The Academic Opportunity Fund provides educators and schools with the resources they need to bridge opportunity gaps and create a level playing field for all students.
We prioritize grants that expand access to resources, opportunities, and support for students from marginalized and underserved communities.
*Curricular and technology requests must be run through the district prior to approval and grant awarding.
Providing opportunities for BVSD students, from tutoring to software to transportation expenses, reduces the economic barriers to academic success.
The first grant cycle for the 2024-25 school year is open August 9 – September 9, 2024.
During the pandemic, the Monarch High School library sat unused. Books sat dusty and uncatalogued and, perhaps more importantly, went out of date. Things got worse when the Marshall Fire struck—the Monarch community was disproportionally affected, and many books that students checked out were lost in the fire. As schools resumed in-person learning, Katherine Croasdale set to work fixing the library.
Jessica, a literacy interventionist at Alicia Sanchez Elementary School, wanted to level the playing field for emerging bilingual students. With a grant from Impact on Education she built a Reading Club to provide these students with opportunities to grow as readers.
Starting in 1986, with an initiative to empower educators through mini-grants, we’ve continued to evolve our grant program to meet the ever-changing needs of schools and students. This evolution is a testament to our dedication to creating opportunity for students and leveling the educational playing field.
In 2019, BVSD was working to roll out a new phonics-based curriculum in elementary schools and begin screening Kindergarten students to identify those at risk for dyslexia, but they lacked the funds to quickly train all educators.
Impact on Education, in partnership with Boulder Valley Kids Identified with Dyslexia (BVKID), stepped in to fund professional development and training for 46 BVSD interventionists and classroom educators.
The training took place in the summer of 2020 and meant that during the 2020-21 school year, every school in BVSD had at least one interventionist who was trained in the Orton Gillingham approach to better support students. In 2021, IOE also supplemented BVSD’s educator training, but we are pleased to share that over the summer of 2022, BVSD made their biggest investment to date for this critical training opportunity by funding 85 elementary educators to participate in the training.
Born and raised in Washington, Georgia—a small town of about 5,000 people—Impact on Education board member Ann Cooper grew up facing the challenges of poverty, a segregated school system and limited opportunities. Thanks to the encouragement of several teachers, but two particular ones, Ann defied the odds, traveled the world, grew a successful business and has become a passionate advocate for quality public education for all students.
As Kindergarten begins this week, children across the Boulder Valley School District are embarking on an exciting new adventure. For many, especially those from low-income or marginalized families, this transition marks their first exposure to a formal learning environment. Through our Kinder Bridge program, we’re providing these young learners with the targeted support they need to start their school journey with confidence.
info@impactoneducation.org
303.524.3865
Impact on Education
721 Front Street, Suite A
Louisville, CO 80027
Tax ID #84-0943046
