The world is the limit. To date Oakland Fellows have traveled throughout the United States, and in Africa, Asia, Europe, and South and Central America. Please go to www.fundforteachers.org for more information on the organization and the kinds of Fellowships they have awarded.

Fund For Teachers grants are awarded to both individuals and teams, and range up to 5,000 dollars per individual applicant and 10,000 dollars per team. Every fall we offer in house information sessions to schools that are interested in learning more about the application process. The information session will give an overview of the program and some important tips for writing the proposal, as well as provide a chance for interested applicants to speak directly with past Fellows. Teachers from all over OUSD may attend these info sessions, and they will be announced here on this page prior to their occurrence.

The application process is an online procedure that is completed at the FFT website and the process opens in October. Applicants fill out a grant application and budget online and mail their signed cover sheets directly to us here at the Fund. This must be completed by January 31, usually. In March local stakeholders in education, other FFT Fellows, donors, and community members form a selection committee, which decides the applications that shall receive funding. The applicants are notified by mail whether or not they have been awarded by March 31st, and those awarded in March have the summer available to them to complete their Fellowships following a mandatory orientation meeting in April.

Eligibility and Information

- Taught for minimum of three years
- Teach preK-12th grade
- Spend at least 50% of your full-time position in the classroom or classroom-like setting, and
- Intend to return to teaching in school/district in the consecutive school year
- Grant winners may apply every five years
- Individuals may apply for up to $5,000; teams up to $10,000
-Teachers may be awarded a Fund for Teachers grant once every three years

Grant Writing Support

- Office hours: Receive grant writing help and feedback by email or in person on Wednesdays from 3:00-4:45pm from FFT Program Manager, please RSVP to Leo Lamanna (email below) if you would like to attend
- There will be informational webinars held by Fund For Teachers to help with the grant writing process. Webinars are a way to link online to a live meeting facilitated by Fund For Teachers staff. Watch and listen as you are taken through the information session presentation and ask questions via phone or live chat while the webinar is in progress. Please click here to see the webinar schedule and to sign up today.
- Information Session: There is an online information session with audio you can access at any time. In person info session dates will be announced here when known. If you wish to invite the Program Manager to your school for an information session please give us a call, we would be happy to accommodate you.
- Application for 2012 program year goes live on October 1st 2011, and ends at 5pm on January 27th 2012.

Examples of past Oakland Fellow trips:

- A teacher from Lakeview Elementary joined World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms in Costa Rica to learn how to plant gardens in raised beds for a project at her school
- A teacher from Cleveland Elementary traveled to Ghana to volunteer and collect stories to revive African storytelling traditions within the school community
- A teacher from North Oakland Community Charter School traveled to Costa Rica to attend the World Congress on Reading and study the nation's rainforests
- A teacher from Oakland International High School traveled to Mexico to learn Spanish by immersion and attend the International Conference for Mathematics Educators
- A group of two teachers from Sequoia Elementary traveled to Mexico to study ancient Mayan archeoastronomy

Quotes from Fund for Teachers fellows

"My personal and professional growth are inseparable. When I learn, my students learn; when I am educated, I can educate. "
"We now understand that it's not only about making student work and process visible, it's about being able to really see and understand what kinds of thinking our students are doing through all areas of the classroom experience."
"...To actually see, photograph and touch 4000 year old artifacts from ancient civilizations that we only see in books will impact our teaching and our students' knowledge and hands-on experiences with history."
"Working with the youth in South Africa strengthened my commitment to create classroom projects that foster cultural understanding and compassionate dialogue."

Additional Info

In 2010 An Oakland Teacher was awarded the National Plank Fellowship Award.

Have a look at this very comprehensive and useful Teacher Project Search page on the FFT website.

Click here to see a list of the 2011 FFT Oakland Fellows.

For further information you may go to the FFT website, follow Fund For Teachers on Facebook, email LLamanna@marcusfoster.org, or call us at 510.835.0391

Useful Downloads & Grant Writing Help:

2012 Information Session Presentation Online with Audio

2012 Program Information

2012 Application Guidelines

2012 Tips and Excerpts

2012 Flyer

Advice for the Fund For Teachers Applicant