G r a n t s P r o g r a m · I n a u g u r a l Y e a r

Grant Application

Please use the form below to indicate your interest in receiving a grant. For general inquiries or for more information prior to submitting the grant application, please contact us at contact @ pauliukonisfoundation.org. FAQs can be found here.

FAQs

  • Any classroom teacher, gifted specialist, or enrichment teacher at a school serving K-12 students. You apply as an individual teacher on behalf of your students, not as a school or district.

    You need a school or district issued email address. Applications from personal email addresses are not accepted.

  • No. While many of our applications are within Williamson and Davidson Counties, grants are not restricted to them. If you teach elsewhere in Middle Tennessee, please apply.

  • Grants are available for public, private and charter schools only.

  • No. The application has to come from the teacher who will run the project or program.

Who can apply

  • One specific classroom project. For example:

    • Materials, supplies, or equipment for a specific unit or activity

    • A field trip or off-site learning experience

    • A guest speaker, workshop, or in-class program

    • Specialized curriculum, books, or software your school does not provide

    • A classroom or grade-wide initiative not covered by existing school funding

    Transportation such as a chartered bus needed to take students to an event is eligible.

  • Examples include but not limited to are:

    • General classroom wish lists with no specific project attached

    • Personal gas or mileage reimbursement

    • Teacher salary, stipends, or personal compensation

    • Projects or curriculum activities already funded by your school or district

    • Classroom furniture

    If you are unsure whether something qualifies, email us before you apply (contact@pauliukonisfoundation.org). We would prefer to help clarify what will not be funded up front than decline a strong project.

What the grant funds

  • Ask for what the project actually costs and be detailed in the impact. The itemized budget matters more than the total. A well documented larger request is stronger than a vague small one.

  • We review applications on a rolling basis, so you can apply any time.

    Apply at least 45 days before your event or the date you need the funds. That gives us time to review your application, wait for your recommendation letter, make a decision, and disburse funds.

  • We aim to have a decision  within 45 days of receiving a complete application. We consider your application complete once we have both your form and recommendation letter.

    If your timeline is tighter than 45 days, email us at contact@pauliukonisfoundation.org before you apply, so we can consider your application on an ad hoc basis.

  • You can submit more than one application, but each one must be for a separate, specific project. In general we try to benefit the greatest number of students possible, so receiving multiple grants in a single school year is unlikely.

  • Yes. If your application is not selected we will provide information as to why it was declined. Reasons can include, but are not limited to, program alignment with the foundation’s mission, requiring more specificity in the application, or inability to fund the request. Applicants are encouraged to address whatever reason(s) are given and resubmitting an application.

Amounts and timing

Recommendation letter

  • A letter confirms your administration supports the project, and verifies that the project is not already covered by school or district funds.

  • The letter is not required to be formal or long. A short message on school letterhead from your principal or similar level administrator attached as a PDF to an email suffices. In the message they should indicate their support for the project and reiterate that the school is not currently funding the initiative.

  • Your principal or administrator should email it directly to contact@pauliukonisfoundation.org from the address you list on your application. Ask them to put your name and project name in the subject line. Your application is not complete until we receive it, and we do not begin review without it.

Decisions, funding, and recap

  • You will receive a message to your school email address listed on your application indicating whether or not the project is funded.

  • We prefer to pay your school or the vendor(s) directly though personal reimbursement (with accompanying receipts) may also be accepted.

  • We encourage you to send us a short summary of the impact within 30 days of project or event completion. If you can share a few paragraphs and a photo or two we would appreciate knowing how the funds benefitted the students and educators. We use it to continue improving our programs and help our donors understand the impact of their continued support.

Still have questions? Write to contact@pauliukonisfoundation.org before you apply.