Stanford Report, March 12, 2008

Initiative on improving K-12 education seeks to support new projects

The Stanford Initiative on Improving K-12 Education has announced that $460,000 is available for a set of new academic pilot projects to begin during the 2008-09 academic year.

Under the initiative, the university is committed to applying its broad expertise and resources to identify and demonstrate strategies for making fundamental improvements in the way our nation educates its children. These efforts target four key areas:

  • Teacher professional development, which may include a curriculum component;

  • School leadership and governance;

  • Policy research related to the above topics; and

  • Programs that extend Stanford resources and opportunities to K-12 students from low-income and under-resourced schools and communities.

    • Through the initiative, scholars from the schools of Business, Law, Medicine, Engineering, Earth Sciences, and Humanities and Sciences, and from the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center and the Hoover Institution, are joining with experts in the School of Education to find ways to improve public education by approaching problems from multiple perspectives. They are also partnering with practitioners and policymakers to forge innovative and practical solutions.

    A one-page letter of intent to submit a pilot project proposal is required and is due April 9. Proposals are due April 25. Funding decisions will be announced in mid-June and funds will be available beginning Sept. 1.

    Previously funded K-12 pilot projects are not eligible for a second pilot grant.

    The Initiative on Improving K-12 Education is one of the multidisciplinary initiatives sponsored by The Stanford Challenge, the university's $4.3 billion fundraising campaign.