and encouraging promising practices.

We make Traditional Grants to eligible schools and Associations to help them grow and develop in pursuit of their own missions. We make Educational Leadership Grants to eligible schools or groups of schools that consist of larger dollar awards to fewer recipients. We encourage collaboration with others in both grant cycles.

Occasionally, we may make larger, multi-­year Collaborative Innovation Grants in support of projects that have the potential to influence secondary education more broadly and positively affect our democratic society. Beyond grant-making, we share what we learn, sponsor strategic meetings, and work with others to identify and respond to the most pressing challenges facing the field of secondary education.

In 2008, the Board first awarded five matching grants of $250,000 to schools invited to compete for the EE Ford Educational Leadership initiative. By November 2023, a total of 60 such awards have been made. By April, 2024, the Board had awarded nearly 2,600 grants approximating over $127 million to approximately 1,000 different schools and associations since its inception in 1957.

Congratulations to our June 2026 Traditional Grant Recipients! “Agenda” is the term we use for our three annual grant cycles. Educational Leadership Grant Preliminary Proposal: May 1, 2026 Final Proposal: October 1, 2026 Traditional Final Proposal: January 29, 2027 ELG Final Proposal: February 19, 2027 Final Proposal: April 2, 2027 Learn More About Eligibility Featured Special Grant Project 2024 More than a year ago, the E.

E. Ford Foundation approved a proposal submitted by Deerfield Academy Head of School John Austin to develop a “framework” that could serve as a guide for schools eager to have discussions around addressing the increased polarization and politicization in independent schools.

The result: Thriving in a World of Pluralistic Contention: A Framework for Schools, offers three pillars for schools to consider: Expressive Freedom, Disciplined Nonpartisanship, and Intellectual Diversity. For more information on the Framework, please contact Project Director Lee Levison / leelev78@gmail.

com Featured Traditional Grant Projects 2022–2020 Augusta Preparatory Day School Augusta Preparatory Day School, an independent college preparatory school in Augusta, Georgia, is creating a space which will provide an immersive, interactive, and engaging learning experience for students through the use of augmented, virtual and extended reality or “XR”. The Digital Landscape Lab is located in the W.

Rodger Giles Institute for Inquiry, which will open for classes in January 2024. Faculty Fellowship Program Savannah Country Day School The purpose of the Grant is to create an ongoing Faculty Fellowship Program that will provide recent college graduates with an opportunity to launch their careers in education by gaining one to two years of valuable teaching experience at an independent school.

Lycée Français de San Francisco The LFSF, with the funding awarded through the Edward E. Ford Foundation and match, is set to implement a comprehensive three-year program encompassing creative art collaborations, training sessions, and workshops. This transformative journey, named ‘Actions Beyond Words’, commences in Spring 2023.

Comprehensive Climate Change Curriculum To create, develop, and disseminate a comprehensive climate change curriculum for the Upper School. Simultaneously, work to align Harley’s institutional practices with the spirit of the curriculum is being developed through the writing and implementing of a school-wide sustainability plan; including a goal related to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

At Bosque School, we are preparing today’s students to thrive in tomorrow’s world through dynamic, engaging, and impactful educational opportunities. This commitment is exemplified by the addition of a three-week immersive program—first launched in the spring of 2022.

Dartmouth MALS Fellowship for Aspiring Educators A groundbreaking program that serves to support and mentor prospective teachers and administrators from underrepresented populations interested in starting their careers in independent schools. Our six-week summer program delivers a comprehensive curriculum—focused on literacy and STEAM education and enriched with experiential learning, field trips and swim lessons.

Building Bridges, Changing the Narrative Branson’s mission is “to develop students who make a positive impact in the world by leading lives of integrity, purpose, learning, and joy. ” We take seriously the charge to “grow good humans” with a broad worldview and deep understanding of their own humanity.

Featured Educational Leadership Grant Projects 2023-2009 Featured Image: Winchester Thurston School— City As Our Campus in Pittsburgh, PA. Click Here to visit their website for more information. Photo courtesy of Winchester Thurston Featured Image: Mid-Pacific Institute— GlobalX in Honolulu, HI.

Click Here to visit their website for more information. Photo courtesy of Mid-Pacific Institute. Featured Image: Governor’s Academy— The Bass Institute— a new coastal studies center in Byfield, MA.

Click Here to visit their website for more information. Photo courtesy of The Governor’s Academy website. Featured Image: Friends’ Central School — Teacher Al Vernacchio leading the national conversation on Healthy Relationships and Consent Education.

Click Here for the full article in The Philadelphia Inquirer. Photo courtesy of Jose F. Moreno, staff photographer of The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Featured Image: St. Andrew's Episcopal School— Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning (CTTL) . Featured Image: Ethel Walker School— The Capabilities Approach .

Featured Image: The Roeper School— In partnership with The Roeper Institute and Detroit Public Schools . Featured Image: Cate School— Cate Inquiry Collaborative, the school's pedagogical think-tank and practicum . Featured Image: Emma Willard School— Talent Management Program .

Featured Image: Lovett School— The City as Laboratory . Featured Image: Castilleja School— 21st Century Assessment Partnership. Featured Image: Flintridge Preparatory School— The Idea Lab .

Featured Image: The Cambridge School of Weston— A visionary teacher education program that places prospective teachers at the heart of their practice .