Before the
Covid-19 pandemic, most educators who used GetEdFunding (GEF) found it an
intuitively easy and effective way to supplement shoestring budgets for
technology and other needs. During the pandemic, many of them found the funding
opportunities provided by GEF even more relevant and accessed them even more
frequently than before.
These were among
the findings of a 2021 survey conducted among 64,000+ users of GetEdFunding.com,
a vetted collection of thousands of relevant and innovative grants and awards
sponsored by CDW-G, a leading provider of educational technology.
A total of 501
respondents from 46 U.S. states and the District of Columbia—a representative
sample of the site’s users—answered the Zarca Interactive online survey between
March 9 and April 30, 2021.
Grade levels for
which participants are responsible span the education spectrum. Distribution was close to even among K–12
grades, which comprised the bulk of respondents. In addition, 22 percent were
connected with PreK and 18 percent with higher education—a six percentage point
increase over the proportion in the most recent prior survey, conducted in
2019. Percentages are based on multiple responses to grade levels for which
respondents are responsible.
Technology grants high on educators’ wish lists
More than a third
of participants in the survey—36 percent—have job titles indicating likely
interest in grants for technology purchases. These include educators directly
involved in the grant process (writers, administrators and coordinators),
technology administrators and staff (CIO/CTO, IT managers, technology
integrationists, coordinators, directors, and support staff), as well as
library/media specialists.
Twenty-eight
percent say more than 25 percent of their technology budgets come from outside
sources, such as grants, PTAs, local corporations and other sources. Thus, technology needs are high on the list
of subject/content areas for which users are most interested in getting grants:
- STEM, 25 percent
- Technology, 23 percent
- Literacy, 17 percent
- Career and college readiness, 12 percent
- At-risk students’ education, 11 percent
Major new funding
sources emerged not long before the survey was conducted: the $54.3 billion
Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund II (ESSER II), made
available as part of the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental
Appropriations Act of 2021. After the survey began, billions of dollars more
became available through the American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary
School Emergency Relief Fund (ARP ESSER) and the Higher Education Emergency
Relief Fund III (HEERF III), also authorized under ARP.
Ninety-five
percent of those surveyed anticipate using ESSER II funds. Number one in
expected usage—voted on while the pandemic was in full force—is
cleaning/sanitizing products, 46 percent. But technology-related categories are
the next three: laptops, second at 41 percent of responses, followed by
infrastructure to support remote learning, 40 percent, and Internet hotspots,
37 percent.
Users say GetEdFunding is easy, intuitive way to find grants
Sixty-two percent
have applied for funding opportunities, and of those, 51 percent found those
opportunities on GetEdFunding. And of those respondents, 56 percent received
grants. Sixty-nine percent of users say GetEdFunding is an easy, very intuitive
way to identify the kinds of grants they want.
Forty-seven
percent of respondents have applied for six or more grants in their career. Ten
percent have not sought grants. Their reasons for not applying include:
- Lack of time, 39 percent—down 13 percentage
points from the 2019 survey
- Hard to identify appropriate opportunities, 38
percent
- Often don’t find out about opportunities until
it’s too late to apply, 33 percent
- The grant application process is intimidating, 23
percent
- We do not have personnel to undertake the grant
writing process, 15 percent
- Our school/district/campus budget suffices to
meet any needs, 13 percent—up 10 percentage points from 2019.
Forty percent are
with a school, district, campus or organization that has a grant writing
specialist on staff or an individual who works with it to identify and prepare
applications—up 11 percentage points from 2019.
But comments from
the educators indicate a continued need for an easy, effective way to access
grants such as those they can find on GetEdFunding:
“Typically, an individual applies on his own time. Not much support from a team.”
“I am a board member and so volunteer my
time to grant writing. I am not a formal or educated grant writer, so it is all
a learning process.”
“We can ask for assistance from the
district grant specialist, but she rarely replies.”
On the other hand, some respondents seem to have access to clearly understood grant writing roles and procedures, enhancing their ability to use the kind of grant information GetEdFunding provides. A sample comment:
“1. A formal request for grant research, review, or development is made and approved by administration 2. Grant writer receives the request and reviews a grant program, researches grants, or develops a grant application 3. Grant writer completes the request and the administration decides next steps 4. Grant writer works with staff to develop grant applications 5. Grant application is submitted; if awarded, program staff manage the award.”
Top ways in which
GetEdFunding users find out about the site are:
- Referred by a friend or colleague, 24 percent
- Search engine, 24 percent
- Received an email, 16 percent
Relevancy rating of GEF newsletter soars to 90 percent
In addition, 56
percent of respondents get the GetEdFunding newsletter, and 63 percent of them
say its length is “just right.” Of those who answered a question about grant
opportunities featured in the newsletter, 90 percent rate them as relevant to
extremely relevant, up from 75 percent in 2019. Thirty percent subscribe to the
Discover GetEdFunding Blog, and 99 percent find its content relevant to
extremely relevant, up from 92 percent in 2019.
Happy with their
own GetEdFunding results, 71 percent of respondents are extremely or very
likely to recommend the site to their colleagues:
- Users have referred an average of one to three
colleagues to GetEdFunding, while six percent have steered more than 16 to the
site.
- Respondents have forwarded opportunities they
found on the site to an average of one to three colleagues. Ten percent have
referred such opportunities to more than 16 others.
Fifty percent say
social media are very or extremely important to their work/professional
life. Of 12 social and professional
networking websites listed, the top five with which respondents have an account
are:
- Facebook, 76 percent
- LinkedIn, 62 percent
- Instagram, 54 percent
- Twitter, 51 percent
- Pinterest, 48 percent
The order remains
the same when users are asked which social networking service they would use
for work/professional reasons if they could only use one. The leaders are:
- Facebook, 27 percent
- LinkedIn, 25 percent
- Instagram, 11 percent
Sixty-three
percent say they are very or extremely likely to use a social networking site
in a typical week. The most popular purposes for using them are:
- Exchange of information with peers, 54 percent
- Professional networking, 45 percent
- Personal professional development, 44 percent
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