Rockford Education Foundation Grants
REF’s mission is to provide funding for educational opportunities, both basic and innovative, in the Rockford community. Some of this funding each year is through our Small & Large Grant and Student Grant programs.
2024-2025 REF Grant Deadlines
Small Grants (up to $1,000)
Monday, September 23
Monday, January 27
Large Grants ($1,001 - $15,000)
Monday, January 27
In addition to the online application, Large Grant applications require a 5-10 minute video submission. Please submit your video with the large grant application or by emailing a link to ref@rockfordschools.org.
Attendance at the REF Large Grant Review Meeting is required. Participants will have a 10-15 minute block to answer questions about their grant application.
Large Grant Review Meeting Date - Monday, February 24, 5-9pm
Student Grants - (Up to $500)
Monday, March 17 (ongoing approvals)
Student Grant requests must be initiated and written by the student(s). Requests clearly conceived by or written by a parent, teacher, or administrator will generally not be considered. Student grants are reviewed on an ongoing basis and will be notified of their status periodically throughout the year. The final deadline for the school year is March 17th.
REF Grant Guidelines
- REF grants are intended to impact as many learners as possible over a multi-year horizon.
- Grants are one-time in nature and items must be ordered by April 15th of the same academic year.
- Large Grants ($1,001-$15,000) that are innovative in nature or intended to fund new, pilot programs that, if successful could be implemented more broadly, will be looked upon favorably. In addition to the online application, Large Grant applications require a 5-10 minute video submission. Attendance at the REF Large Grant Review Meeting to answer questions about the grant application is strongly encouraged. Additional information about video submission and Large Grant Review meeting timeline will be provided after application is reviewed.
- An individual may apply for one (1) Small School Year Grant and one (1) Large School Year Grant for the same academic year. A student may apply for one (1) Student Grant per school year. However, an individual may be listed on another grant application as part of a group.
- Student Grant requests must be initiated by the student(s). Requests clearly conceived by or written by a parent, teacher, or administrator will generally not be considered.
- Applications that have the following characteristics generally will not be approved:
- Requests for consumable items
- Gift cards or other cash-like instruments
- Items to be included in upcoming bond issues
- Reimbursement of purchases already made
- And, items that will be used to profit personally or used in a for-profit manner
