Grants for LTISD Educators

Following the guidelines, procedures, and deadlines outlined below will ensure that your application receives proper consideration.

What do LTEF grants support?

The Foundation grants are awarded for instructional materials, teaching aids, and other items that can be used to expand the learning opportunities of the existing school curriculum.  Proposals  may be made by an individual teacher or a team of teachers, by a department head, by a campus principal or assistant principal, or by administration.  LTEF-funded programs should enhance, but not duplicate, the approved curriculum.  We look for innovative, creative ideas that fall outside the ordinary school budget, yet promise to augment the curricula in the meaningful way.

Proposals that do not directly impact students do not meet the criteria for funding.  Projects that will involve future maintenance costs which would become the financial responsibility of the school district will be submitted by the Foundation for district approval prior to funding.

Once grant funding has been approved by the Lake Travis Education Foundation's Board of Directors, and funds disbursed to the Lake Travis ISD Business Office, the Lake Travis Education Foundation relinquishes responsibility for the items funded. The Foundation will not be responsible for tracking or replacing items once purchased, nor will the Foundation be held liable for the use of any funded items or programs.

Funding will be used solely for the items or program detailed in the approved grant proposal, unless approval to augment or change the request is granted by the Lake Travis Education Foundation.  Any funds that are not used for the approved grants will be returned to LTEF for future awards. 

Who decides whether a project gets funded?

The LTEF Grant Committee reviews grant applications each year and makes funding recommendations to the Board of Directors.  All grant proposals are reviewed and decided upon "blindly."  Committee members review without knowledge of which teachers or schools submitted the proposals.  Awards are announced following approval by the Board of Directors.

The Grant Committee may choose to offer partial funding at its discretion.  The Foundation encourages collaborative funding and invites applicants to seek partial or additional funding from other sources. In addition, the Grant Committee, following investigation and at its discretion, may offer funding over the amount of the request.

What makes a grant application successful?

• The application must be complete and comply with deadlines. It should include a clear presentation of the request using LTEF's standard online application form. 

• The proposal demonstrates creativity and innovation in educational programming and targets a significant number of LTISD schoolchildren. 

• The project would seed an on-going initiative that could benefit students in future years.

• If it includes a request for equipment funding, the application details an educational program in which the equipment would be used.

• The proposal provides a plan for additional non-LTEF funding, if necessary.

• The applicants agree to account for and report on the project, once funded. 

• The proposal does not seek repeat funding for a previously approved project nor retroactive funding for an existing project.

• The applicants must have a system in place and commit to cataloguing, checking in and out, and tracking usage of items.

• The applicant must submit a current campus inventory of items for requested funding.

• The applicant, upon approval of funding, commits to providing one or two photos showing the grant in action along with a brief description.