MAGIP Van Shelhamer Memorial K-12 Education Grant

MAGIP Van Shelhamer Memorial K-12 Education Grant

Status: ACTIVE
Funder: Montana Association of Geographic Information Professionals
Amount: Up to US $1,500
Last Updated: March 28, 2026

Summary

The MAGIP K-12 Education Grants support the integration of geographic information technologies in Montana's K-12 classrooms. Grants are available for curriculum development, teacher training, and equipment purchases to enhance geographic instruction. Up to two competitive grants will be awarded annually, promoting the use of GIS, GPS, and remote sensing. Recipients will also have opportunities to showcase their projects at the Big Sky GeoCon, fostering collaboration and innovation among educators and students in the geospatial field.

Overview

About MAGIP MAGIP is a non-profit 501 (c) (06) professional association that works to identify and support the strengths of individual members, find solutions to individual and collective problems, and address the needs of the Montana GIS community as a whole. The mission of MAGIP is to stimulate, encourage, and provide for the advancement of an interdisciplinary approach to the use of geographic information. The Association sponsors educational workshops, conferences, forums, meetups, educational grants, and scholarships. We work collectively with educators, data creators, data users, application developers and software vendors to foster technical cooperation and promote the development of sound policy and practices that will support the efficient and effective use of geographic information systems. K-12 Education Grants The Montana Association of Geographic Information Professionals (MAGIP) is accepting proposals to support the development and use of geographic location-based technologies, such as Geographic Information Systems (GIS), Global Positioning Systems (GPS), or Remote Sensing in K-12 classrooms. Eligible projects include curriculum development, training for teachers, and purchase of equipment or software that will enhance geographic instruction. The Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) is a provider of industry standard software and is committed to education. As such, they offer complementary software to schools and homeschoolers of Montana. Working with the organization to obtain a license and implementing the software at your institution may also be considered as part of a grant proposal. Up to two grants will be awarded on a competitive basis by the MAGIP Education Committee. One of the primary missions of MAGIP is geospatial education, and the Association represents GIS professionals throughout Montana. Every year MAGIP hosts the Big Sky GeoCon, which has up to 400 professionals in attendance. As a grant recipient you, and/or your students will be invited to share your good work at our conference. You may give a presentation, create a poster, or other media showcase your project. To support this, complimentary registration and a travel stipend are also included in the award package.

Eligibility

We've imported the main document for this grant to give you an overview. You can learn more about this opportunity by visiting the funder's website. Anyone in Montana is eligible and encouraged to apply. The proposed educational application must contribute to furthering the use of GIS in the K-12 classroom.Appropriate proposals may include, but are not limited to: curriculum development, tools for location-based applications, or geographic training opportunities that will enhance the applicant’s ability to deliver quality training to K-12 students, or other applications of GIS to enhance STEM-based curricula.