Education should help people discover, develop, and deploy their unique aptitudes and gifts. However, millions of learners experience the opposite: a one-size-fits-all model that prizes exclusivity and standardization over meeting individual needs. Every person is unique and deserves a learning experience that empowers them to achieve success—however they define it.
We envision a transformational redesign of postsecondary education.
Why?
- Almost three-quarters of learners who want to build new skills prefer to do so somewhere other than a four-year college or university
- Nearly half of parents want their child to have alternatives to a four-year institution
- Sixty-one percent of graduates regret their choice of major
- 38 of the top 100 colleges in America have more students from the top 1 percent of income earning households than there are from the bottom 60 percent
- Just 11% of business executives believe higher education institutions “are graduating students with the skills and competences that my business needs”
We are eager to partner with social entrepreneurs and organizations dedicated to providing experiences that put learners in charge of their journey and that foster a commitment to lifelong learning.
This transformational redesign will not be restricted to the classroom or campus. It will require a movement of educators, innovators, employers, philanthropists, parents, and others who are committed to helping learners of all ages discover, develop, and apply their talents. If your mission is to create platforms, programs, opportunities, and experiences that:
- Encourage people to identify their talents and passions
- Help learners gain the knowledge and values necessary to turn their talents into valued skills; or
- Provide the opportunity for all individuals to use their skills to experience success
Then we want to hear from you.
Grant Description
We are particularly interested in fostering innovations that:
- Put learners in charge of their own educational journey
- Increase access to a diverse array of learning opportunities and promote a lifelong learning mindset
- Provide upskilling opportunities, particularly through alternative programs like certification, modern apprenticeships, and skilled trades
- Incentivize competency-based learning
- Develop the tools necessary to evaluate quality based on the outcomes desired by the individual, such as readiness and personal fulfillment
But that’s not all. We are open to hearing new ideas and investigating new solutions. If you want to turn around statistics like the ones listed above, and have an idea to do so, reach out to us to have a conversation.
Grant Criteria
To begin a conversation, we invite you to submit a short proposal or slides that provide sufficient details for reviewers to assess the nature and feasibility of your idea. Please also include:
- A short background on the leadership team/main driver(s) of the project.
- A brief, itemized budget
Final projects should be innovative and demonstrate ability to scale at a decreasing marginal cost per student.
Who Are Our Partners?
We are excited to support a diverse array of social entrepreneurs such as Arizona State University, Western Governors University, and OpenStax. We have celebrated many of these innovators through Impact Stories that you can find on our website. Read our education-related stories.
Review & Notification Process
Proposals will be accepted and evaluated on a rolling basis.