HHCEF Grants
Individual Grants – $1,000 each
Fall Grant Cycle (Deadline – November 1)
Spring Grant Cycle (Deadline – April 1)
Teachers, departments, schools, and community organizations are eligible to apply. Requests which exceed the limit by minimal amounts will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
Live on the Hudson Grants – Amount varies
Live on the Hudson grants are awarded on a rolling basis. Amounts awarded vary and eligibility is limited to the five schools within the Hendrick Hudson School District.
Important: Please note that evidence of principal, administrator, or other executive approval is required on all applications. Also, district requests for funding for technology or special education programs require the approval of the Executive Director of Educational Support Services or the Director of Pupil Personnel Services, respectively. This may require submission of a hard copy of the cover sheet with the appropriate signatures. We recommend that all applicants review the FAQs below prior to completing the application.
HHCEF Grant FAQs
HHCEF offers two types of grants:
- Individual Grants
- $1,000 each
- Two cycles:
- Fall – November 1 deadline
- Spring – April 1 deadline
- Some flexibility in the amount
- Live on the Hudson Grants
- Awarded on a rolling basis
- Eligibility is limited to the five schools of the Hendrick Hudson School District
- Administrators generally receive a request for submissions
We fund requests ranging from an individual teacher asking for funding for supplies to departmental requests for additional technology, to building-level requests for infrastructure enhancements.
The following requests are generally not eligible for a HHCEF grant:
- Personal professional development
- Curriculum costs that would otherwise be includible in the district budget
- Costs to repeat an existing program or project funded by a previous HHCEF grant
- Low-impact grants, e.g., the target population is very small
- Complete the appropriate writeable PDF grant application
- Obtain necessary approvals (see below)
- Submission:
• Save the form and email it to grants@hhcef.net.
• or print a hard copy and mail to: HHCEF, P.O. Box 114, Montrose, NY 10548. In-district applications can be interoffice mailed to Beth Gruber, HHSD District Office.
• Reminder: Please obtain all appropriate approval signatures prior to submitting your application. An email indicating approval from the appropriate person(s) is also acceptable and may be directed to beth.gruber@henhudschools.org.
District applicants:
• Building-level: Principal approval is required on all applications
• Technology request: Director of Technology approval and Principal approval if necessary
• Special Education: Director of Special Education and Principal approval if necessary
Community organization and other applicants:
• Executive Director or other similar official must approve all applications
An email indicating approval from the appropriate person(s) is also acceptable and may be directed to beth.gruber@henhudschools.org.
- Supplies and equipment
- Professional services, including consulting fees, honoraria & speakers’ fees
- Digital subscriptions, digital content or other online resources
- Stipends and salaries
- Food or refreshments
- Travel
- Indirect overhead, e.g., as a fixed amount or percentage of the grant
As long as you are submitting a grant for a new project and have successfully completed all the requirements of the previous grant, you may submit another grant application.
No more than one grant application per individual will be approved by the HHCEF Board during a particular grant cycle. If you do submit more than one application, if one is approved, the remaining application(s) will be tabled until the next applicable grant cycle.
HHCEF does not typically fund projects on an ongoing basis, so submitting an application to continue an existing project is not recommended.
We will provide partial funding for projects. Please indicate your other source(s) of funding on the application.
If your proposal was tabled due to a lack of available funds as communicated by us, then by all means resubmit it.
The HHCEF board reviews all applications based on established criteria:
- Identification of need
- Clarity of educational objectives
- Method of evaluation and measurement of progress
- Sustainability and fit with other community/district programs
- Size of target population
Applications are evaluated and voted on by the HHCEF board which consists of community members. The District Superintendent also sits on the board ex officio as a non-voting member.
Applicants will be notified via email when their application has been approved. As soon as you are notified, you will be able to start your project. Grant recipient responsibilities:
District Grant Recipients: Contact the District Office or your school’s main office to determine how to order materials, etc. All financial aspects of the grant are handled in accordance with standard district business practices.
Community organizations: A check will be mailed to you after your grant application has been approved.
Funds are generally expected to be used within one year of approval.
At the completion of your program/project, you should submit a brief report that includes an evaluation showing the project’s outcomes relative to its goals.
When possible, please provide the HHCEF with pictures, testimonials, student outcomes, etc., for use in future HHCEF publicity and fundraising efforts.
You may contact the HHCEF directly at grants@hhcef.net or you may contact Beth Gruber, HHCEF Vice President, Grants, at 257-5153 or beth.gruber@henhudschools.org.
Grants Awarded
Updates coming soon!
2016 Spring Grants
- Hendrick Hudson High School – Advanced Placement Art Students’ Puppet Production of the “Mud Pony,” a Native American tale
- Blue Mountain Middle School – Registration Fees and Supplies for two new Destination Imagination teams (click here for competition results on District website)
2015 Fall Grants
- Hendrick Hudson High School – Printing of students’ competition posters and Science Research Symposium newsletter of the Science Research program.
- Hendrick Hudson High School – Purchase of 75 high-quality safety goggles for the Project Lead the Way Biomedical Science program.
2015 Spring Grants
- Blue Mountain Middle School – Cable crossover machine and attachment package for fitness center
2014 Fall Grants
- Buchanan & Verplanck Senior Citizens – Chair Yoga sessions led by a professional yoga instructor. This 10-week program will be video-recorded for continued use by the seniors in the years to come.
- Buchanan-Verplanck Elementary School – “We Are Readers!” program using ‘We Both Read’ books featuring an interactive format with age-appropriate text on one page for a child, and more sophisticated text for a parent, teacher, or older child on the facing page.
- Hendrick Hudson High School – iMac computer for the new recording studio to supplement the equipment HHCEF funded in 2013. Students use the studio to record music CDs and to film “Inside Hen Hud,” the high school’s video news show, available for viewing on the District website, www.henhudschools.org.
BAM (Band of Ambitious Musicians) club members in the HS Recording Studio
2014 Innovation in Education Grant
- Hendrick Hudson High School – Digital Art Studio at Hendrick Hudson High School to support projects in photography, portfolios, graphic design, yearbook, and video. The studio would be used by all art classes, the yearbook club, and a planned digital photography club. This grant builds on our 2012 Innovation in Education grant that funded the creation of new technology-rich art electives at Blue Mountain Middle School.
AP Art student using new Art Studio computer and peripherals
AP Art students using new Art Lab equipment
2014 Spring Grants – Round 2
- Hendrick Hudson Free Library – Laptops for Free Computer Education classes teaching basic internet skills, word processing and Excel via small group instruction. Open to all ages and the ESL community.
- Hendrick Hudson School District Special Education Department – iPads for the ABC (Academics, Behavior and Communication) Program to be used to enhance and track student progress in language, behavior and motor skills and build functional skills in ABC. Teachers and students use speech apps, video modeling, iTunes.
- Hendrick Hudson High School – Collaborative Art and Language Department Project: Spanish language students, under art teacher supervision, created a large paper mural modeled after Picasso’s Don Quixote using Sharpie markers. The finished mural hangs in the Guidance hallway.
Spanish language “Don Quixote” mural in progress
2014 Spring Grants
- Hendrick Hudson High School and All Elementary Schools – Advanced Art Students Stage Puppet Production of “Chato’s Kitchen” Click here for related story and slideshow on Hendrick Hudson School District’s website.
- Blue Mountain Middle School – Supplies for Teach Yourself Friday, a Computers class unit allowing students to explore an area of individual interest through internet research, using tutorials to teach an application or skill not otherwise in the curriculum.
2013 Fall Grants
- Hendrick Hudson High School – CD-Rom versions of Rosetta Stone – English for ELL (English Language Learner) students.
- Hendrick Hudson High School – Recording Studio – MIDI controller, microphones and other recording equipment for a new recording studio.
- Hendrick Hudson High School – New plasma television for the Mac lab used by business, art, computer, and film appreciation classes.
2013 Innovation in Education Grants
- Alternative High School at Hendrick Hudson HIgh School – 20 Chromebooks and storage cart.
- Cortlandt Community Rowing Association – 2 rowing exercise machines for indoor rowing practice.
- Hendrick Hudson School District-wide – Reading A to Z Literacy software license for all elementary school teachers (matched with funds from the Peekskill Rotary Club).
2013 Spring Grants
- Hendrick Hudson High School – ELMO image projector for an English class.
- Hendrick Hudson High School – Wound-stitching kits, chromatograhy kit and protein electrophoresis chamber for Medical Interventions, the newest course in the Project Lead the Way Biomedical sequence at Hendrick Hudson High School.
- Furnace Woods Elementary School – A portable dry erase music staff board for elementary music instruction.
2012 Fall Grants
- Hendrick Hudson High School – Mountain bikes for use in the physical education program and for the formation of a competitive high school Mountain Biking Club
HHHS Mountain Biking Club at Blue Mountain Reservation
- Buchanan-Verplanck Elementary School – Non-fiction materials for grades 3-5 to enhance the Book Nook
- Hendrick Hudson Free Library – Bridge Activity Workbooks and other materials for the Library’s Homework Help program for English Language Learners
2012 Innovation in Education Grants
- Blue Mountain Middle School – Digital cameras, printer and graphics software for three new art electives at Blue Mountain Middle School
- Buchanan-Verplanck Elementary School – Tablets and software for the instructional speech and language program
2012 Spring Grants
- Blue Mountain Middle School – Updated drums for the Blue Mountain Middle School World Drumming program
- Hendrick Hudson School District – Books for a district-wide professional development program
- Hendrick Hudson High School – Support for the “Role Models” seminar series, which brings in professionals from a wide range of careers to share their insights and personal experiences with students
- Blue Mountain Middle School – Whale Watch, a balancing platform to be used for team-building added to the Project Adventure equipment and ropes course
2011 Fall Grants
- Hendrick Hudson School District Athletic Department – Equipment for a summer Speed and Agility program for grades 6-12
- Hendrick Hudson High School – New costumes for the Choral Program, in collaboration with the District’s Parents Committee on Music (PCOM)
- Hendrick Hudson High School – Supplies, materials, and publications for the Science Research program
- Buchanan-Verplanck Elementary School – Supplies and equipment for an alternative recess program emphasizing literacy and math skills building through arts and crafts, games and other activities
- Hendrick Hudson High School – Tickets to see “War Horse” at Lincoln Center for art students who learned puppetry and performed The Wizard of Oz with puppets they designed and constructed
2011 Innovation in Education Grant
- Hendrick Hudson High School – 3-D printer and other materials for the Project Lead the Way Engineering and Biomedical Science programs
Engineering students holding various objects made with the 3-D printer (2016)
2011 Spring Grants
- Hendrick Hudson Special Education PTA (SEPTA) – SPARKS after-school program teaching social skills to special needs and mainstream elementary school students (matched with funds from the Peekskill Rotary Club)
- Aaron Copland House, Cortlandt Manor – Stipend for collaborative effort with the Hendrick Hudson School District Music Department which culminated in a joint concert, An Evening with American Composers, featuring student musicians from all five schools