PTA Grant Awards
On December 12, the National PTA announced the recipients of over $1 million in grants and products to support PTAs across the country. More than $65,000 was awarded to Virginia PTA units. See the announcement here.
Virginia PTA celebrated more than $85,000 awarded to 54 PTA units across the Commonwealth during the 2024-2025 school year.
Annually National PTA competitively awards more than $1 million in grants to local PTAs across the country. Grants enable PTAs develop and host fun, engaging, mission-driven family engagement events that support student STEM learning, exploring the arts, mental health, digital wellness, and healthy lifestyles. The community conversations started through these programs empower parents to be actively engaged in learning with their students, and raise community awareness about important issues that impact our children and youth.
Throughout the 2024-2025 school year selected PTA’s will host events on the topic of their grant. During the grant process, grant awardees will have an opportunity to collaborate with other PTAs across the United States to develop and exchange ideas for engaging families in unique and creative ways.
At the end of the school year, grant awardees are invited to participate in Virginia PTA’s Family Engagement Showcase held at our Annual Meeting. Similar to a science fair, but focused on family engagement, this provides PTAs an opportunity to showcase their work, celebrate their success, and share ideas and inspiration with other PTAs across Virginia.
2024-2025 PTA Grants
PTA STEM + Families Propelling Our World ($1,250 each) to host hands-on engineering design challenges that bring students and families together as part of National PTA’s STEM + Families Propelling Our World program. The goal of the program is to help all kids experience and explore activities and careers in STEM, especially those in skilled trades. Sponsored by Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII)
PTA STEM + Families Science Festivals ($1,250 each) to engage families together in hands-on science activities as part of National PTA’s STEM + Families Science Festivals program. The goal of the program is to make science more accessible and less intimidating to students and their families. Sponsored by Bayer Fund,
PTA Connected: Ready, Tech, Go! ($1,500 each) to host meaningful peer-to-peer conversations about the various aspects of screen readiness; become familiar with tools and resources that help determine screen readiness; and gain new ideas to promote a healthy digital home. The Ready, Tech, Go! program helps families build knowledge and skills to use technology safely and responsibly right from the start. Sponsored by AT&T.
PTA Connected: Create with Kindness program ($3,000 each) to bring high school families together to engage in open and interactive discussions about their online experiences and equip them with practical information and resources to enhance online safety. Sponsored by TikTok.
PTA Connected: Be Internet Awesome program ($1,250 each) to host an interactive evening to engage parents and caregivers in meaningful and interactive peer-to-peer conversations about raising children in an online world and create a shared understanding of healthy online habits and what it means to Be Internet Smart, Alert, Strong, Kind and Brave. Sponsored by Google and YouTube.
PTA Connected: Build Up and Belong program ($2,000 each) facilitate meaningful and interactive discussions between teens and their caregivers about community and belonging. The goal of the program is to help families explore ways to foster positive relationships, learn healthy online habits and build belonging in our digital world. Sponsored by Discord.
PTA Connected: The Smart Talk ($1,200 each) to facilitate digital safety conversations in their school communities. The Smart Talk is an interactive online tool that walks families through a series of guided digital safety and online privacy questions, helping facilitate open, positive conversations that result in a personalized family technology agreement. Sponsored by Norton.
PTA Healthy Minds ($1,250 each) to build the knowledge and skills of parents and caregivers to support and strengthen their children’s mental health and build their children’s social-emotional skills and resilience as part of National PTA’s Healthy Minds program. The goal of the program is to empower families to make mental health an everyday priority. Sponsored the New York Life Foundation,
PTA Wellness Fair ($1,250) to provide students the opportunity to engage with health topics beyond the traditional classroom environment and in a fun, flexible and interactive way. The PTA Wellness Fair program is part of National PTA’s Healthy Lifestyles initiative, which includes the three pillars of healthy bodies, healthy minds and healthy earth. Sponsored by Walmart.
Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids ($1,500) to help educate students and families that youth e-cigarette use remains a serious public health problem, raise awareness about the dangers of flavored tobacco products, and promote tobacco use prevention, including hosting Take Down Tobacco National Day of Action anti-tobacco campaign activities.
Mary Lou Anderson Reflections Arts Enhancement Grant (1,250 each) to help PTAs provide new pathways for at-risk and underserved students to participate in arts education experiences, including National PTA’s Reflections program.
Fire Safety Family Program ($1,500) is focused on educating families about the danger of fires, preparing for emergencies, and engaging elementary-aged students and families in fire safety hand-on activities. Sponsored by Citizen (LenelS2 and Kidde).
