STEM Education Grants
Grants for science, technology, engineering & math (STEM) education programs
Looking to find grants to fund STEM education programs for students or the public related to science, technology, engineering and/or math? The Instrumentl team has compiled a few sample grants to get you headed in the right direction.
Read more about each grant below or start a 14-day free trial to see all STEM education grants recommended for your specific mission or programs.
Education - Advancing Afterschool
Charles Stewart Mott Foundation
Note: While we’re open to new ideas and projects, funding for unsolicited requests is very limited.
Education - Advancing Afterschool
We work to increase access to quality educational opportunities for all children — particularly those from low-income families and underserved communities.
Preparing a child for the future doesn’t end when the school bell rings.
How it Works
The hours before and after school — and during the summer months — provide opportunities for children and youth to engage in learning, and the space for the kinds of activities that encourage curiosity, creativity and confidence.
Students who attend afterschool and summer programs are better prepared for work and life. They attend school more, make gains in reading and math, improve their grades and have higher graduation rates. And they develop positive social skills and improve their behavior during the school day.
Our interest in afterschool and summer learning programs spans 85 years of support, from the early development of community schools through our partnership with the U.S. Department of Education’s 21st Century Community Learning Centers program. Now serving more than 1.7 million children and youth at 11,000 sites across the country, these local programs provide a wealth of practical information and data on the impact of and need for afterschool and summer learning opportunities.
Mott is dedicated to making afterschool and summer learning programs available for every child and family who needs them. Through our support of afterschool networks in all 50 states, as well as key national education organizations, our grantmaking helps to inform policies, develop partnerships and shape practices that will sustain and increase the quality of local programs across the U.S.
Currently, our grantmaking focuses on three areas:
Building an Afterschool Infrastructure
Our grants support a national infrastructure of organizations dedicated to increasing the quality of afterschool programs for children, youth and families.
We make grants to:
- organizations helping to strengthen the capacity of 50 statewide afterschool networks through technical assistance that will improve program quality and data collection practices; and
- nonprofit groups supporting the sharing of best practices, research and communication strategies throughout the network.
Fostering Afterschool Policy
Our funding supports efforts to inform the development of effective policies and partnerships to increase quality afterschool programs for children, youth and families.
We make grants to:
- national nonprofit groups that work to inform state, federal and local policies to increase access to quality afterschool and summer learning programs; and
- organizations that support strategic communications aimed at improving access to quality afterschool and summer learning programs at the local, state and national levels
Improving Afterschool Quality & Innovation
Our grantmaking advances research and exemplary models that increase student engagement in learning and prepare students for college and career. We make grants to:
- organizations conducting research to identify the impact of quality afterschool programs on children, youth and families;
- national nonprofit groups with expertise in research-based practices that include: digital media and learning; science, technology, engineering and math (STEM); music and the arts; and service learning; and
- organizations supporting initiatives to test and expand research-based models/approaches in education and afterschool.
Global Impact Cash Grants
Cisco Foundation
Global Impact Cash Grants
Cisco welcomes applications for Global Impact Cash Grants from community partners around the world who share our vision and offer an innovative approach to a critical social challenge.
We identify, incubate, and develop innovative solutions with the most impact. Global Impact Cash Grants go to nonprofits and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that address a significant social problem. We’re looking for programs that fit within our investment areas, serve the underserved, and leverage technology to improve the reach and efficiency of services. We accept applications year-round from eligible organizations. An initial information form is used to determine whether your organization will be invited to complete a full application.
Social Investment Areas
At Cisco, we make social investments in three areas where we believe our technology and our people can make the biggest impact—education, economic empowerment, and crisis response, the last of which incorporates shelter, water, food, and disaster relief. Together, these investment areas help people overcome barriers of poverty and inequality, and make a lasting difference by fostering strong global communities.
Education Investments
Our strategy is to inclusively invest in technology-based solutions that increase equitable access to education while improving student performance, engagement, and career exploration. We support K-12 solutions that emphasize science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) as well as literacy. We also consider programs that teach environmental sustainability, eliminate barriers to accessing climate change education, and invite student engagement globally to positively affect the environment.
What we look for:
- Innovative early grade solutions using the internet and technology to bridge the barriers preventing access to education for underserved students globally.
- Solutions that positively affect student attendance, attitudes, and behavior while inspiring action by students to improve learning outcomes, whether they participate in person, online, or in blended learning environments.
- Solutions with high potential to replicate and scale globally, thereby increasing the availability of evidence-based solutions that support student-centricity, teacher capacity in the classroom, and increased parental participation to help students learn and develop.
Note: Cisco does not provide direct funding to schools.
Economic Empowerment
Our strategy is to invest in early stage, tech-enabled solutions that provide equitable access to the knowledge, skills, and resources that people need to support themselves and their families toward resilience, independence, and economic security.
Our goal is to support solutions that benefit individuals and families, and that contribute to local community growth and economic development in a sustainable economy.
We target our support in three interconnected areas:
- Skills development to help job seekers secure dignified employment and long-term career pathways in technology or other sectors, including environmental sustainability/green jobs.
- Inclusive entrepreneurship with small businesses as engines of local growth as well as high growth potential start-ups as large-scale job creators nationally and internationally, in technology or other sectors, including environment sustainability/green businesses.
- Banking the unbanked through relevant and affordable financial products and capacity building services.
Cisco Crisis Response
We seek to help overcome the cycle of poverty and dependence and achieve a more sustainable future through strategic investments. We back organizations that successfully address critical needs of underserved communities, because those who have their basic needs met are better equipped to learn and thrive.
What we look for:
- Innovative solutions that increase the capacity of grantees to deliver their products and services more effectively and efficiently
- Design and implementation of web-based tools that increase the availability of, or improve access to, products and services that are necessary for people to survive and thrive
- Programs that increase access to clean water, food, shelter, or disaster relief and promote a more sustainable future for all
- By policy, relief campaigns respond to significant natural disaster and humanitarian crises as opposed to those caused by human conflict. Also by policy, our investments in this area do not include healthcare solutions.
Global Payments Corporate Sponsorships
Global Payments Direct
Corporate Citizenship - Giving Back Globally
As a Service. Driven. Commerce company, Global Payments does its utmost to be a responsible corporate citizen, and our employees demonstrate passion and enthusiasm for making a difference in the lives of others. As a member of the global business community, corporate citizenship is fundamental to our values and who we are. We take action around the world to create change by offering our time, services and financial assistance to those in need.
Our Commitment
Global Payments is committed to serving the communities around the world in which we live and work by providing resources to improve financial preparedness and literacy, promote good health initiatives including preventative care and well-being programs, emphasize education and continuous learning, and support disaster relief efforts.
Our Purpose
We strive to integrate corporate citizenship into every aspect of our company in order to:
- Empower and encourage our employees and others to serve their communities
- Leverage our resources, talent, global reach and expertise to create meaningful change
- Ensure that society benefits from our company's commitment to make a difference around the world
Global Payments' Corporate Citizenship Goals
Global Payments' philanthropic efforts are focused on financial literacy, health, education and disaster relief. We believe that by supporting these common societal issues and concerns, we will be able to help individuals, businesses and communities overcome barriers to economic growth. We support a variety of organizations and programs that help create and sustain commerce around the world, helping to achieve positive economic outcomes wherever we may live or work.
Participation and Involvement
Global Payments makes it a priority to promote a culture of service to make a difference in the lives of others by committing financial resources to nonprofit organizations around the world.
Current Corporate Sponsorships
Global Payments is committed to supporting and nurturing programs that serve a global community in the each of the following areas.
Financial Preparedness and Literacy
We believe in the critical importance of financial literacy. We fund programs that not only provide assistance but also promote independence and well-being for individuals and small businesses that lack access to information, resources and related services.
Health
We support initiatives and programs that promote good health and preventative care. We focus on programs that help individuals and families cope with chronic health issues as well as programs dedicated to physical or mental disabilities (congenital or acquired), covering impairments, activity limitations and participation restrictions.
Education and Continuous Learning
In addition to the financial literacy programs, we emphasize education in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics (STEM) programs.
Disaster Relief
Global Payments has a longstanding commitment to helping people affected by major natural disasters and humanitarian crises. In these difficult times, we work with our humanitarian response partners to direct funds to the people and places in greatest need.
GSK U.S. Community Partnerships Charitable Grant - National
GlaxoSmithKline
Charitable grants
At GSK, we are guided by our mission of helping people do more, feel better, and live longer. To achieve this mission, we must go beyond discovering, developing, and delivering new medicines, vaccines, and healthcare products. That’s why we are committed to supporting nonprofits in the communities where we live and work.
Our charitable partnerships in the US support programs for children and youth focused on nutrition and physical activity, STEM education, and disaster preparedness and response
Programmatic focus areas
GSK U.S. Community Partnerships Charitable Grants must address one of our three specific focus areas in order to be considered for funding:
- Nutrition & Physical Activity - helping children and youth achieve or maintain a healthy weight
- STEM Education - inspiring children and youth to build the future STEM workforce
- Disaster Preparedness & Response - increasing the safety and resilience of children and youth in the face of disaster
Northrop Grumman Corporation Corporate Contributions
Northrop Grumman Corporation
NOTE: Northrop Grumman does not accept unsolicited requests for funding. If your requests meets the criteria outlined and you wish to discuss the possibility of funding for a grant in one of our communities, please contact a member of our Corporate Citizenship Team. An invitation letter is required in order to submit a request for funding.
Northrop Grumman seeks to support and strengthen the communities where our employees work and live. In addition to in-kind and volunteer resources, Northrop Grumman grants help make the lives of the people in our communities better, safer, successful and more resilient. Our Charitable Contributions program provides funding to state / government – accredited schools and 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations which provide programming or services addressing STEM education, particularly engineering and technology programs, veterans and the military, health and human services, and the environment. In addition, grant requests are reviewed to ensure they are in line with community goals and our strategic priorities which include education, employee engagement and strengthening the community.
AstraZeneca hosts an annual open call for applications to support eligible 501(c) nonprofit organizations across the US for local and regional community-based programs. In 2022, the ACT on Health Equity: Community Solutions Challenge will provide up to $1 million in funding. Organizations may apply for up to $25,000 for each eligible program.
AstraZeneca recognizes health starts in our homes, schools and communities. The ACT on Health Equity: Community Solutions Challenge supports community-based, nonprofit organizations that are advancing health equity among underserved US communities through innovative health, wellbeing, and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) programs at the local and regional level.
Applications must meet the following general criteria:
Program Focus: Community-based programs to improve conditions that affect health and wellbeing (ex: housing, environmental and neighborhood safety, nutrition, access to care, and/or access to education and career readiness in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math).
Communities Served: Programs that directly benefit underserved populations and prioritize their social, cultural, and linguistic needs.
Program Footprint: Nonprofit organizations across the US are invited to apply for programs benefiting one or more local communities. While not a requirement, special consideration will be provided to programs that reach AstraZeneca footprint geographies (e.g., Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Indiana, North Carolina, Texas and California).
Please read our frequently asked questions for more details.