Grants and Awards from the National Service Briefing

Could you use $100,000 to change the world? The Do Something Awards celebrate young people 25 and under who are tackling a problem and changing the world. Five nominees will be rewarded with a $10,000 community grant, participation in a live VH1 TV show, media coverage and continued support from DoSomething.org. The grand prize winner will receive $100,000 during the live broadcast! Application closes March 1st, 2010. Apply or nominate someone today at www.DoSomething.org/awards

Subject to the availability of appropriations for fiscal year 2010, the Corporation for National and Community Service (the Corporation) announces the anticipated availability of approximately $7.3 million to award new Learn and Serve America Higher Education grants. Grants will be awarded to an estimated seven to nine individual institutions ranging from approximately $85,000 to $200,000 annually for a project period of up to three years, and an estimated seven to eleven consortia ranging from approximately $200,000 to $500,000 for a project period up to three years.

Through the Sprint Character Education Grant Program, the Sprint Foundation will award grants to school districts and individual schools to fund the purchase of resource materials, supplies, equipment and software that facilitates and encourages character education among K-12 students. With a national reach, the program is open to all US public schools (K-12) and US public school districts. The Sprint Character Education Grant program will accept applications for Character Education programs that promote youth leadership, youth volunteerism, school pride and a positive school culture.

The stuff you use every day affects your environment, your community, and your planet. EPA is sponsoring a video competition to raise awareness of the connection between the environment and the "stuff" people use, consume, recycle, and throw away. The EPA needs your help in creating videos that will inspire community involvement, spread information and lead to action. Your passion, your creativity, and your ideas can make a difference. After all, it's our stuff, our planet, our choice.

Teachers are at the heart of any successful effort to initiate, expand, or sustain service-learning in K-12 schools and communities. Teachers must be inspired and prepared to use service-learning as an instructional strategy in their classrooms. As an increasing number of undergraduate programs and graduate schools of education begin to actively prepare educators to use service-learning as a pedagogy, we are learning more about effective practice and policies needed to support the implementation of service-learning in teacher education.

Disney's Friends for Change is a program that encourages kids everywhere to take steps together with their friends to help the planet. The Friends for Change Grants will fund kids' projects that help the environment and will look to engage children ages 5-18 as leaders in their communities. Disney, working with YSA, will award 150 $500 grants throughout 2010.Disney's Friends for Change Grants are open to schools, organizations and individuals planning service projects and will focus on projects implemented by children and youth ages 5-18. The goal of each grant is to inspire children to work with their families, friends, schools and communities to address critical needs in their local, national and global communities. To be eligible, projects will need to be done any time during 2010 and should include one service or celebratory component on Global Youth Service Day, April 23-25, an annual campaign that mobilizes young people around the world to make a positive impact in their communities. www.YSA.org/grants