The NEA Foundation Grants to Educators

Learning and Leadership Grants

Learning & Leadership Grants
The NEA Foundation provides grants to support public school teachers, public education support
professionals, and/or faculty and staff in public institutions of higher education for one of the
following two purposes: Grants to individuals fund participation in high-quality professional
development experiences, such as summer institutes or action research; or grants to groups fund
collegial study, including study groups, action research, lesson study, or mentoring experiences
for faculty or staff new to an assignment.
The grant amount is $2,000 for individuals and $5,000 for groups engaged in
collegial study. All $5,000 group grant applicants must include partner information.
Deadlines for applications are Overview

Application Instructions
Grantee FAQs
The grant amount is $2,000 for individuals and $5,000 for groups engaged in collegial study. All
$5,000 group grant applicants must include partner information. Deadlines for applications are
due February 1, June 1, and October 15.

Restrictions
With the exception of study groups, applicants may not use grant funds to pay themselves
stipends. Funds may not be used for lobbying or religious purposes. Identical applications will
not be considered.
Grant funds may not be used to:

pursue degrees;

pay indirect costs, grant administration fees, or salaries; or

support travel costs or conference fees for more than one person.

All professional development must improve practice, curriculum, and student achievement.
"One-shot" professional growth experiences, such as attending a national conference or engaging
a professional speaker, are discouraged. Decisions regarding the content of the professional
growth activities must be based upon an assessment of student work undertaken with colleagues,
and must be integrated into the institutional planning process. Grant funds may be used for fees,
travel expenses, books, or other materials that enable applicants to learn subject matter,

instructional approaches, and skills. Recipients are required to exercise professional leadership
by sharing their new learning with their colleagues.

Deadlines and Notification Dates

Applications may be submitted at any time. Applicants are encouraged to plan ahead.
Applications are reviewed three times per year, every year.
o Application Received By: February 1 Notification by: April 15
o Application Received By: June 1 Notification by: September 15
o Application Received By: October 15 Notification by: January 15
Please give careful attention to the timeline of your grant. Applications that include activities
scheduled prior to the date of notification will not be considered. All lead grant applicants will be
notified in writing. Please do not contact the Foundation regarding the status of your application
prior to the notification date.

Duration
Grants will fund activities for twelve months from the date of the award.

Eligibility
Applicants must be practicing U.S:

Public school educators in grades PreK12;

Public school education support professionals, or;

Faculty and staff at public higher education institutions.

The NEA Foundation encourages grant applications from:

Education support professionals*

Preference will be given to members of the National Education Association.

*Education support professionals can be classified as: para-educators, school bus drivers,
maintenance and custodial staff, food services staff, school nurses and student services workers,
clerical and office assistants, school security officers, and technicians.

*Administrators may not apply for Learning & Leadership grants, nor may they act as the
partner applicant. Employees, members of the board of directors, and immediate family
members of the staff and board of the NEA Foundation are not eligible to receive grants.
Employees of the National Education Association are not eligible to receive grants.

Applicant Information
Contact Type
Salutation

Lead Applicant
Mrs.

*First Name
*Last Name
*Job Category
Other

Holly
Mothes

*Home Address
Home Address - Line 2
*Home City
*Home State

4399 S. Main St

*Home Zip
*Work Telephone
NEA Membership
NEA Membership Number

44319
330-972-7690
No

NEA Member SSN

*School/Institution
*Work Address
*Work City
*Work State
*Work Zip
*Work Title
*Home Telephone
*Work Fax
*E-mail Address
*Grades Taught
College/University

Akron
Ohio

The University of Akron

185 Carroll Street
Akron
Ohio
44325
Mrg. Tech Lrng Support
Center
330-644-9234
330-972-5847
hm1@uakron.edu

Other
*Subjects Taught
Technology
Other
*Percentage of Free and Reduced Lunch
0
Students
*American Federation of Teachers Membership No
*Work Experience in Education
29
Fiscal Agent
*Fiscal Agent Name
*Address
*City
*State

Holly Mothes
4399 S. Main St
Akron
Ohio

*Zip
Fiscal Agent Agreement

44319

*Signature of Authorized Representative

Holly Mothes

Proposal Information
*Application
Type
*Project Title
*Requested
Amount
*Proposal
Budget

Individual
Cyber-Bites for Faculty Professional Development
$2,000

Cyber- bites budget.docx (12.63 K), uploaded by Holly

Mothes on 11/21/2014

*Students
26000
Benefited
*Educators
900
Benefited
Additional Support:
Additional support will be supplied by The University of Akon in the following
areas:
Network support
Working space for the proposed project
Digital devices: tablets, smart phones, iPads, laptops

Software - WebEx. Panopto, Springboard(LMS), Nolij

Summary
Cyber-bites is a collection of 10 minute learning guides that will increase awareness
of digital tools that can be used to enhance the classroom learning environment.
These are designed to provide up to the minute trends in digital tools for faculty.
Cyber-bites will be use as a professional development tool for faculty. Developers
will provide exercises on short throw projectors, interactive white boards, smart
phones as clickers, and a variety of WEB 2.0 tools, providing interactive technology
integration in a mock classroom using the Emerging Technology Lab.
Describe the professional development plan. What are your goals in this
learning? What learning resources do you plan to use?
Professional development for faculty in the use of digital tools to enhance the
classroom learning environment should boost not only student engagement and
persistence but should boost work place agility with access to the wealth of
information and collaboration beyond the brick and mortar walls that currently
house education. In order to facilitate this growth faculty need assistance in
accessing the tools and ideas on how to integrate them in the classroom Cyber-Bites
will offer a flexible ongoing program that provides the 10 minute instruction on the
tools available on campus and the emerging technology tools of the future.
Current Faculty will be invited to visit the ETL (Emerging Technology Lab) to
review and experiment with the Cyber-Bites currently running. Cyber-Bites will run
on a rotation schedule each day for 2 months. Each Cyber -Bite, depending on
when it is made available, will be archived after 5 months from display in the ETL,
but will be made available in the classroom in the Computer Center for 1 year from
the archive date. There will be 10 Cyber-Bites available on the schedule with the
applicable technology tools for hands on exploration.
The goals for this project are:

Provide short interactive instruction on classroom technology that will be

widely used by the faculty to enhance their work in the classroom
Provide a method of developing technology coaches within the ranks of the
current faculty using the ISTE Standards for Coaches as a guide for
development
Provide a method for educating new incoming faculty on the current
classroom technologies
Provide a program for sustaining and growing technology enhanced learning
experiences in the development of higher order thinking skills
Provide opportunity for faculty to explore technology tools for collecting and
analyzing student data for more effective learning in a technology-rich
learning environment

The initial project will use the ETL in Bierce Library, a lab that was developed for
displaying emerging technologies, not specific for the classroom. The room has a

raised tiled floor with networking and power that can be configured for any
arrangement of a display of a particular learning environment. 10 Cyber- Bites
sessions can be arranged in the lab at one time. Currently the room houses 2Microsoft Surface units, one freestanding and one wall mounted, wall talker walls on
2 wall surfaces and reflective glass on 1 wall surfaces. There are 3 modes of
lighting in the lab for optimal use with the various technologies that can be
displayed. The project will enable Faculty to use laptops, smart phones- eitherandroid or iOS, tablets and iPads to interact with all current devices just by walking
into the room and to one of the displays. 2- interactive white boards are currently
being installed, with the addition of 2- short-throw interactive projectors with
wireless capabilities Cyber Bites could expanded the use of classroom
technologies ( including software tools) for deeper student learning.
How

to sessions include
Assistive technologies
ePortfolios
Teaching with a IWB
Clickers
Elmos
Digital Information Security
Software

As with any project there are risks. While reviewing the criteria and technology for
this project risk is low. The technology is easily transferred from lab to classroom
and the technical skills needed to install and setup the technology are available
thought the universitys IT department.

How, when, and where will the learning be accomplished?

(Please be aware of the date of grant announcement. Any project
taking place prior to the announcement will automatically be
removed from consideration. Grant announcement dates can be
found here.)
The learning opportunities will commence with the development of the Cyber-Bites
session and the final installation of the displays and projectors. The ETL will be
located in the Bierce Library. The timeline for program development is 1 week per
session. The timeline for installation of the projectors is two days from date of
delivery.

How does the proposed professional development advance your

professional goals? How does it advance your workplace goals?
The proposed professional development addresses these ISTE standards and
brings a wealth of information to the faculty. This project will advance the
use of technology in the classroom, providing a richer learning environment
for the students and at the same time instill these standards in classroom
practice:

Visionary leadership

This project aligns with section 1a and 1d of this standard by providing

personal development opportunities for the faculty. This also has an effect
on the student population as the faculty
are able integrate technology into their curriculum thereby enhancing the
classroom environment.

1a.Contribute to the development,

communication,
and implementation of a shared
vision for the
comprehensive use of technology to
support a
digital-age education for all students

1d. Implement strategies for initiating

and
sustaining technology innovations
and manage
the change process in schools and
classrooms

Teaching, learning and assessments

This project aligns with sections 2a, 2b and 2g of this standard by providing
advanced training for the faculty in accessing and integrating technology in
their classrooms, whether they are in a physical space or a virtual space.
Cyber-bites will also provide opportunities for the faculty to explore new
methods of student assessment.
2a. Coach teachers in and model
design and
implementation of technologyenhanced
learning experiences addressing
content
standards and student technology
standards

2b. Coach teachers in and model

design and
implementation of technologyenhanced
learning experiences using a variety
of research-based, learner-centered
instructional strategies and
assessment tools to address the
diverse needs and interests of all
students

2g. Coach teachers in and model

effective use of technology tools and
resources to continuously assess
student learning and technology
literacy by applying a rich variety of
formative and summative
assessments aligned with content
and student technology standards
Digital age learning environments
This project aligns with sections 3a, 3b, 3c, 3d, 3e, 3f, and 3g of this standard
by providing
faculty with hands on training in development enhanced use of technology in
the classroom. Faculty will be able to transfer skill that they learn in the
Cyber-bites program to real world
situations within the classroom whether it is a connection issue or an
assistive technology issue.
Cyber-bites will provide some advanced trouble shooting tips to help faculty
help the student they are working with.
3a. Model effective classroom
management and collaborative
learning strategies to maximize
teacher and student use of digital
tools and resources and access to
technology-rich learning
environments
3c.Coach teachers in and model use
of online
and blended learning, digital content,
and
collaborative learning networks to
support
and extend student learning as well
as expand
opportunities and choices for online
professional development for
teachers and administrators
3e.Troubleshoot basic software,
hardware, and connectivity problems
common in digital
learning environments

3b.Maintain and manage a variety of

digital tools and resources for
teacher and student use in
technology-rich learning
environments
3d.Select, evaluate, and facilitate the
use of
adaptive and assistive technologies
to support
student learning

3f.Collaborate with teachers and

administrators to select and evaluate
digital tools and resources that
enhance teaching and learning and
are compatible with the school
technology infrastructure

3g.Use digital communication and

collaboration tools to communicate
locally and globally with students,
parents, peers, and the larger
community
Professional development and program evaluation
This project aligns with sections 4b of this standard by providing
4b. Design, develop, and implement technology-rich professional learning
programs that model
principles of adult learning and promote digital age best practices in
teaching, learning, and
assessment
Digital citizenship
This project aligns with sections 5a and 5b of this standard by providing
Cyber-bites that explain the best practices as well as ethical and safe use of
digital materials, information, and technology.
5a. Model and promote strategies for
achieving equitable access to digital
tools and resources and technologyrelated best practices for all students
and teachers

5b. Model and facilitate safe, healthy,

legal, and ethical uses of digital
information and technologies

Content knowledge and professional growth

This project aligns with sections 6a and 6b of this standard by encouraging
faculty to be life long learners, increasing their awareness of new and
creative methods of teaching and learning in the digital age.
6a. Engage in continual learning to
deepen content and pedagogical
knowledge in technology integration
and current and emerging
technologies necessary to effectively
implement the StandardsS and
StandardsT

6b.Engage in continuous learning to

deepen
professional knowledge, skills, and
its positions in organizational change
and leadership, project management,
and adult learning to improve
professional practice

*What is the need for this professional development? How did you and
your colleagues assess the need? Please define need in terms of both
student need and professional need by the applicant(s).
Faculty members have scarce resources on campus to garner assistance on
developing curriculum that integrates the classroom technology beyond just the
standard PowerPoint and even less time to spend on this activity. Beyond just the
basics there are no professional development classes offered for integrating
technology for the faculty. The Support Desk has a group of staff member that can
walk a user through using the technology but many times the faculty member
needs just a little bit more help. Through the analysis of two years of data gathered
by the Support Desk we have identified several areas where training and hands on
exploration would provide valuable experience. This project was developed as an
enhancement to the IT training group that is moving all training to an online model.
Cyber-Bites would provide the quick and targeted educational bites with hands on
exploration for faculty. Cyber-Bites could be the first step in c reating a digital

workplace to respond to critical changes in the future workforce.

The staff working on this project are certified trainers, technicians and
teachers,. Their qualifications align with the ISTE standards for coaches.
How will this project continue beyond the grand period? How will you
continue sharing the knowledge gained in this project? Describe sharing in
relation to your colleagues, students, and administrators.
The creation of the ETL, and establishment of the initial Cyber-Bite sessions will
carry the project for at least two years. Because technology changes so quickly
new programs and equipment will need to be replenished, but the initial idea can be
carried forward. This grant will enable the completion of the ETL. The Cyber-Bites
are being developed. As the faculty uses the opportunities to interact with the
various technologies we will encourage them to collaborate with others in their
particular disciple/department to share what they have learned. We will also survey
those who have attended the sessions for feedback on their experience.
Assessment of the program will entail surveys to the faculty who use the
program as well as identifying the number of users per week. Surveys will include
questions on content, ease of understanding the information as well as suggestions
for future Cyber-bites. Currently the support staff that will be creating the content
will review and analyze the surveys. The staff will then make any necessary
adjustments to the programs.