Each year, the Foundation for Seminole County Public Schools awards grants to teachers to fund STEM, ELA, Character Development, and Arts projects through our Grants for Great Ideas program. These projects go beyond normal classroom instruction, allow teachers to provide memorable experiences for their students, and enhance student achievement.
With generous support from our community, the Foundation distributes over 45 grants each year that impact over 10,000 students in Seminole county. Grant awards to classrooms, grade-level, and school-wide projects provide resource materials and equipment for learning activities the students will remember for a lifetime.
During the 2024-2025 Grant Cycles, The Foundation awarded over $65,900 to support 47 STEM, ELA and Art projects at 31 schools impacting over 180 teachers and 19,800 students.
Projects like these can make the difference between developing a good lesson plan and developing a great lesson plan that will make a meaningful impact on your students that they won’t forget. Check out this video of a beautiful butterfly and vegetable garden that was created at Lake Orienta!
For SCPS Educators
Grant applications open at the beginning of each school year. To receive funding early in the school year, teachers should submit requests by the September deadline. This allows time to order and receive materials and supplies, implement the projects, and measure the outcomes prior to deadlines.
Grant awards are funded up to $1,000 for single classroom projects and up to $2,500 for grade-level or school-wide projects.
“There are no words to thank GFGI enough for what it’s brought to our students. We have uncovered hidden talents in many of our kids that even they didn’t know they had. This has been an amazing experience for both students and staff. We really appreciate the Foundation for recognizing and supporting the special work we do and look forward to continuing this project for years to come. I have always found the grant process easy to work with and the staff is such a huge help whenever we need them. Thank you so much!!!!” – Michele Oliver, SCPS Teacher and Past GFGI Recipient
Would you like to learn more about how to put your great idea into action this year? Check out the 2025-2026 Grants for Great Ideas Program Guidelines and Overview. For tips on how to present your great idea and a helpful template to draft your proposal, we recommend downloading the Grants for Great Ideas Application Template and Questions Resource and this year’s GFGI Budget Form. When you’ve perfected your proposal, use the templates to officially submit your application GFGI 2025-2026 Online Application.
Looking for inspiration? SCPS can access our Great Idea Guides created using valuable insight and helpful tips from successful past projects. Projects include Butterfly and Garden Club, ELA Classroom Transformations, Our Resource Team is Full STEAM Ahead, Hands on with Phonics, and Poppin Out for Pop Art.
Grant Categories:
– English Language Arts (ELA)
– Science, Technology, Engineering, & Math (STEM)
– Character Development – NEW IN 2025-2026!
– The Arts
Application Deadlines:
– Cycle I: Sunday, September 14, 2025
– Cycle II: Sunday, October 26, 2025
– Cycle III: Monday, December 1, 2025
For more information, please contact our Program Manager at 407.320.0119 or mercadmz@scps.k12.fl.us.