Innovation Grant

The Innovation Grant Program, offered by the South Carolina Department of Education, aims to support innovative initiatives in public schools to enhance student achievement. Priority is given to projects that address measurable benchmarks, innovative strategies for closing achievement gaps, and evidence-based practices. The program particularly favors applications from high poverty districts, focusing on areas like literacy, STEM, and character development, ensuring all students are prepared for future success.

Description
The purpose of the Innovation Grant Program is to support innovative pilot initiatives in public school districts and schools that include the criteria listed in Proviso 1A.56 of H. 4025, the General Appropriations Bill of 2025, 1st Regular Session of the 126th South Carolina General Assembly.
Funding Details
Criteria the Innovation Grants Committee will consider includes:
Identification of key measurable benchmarks to raise student achievement and ensure all students are prepared to graduate college, career and civic ready;Innovative strategies to close student achievement gaps in reading and mathematics, with a focus on schools with an academic achievement rating of below average and unsatisfactory;A demonstrated ability to implement the initiative or model as outlined in the application; andA demonstrated ability to be both replicable and scalable with priority given to projects grounded in evidence-based practices that have significantly impacted student achievement outcomes.
Additionally, public school districts and schools that have high poverty and low achievement will receive priority for grants when their applications are judged to meet the criteria established for the grant program.
Applicants must indicate in their application which of the following priority area will be addressed by their proposed program:
LiteracyRaise student achievement to ensure College, Career, and Military readinessClose student achievement gaps, with a focus on below average and unsatisfactory schoolsApplied Learning and Workforce DevelopmentSTEM/STEAMCharacter DevelopmentCivics Education.
Grantees are required to participate in an external evaluation using an evaluator approved by the Department.