Grant Guidelines
There is a continuing flow of grant opportunities from various public and private sources available to the school district, schools and teachers. Akron Public Schools is committed to seeking and supporting grants that are closely aligned with our district’s mission and goal.
The following procedures have been developed to assure that all grants submitted under the auspices of Akron Public Schools are aligned to the district’s goal and objectives and can be implemented as written. All applicants seeking a grant must follow these procedures:
1. Read and complete as thoroughly as possible the Initial Proposal Review Form (IPRF). Be sure the completed IPRF is signed by the building principal or department head. Click here for an interactive IPRF. Additionally, any grant purchasing technology and/or supplemental curricula materials must be approved by the appropriate office to ensure district alignment and pricing.
2. All grants, excluding classroom grants, will be reviewed by a team. This Review Team will discuss: a) how the grant supports the district's or building goals, b) the requirements and/or assurances of the grant, c) the goals and objectives of the proposal, d) the feasibility of the requests and equipment, e) the alignment of district adopted curricula, f) an adequate evaluation component and g) whether the budget guidelines have been appropriately followed.
3. Administrators should always inform the Grant Office of proposals that are submitted even if the grant does not require Superintendent or Board approval. This allows us to keep a record of funds flowing through the district.
4. Outside organizations seeking Akron Public Schools collaboration in a grant application need to also complete the Initial Proposal Review Form
5. If student data is required for the grant, a data release form from the Department of Testing, Research, and Evaluation will need to be signed and approved. Grant approval is established through the Grant office and partnership approval will be established by either the Superintendent or Assistant Superintendent.
6. Unfortunately, some grant applications have very short time frames for completion. In such cases, the Grant Office will do everything possible to work with the individual seeking the grant to assure that the approval process is handled quickly and does not hinder the timely completion of the grant. However, if the above steps are not followed, grant seekers should not expect to have their proposals approved and submitted in a timely fashion.
7. Grant administrators are expected to follow the payroll and accounts payable procedures. Please make yourself familiar with these.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact the Grants Office at 330.761.3157; or e-mail Larissa Brown, grants coordinator, at lbrown2@akron.k12.oh.us.