Grant Proposals

Eligibility

The Schwab Foundation’s primary focus is organizations and programs that serve students in middle school and high school in Allen County and the five contiguous counties of Noble, DeKalb, Adams, Wells, Huntington and Whitley. Applicants must be qualifying organizations or agencies, schools and/or school districts.

Funding Priorities

Our goal is to identify, support and fund programs that provide students from 5th to 12th grade (or dual-credit education students) with the 21st-century skill sets and competencies they need to be career ready.

We believe first-hand experience is the best way to teach career readiness, whether through internships, job shadows or other opportunities. We also believe that a vital part of a healthy community is an underpinning of entrepreneurial spirit—therefore, we prioritize the cultivation of this spirit in today’s students.

The Foundation’s goal is to partner with organizations with proven track records to grow existing programs or new ideas.

The Foundation funds programs that:

• Are transformational and will have a significant impact on the problems they address.
• Are part of a system not stand-alone events. For schools and school districts, programs must be embedded in the current curriculum.
• Engage not only the student but their parents. There should be a connection between education, students and parents.
• Use technology and learning techniques that connect with today’s students.
• Assess, increase awareness, or prepare students to be career ready, and connect them to the world of work.
• Include career-readiness education and skill building for work skills such as oral/written communication, punctuality, working in a team environment and critical thinking.
• Are collaborative and original, not duplicating an existing idea or program. Grantees should work with other like-minded programs. (For example, if another organization has a similar program that the grantee is trying to create and is willing to bring that program into the grantee’s organization, Schwab may provide funds to make that happen.)

Examples of allowable usage of funds include, but are not limited to:

• Systematic use of career education and exploration materials (including software)
• Career fairs, career shadowing, internships, post-secondary institution visits
• Mentoring and guest speakers
• Portfolio development, field trips and hands-on career exploration
• Consultant fees, stipends for necessary program personnel, travel/transportation, and training