ORAU is accepting applications for its annual Education Grants program for 2025, offering $30,000 in grant funding for teachers in five East Tennessee counties. This announcement comes on the heels of its other annual program, Extreme Classroom Makeover that awards $25,000 to one grand prize winner, another $5,000 to a runner-up, and $2,500 to a viewers’ choice winner.
Both programs are intended to encourage and inspire students through science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) instruction in East Tennessee schools. ORAU’s ed grants are available to public school educators in Anderson, Campbell, Morgan, Roane and Scott counties. Last year, nine teachers were awarded funding for their STEM project proposals.
“ORAU was founded in 1946 as a way to link valuable scientific resources in Oak Ridge with regional universities,” explained Pam Bonee, director of communications and marketing for ORAU. “Since that time, our mission to strengthen our country in science education has only grown. We love supporting local K-12 schools because we know if we can inspire students’ STEM curiosity in primary and secondary education, there’s a better chance our country will produce more doctors, scientists and engineers. Our education grants program is an open call for educators to share their proposal for a STEM project, and ORAU will select a handful of projects to fund.”
Chosen projects will be carried out during the 2025-2026 school year. Educators who want their projects considered for ORAU funding should complete and submit an online proposal. All proposals are due Friday, April 25, 2025.
Since the program’s inception in 2002, ORAU has awarded more than $550,000 to local schools in an ongoing effort to enrich STEM programs in the region.
Projects will be funded based on quality, educational enrichment, creativity, and available funds. Awards will be announced by May 5, 2025. Questions should be directed to Amber Davis, who can be reached at (865) 340-2239 or amber.davis@orau.org.
For information about ORAU’s Extreme Classroom Makeover, visit the Extreme Classroom Makeover page on our website.