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[No funding remains] Colorado Governor Jared Polis is awarding up to $600 to new projects from Colorado teachers

Updated August 8th 9:53pm ET: there is no more funding remaining to be applied to submitted projects. If your project did not receive the one-time donation, it may still yet receive funding from our donor community. Projects, especially those under $600, typically have a 71% chance of being fully funded!

Updated August 7th 1:37pm ET: the campaign code is no longer available to be applied to new projects. If you have submitted a project with a campaign code or have a draft ready to submit, our team will still review those in order of submission time.

Updated August 7th 8am ET: funding for this opportunity is running low! Submit your project today for the best chance at receiving the one-time donation.

Starting on August 6th, Governor Jared Polis will award up to $600 in Federal COVID Relief funding to Colorado classroom teachers’ projects requesting resources to support students in response to COVID-19. Funding for eligible projects will likely be applied shortly after a project is approved, while funds remain. For the best chance at funding, submit a project on August 6th, 2024. Due to the nature of this opportunity, funding is likely to run out quickly and not every submitted project will receive funding. 

How to qualify:

  • If you don’t already have a teacher account, create one at www.donorschoose.org/teachers. Then return to this page to follow the rest of these instructions. Do not create a duplicate account.
  • Sign into your account.
  • Teach PreK-12 in a Colorado public school.
  • Create a new project on or after 12:30 PM MST August 6th, 2024
  • On the “HI” page while creating your project, enter the campaign code COLORADO by clicking "Enter a campaign code."
      • Where to enter the campaign code:

  • Request resources to support students’ social, emotional, and mental well-being as well as the impacts of interrupted academic learning as a result of COVID-19.
    • Keep in mind that your $600 grant includes the materials cost, applicable taxes and fees, and the suggested donation to DonorsChoose. To keep your total project goal at $600 you should request around $450 in materials; you will see the project’s total goal update as you shop.
      Click here for a cost example: TPG 600 WHAT stage.png
      In this example, the materials' cost is $439.00, and after the remaining fees and suggested donation, the total project goal is $585.33. Therefore this project and its materials would be eligible because the goal is less than $600. 
  • In your project essay, make sure to describe how the resources you’re requesting will help your students through pandemic-impacted learning.

Create your project

What won’t qualify:

  • Projects posted before 12:30 PM MST on August 6th, 2024
  • Projects with a total goal over $600 (this includes all fees)
  • Any items that include a subscription component
  • Any food items in your cart will disqualify your project
  • Materials from Scholastic, Time for Kids, or Teachers Pay Teachers gift cards
  • Resources categorized as "Food, Clothing, & Hygiene"
    • This means any items like food/snacks, clothing, first aid kits, hand sanitizer, deodorant, tissues, air fresheners, irons, cleaning supplies, or other non-COVID learning response related resources.
  • Projects with the subject area "Warmth, Care, & Hunger"
  • Professional Development, special requests, and virtual trip and visitor projects
  • Capital improvements to school building(s)
  • Salaries or bonuses

If your project meets the above criteria, you’ll receive $600 in funding as soon as your project is reviewed by our team and posted on our site, while funds last. 

With thanks to Colorado Governor Jared Polis

Governor Jared Polis is proud to support Colorado teachers and their incredible work responding to the impacts of COVID-19 on student learning. These funds are part of a federal relief package and allowable uses of the funds include:

  • Academic materials that students need to recover from learning loss
  • Social-emotional or mental health support materials to help with the impact of COVID-19 on student mental health

All participating teachers should comply with any applicable local laws and school district policies when creating their DonorsChoose projects for this partnership. 

Funding for this project is from the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief Funds,  ALN 84.425V  through the Colorado Governor's Office.

FAQs 

1. Which educators qualify; who is eligible? All Colorado public school educators who teach students in Pre-K – 12th grade are eligible for the program. For the purposes of this program, “Colorado educator” is defined as any full-time equivalent public-school employee who spends the majority of their time directly educating or counseling students. Read more at this link. Only one DonorsChoose account per teacher is permitted.
2. What resources can educators request? Educators can request classroom resources, including but not limited to supplies, technology, and instructional materials.
3. Can a non-educator nominate an educator and/or project? No. Funding through this partnership is intended to address the individual and specific need(s) of each educator and classroom. Educators must submit their own projects to participate in the program.

4. Can educators submit multiple projects for funding? Each Colorado educator can only have one project funded. Educators who previously received a one-time donation last school year are eligible for this round of funding. Projects posted before August 6th are not eligible for funding. It must be a new project. If a teacher has multiple projects available, the project posted first will receive the donation. Educators are encouraged to post additional projects to DonorsChoose and benefit from our community of donors.
5. What is a thank-you package? After your project has been fully funded and you’ve received all of your materials, you’ll be prompted to upload a short essay and some photos showing the impact your materials had in your classroom.
6. What happens if my project's total goal is over $600? Your project will not receive the donation from Governor Jared Polis.
7. What resources are considered as “Food, Clothing, and Hygiene”? These are items like food/snacks, clothing, first aid kits, deodorant, tissues, air fresheners, irons, and cleaning supplies. These items are not eligible for this funding opportunity. Any food items will disqualify your project from receiving funding.
8. What is considered a “Warmth, Care, and Hunger” project? This category is for projects designed to help you request the essentials your students need in and out of the classroom. Projects in this category aren’t tied to classroom lessons or specific learning objectives. This subject area is not eligible for this funding opportunity. You can read more about this subject area in our Warmth, Care, & Hunger Help Center article.

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