124 Pre-Applicants Invited to Apply for 2012 "Investing in Innovation" Funding

The Department of Education (ED) has invited 124 high-scoring Investing in Innovation (I3) pre-applicants to apply for 2012 i3 Development grants. This announcement comes just a few months after ED announced the availability of funding for the 2012 i3 program.

With the intention to fund innovative and groundbreaking strategies that will improve student learning and achievement, the i3 program has received incredible interest from states and individual schools throughout the nation in recent years. Unlike past years, this year’s award process required applicants to submit a “pre-application,” allowing ED to simplify and streamline the application process and provide timely feedback about the competitiveness of the applications. A total of 650 pre-applications were received for the Development grant – an increase of 40% compared to 2011. According to ED, the Development grants, which fund high-potential and relatively untested practices/programs, has attracted the greatest participation every year.

The 124 applicants invited to submit an application for the 2012 i3 Development grants focus on the following areas: 

• 23 on teacher and principal effectiveness 
• 39 on Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) education 
• 32 on parent and family engagement 
• 20 on school turnarounds 
• 10 on rural education 

These 124 applicants are eligible to receive awards of up to $3 million. Awards will be announced in late December.

Stay tuned to our blog for upcoming information about the i3 grant program, including announcements about the pre-applicants invited to apply for Scale-Up and Validation i3 funding.