The Turning Foundation, in collaboration with The Raymond John Wean Foundation, is announcing a new round of Innovative Teacher 'Mini-Grants' for the upcoming school year.

According to a press release, up to $50,000 in cash grant awards will be available to fund projects in Ashtabula, Columbiana, Trumbull and Mahoning Counties.

The press release states that there will be a special focus on Warren and Youngstown City Schools.

The opportunity for the grant is intended to promote creativity and innovation in classrooms that are in support of today's methods of teaching and learning. 

In the press release, John Wilson, Director of the Turning Foundation, said, "The purpose of this program is to improve student outcomes by helping local teachers make their classrooms a better place to learn through collaboration and innovation. We are happy to once again join with the Raymond John Wean Foundation to further that goal."

According to the press release, the Turning Foundation will also be collaborating with the Eastern Ohio Education Partnership, which is a network of community leaders representing education, faith-based, nonprofit dedicated to providing children across the region with a quality education.

  • Kindergarten readiness
  • Early grade reading proficiency
  • Middle-grade math proficiency
  • Postsecondary/career readiness

More than $160,000 from this same grant opportunity has helped over 14,000 students across the area since 2010.

"For over a decade, the Raymond John Wean Foundation funded nearly $250,000 to support teachers in the classroom. In the two years since combining forces with the Turning Foundation, we've increased outreach and thus applications funded; seen the alignment of goals with EOEP result in more intentional projects; and have begun to share best practices to expand the good work of teachers. Because of this success, the Wean Foundation recently announced the continuation of this partnership over the next two years, demonstrating our commitment to finding what works," said Jennifer Roller, president of the Raymond John Wean Foundation in the press release.

The press release informs that grant cash awards range from $2,000 for individual teachers to $5,000 for larger collaborative efforts involving multiple educators and community partners. 

The deadline to submit a proposal is Wednesday, September 26.

Applications are available on the Turning Foundation website.