Deadline to apply is Jan. 31, 2025
ORAU’s $25,000 annual Extreme Classroom Makeover is back, and the grand prize is ready to be awarded to one East Tennessee teacher for updating his or her classroom with the latest technology.
The ORAU Extreme Classroom Makeover is a program designed to improve science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education in public schools. ORAU hopes to inspire and equip teachers to engage their students with hands-on learning by offering prize money for instructors who have a STEM-minded vision for their classroom. Through an application process, teachers are invited to share their concept of what they would do with $25,000.
“Whether it’s outfitting the classroom with robots, iPads, 3-D printers or hydroponic plants (like last year’s winner chose), we’ve seen teachers put this money toward some really creative uses,” said Pam Bonee, director of communications and marketing for ORAU. “We want the ORAU Extreme Classroom Makeover to go beyond a fun experience with one teacher—we want to spark a lifetime of curiosity that leads to more students becoming scientists and engineers in the future.”
To be eligible for the competition, teachers must:
- Work for a public school within a 50-mile radius of Oak Ridge, Tenn.
- Teach a STEM subject for 3rd through 10th
- Submit a two-to-three-minute video creatively illustrating the need and possible uses of technology in their classroom with the application.
- Submit the applications by Friday, Jan. 31, 2025.
Winners will be notified in mid-March, and the technology will be purchased and installed in their classrooms for the start of the 2025-26 school year. In addition to the grand prize winner, one runner-up will receive $5,000 in new equipment. There will also be a $2,500 viewers’ choice award selected by the general public from among qualified entries.
A panel of educators and ORAU staff will determine the winning teachers. Entries will be judged on how well they:
- Show or explain the need for their requested technology.
- Demonstrate or explain how they would use this technology.
- Express overall creativity in the entry.
- Provide an explanation of the teaching philosophy and/or approach that will be used to expand the STEM learning experience and encourage students to pursue careers in STEM fields.
ORAU has given away more than $500,000 to local schools since this program began in 2009. In all, the Extreme Classroom Makeover has impacted more than 30 East Tennessee schools and thousands of students.
For more information on the ORAU Extreme Classroom Makeover contest, visit Extreme Classroom Makeover.
For questions about the program, send an email to amber.davis@orau.org.