Learning for Justice Educator Fund

Overview

Learning for Justice (LFJ), a project of the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), plays a key role in achieving SPLC’s vision of “a world in which everyone can thrive and the ideals of equity, justice, and liberation are a reality for all.” We’re driven by a passion for social justice, a deep belief that education is the best way to realize this world, and a firm commitment to making sure that every student has the opportunity to learn and thrive.

The Learning for Justice Educator Fund supports educators who embrace and embed social justice, anti-bias and anti-racist principles throughout their classrooms and schools. We seek to collaboratively build educators’ capacity to do this. We believe these approaches in education encourage children and young people to challenge injustice and learn how to be agents of change in their own lives and communities.

Learning for Justice’s Educator Fund offers the opportunity to work with LFJ to address systemic inequities within education. Throughout our partnership, we offer ongoing guidance and critical resources. With help from your expertise about your own school community, we intend to collaboratively generate innovative solutions that promote affirming school climates, promote student action and raise everyone’s consciousness.

The LFJ Educator Fund supports three types of projects: classroom level, school level and district level. 

Classroom Level 
Classroom-level grants are offered to individual educators or small peer groups. Proposals should focus on creating safe and welcoming classrooms that reflect the outcomes described in the LFJ Social Justice Standards. This includes programming that promotes positive identity development, perspective taking, critical thinking about injustice and collective action. Preference is given to projects that emphasize student action and promote student perspectives. 

School and District Levels
School- and district-level funds are offered to educator networks and school or district leadership teams. Proposals should focus on improving school climate, responding to and preventing incidents of hate and bias, or embedding the concepts found in the LFJ Social Justice Standards into the school- or district-wide curriculum. These projects may also focus on improving teaching  capacity to adopt the practices articulated in Critical Practices for Anti-bias Education and in our school climate resources, implement an LFJ topic-based framework like Teaching Hard History, or to promote dialogue among school community members about anti-bias, anti-racist (ABAR) issues at school.

Applicants must also demonstrate how the endeavor addresses one or more of the following key outcomes:

• Restorative discipline: an increase in schools and districts shifting from punitive discipline policies to restorative discipline policies;
• Youth civic engagement: an increase in student civic engagement, especially supporting the rights of marginalized students and communities;
• Dismantling oppressive narratives: an increase in schools and districts shifting from white supremacist or oppressive policies and curricula to policies and curricula that are anti-racist or support the safety and self-determination of all students.

Our aim is to build, over time, a network of educators who are enthusiastic about learning from each other and sharing their experiences with the broader Learning for Justice community.

People who meet one of the following descriptions are eligible to apply:

• Educators, administrators and school personnel who work in public and private K-12 spaces;
• Educators, administrators and school personnel who work in facilities where students receive their main education, such as juvenile justice facilities, therapeutic schools or alternative schools;
• Faculty and staff in schools of education in colleges and universities.

Educators employed at community-based, nonprofit or other informal learning sites are not currently eligible for Learning for Justice Educator Fund awards.

Classroom-level grant amounts will range from $500 to $2,500. Projects must be completed within six months of receiving grant funds.

School- and district-level awards range from $2,500 to $25,000. Applicants may apply for up to three years of project funding. Applicants seeking multi-year funding will be expected to provide clear strategies, action plans, milestones and timelines for achieving project objectives over the course of the project period, in addition to the standard application. Multi-year funds will be released annually, based upon review and approval of annual progress evaluations.

Individuals working within schools of education at colleges and universities may apply for an award if they meet these criteria:

• They plan to use funds to directly support the experiences and education of pre-service or in-service teachers, insofar as it translates directly to the experiences of K-12 students.
• They will not seek funding for overhead costs or general operations for colleges or universities.

Educators across the U.S. may apply, with priority given to proposals in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and Mississippi. 

All projects must incorporate at least one Learning for Justice resource, framework, or publication.