Helping Teachers Bring Learning to Life
Micro Grants
Empowered knows that a major barrier to creating hands-on, experiential learning experiences for students is the cost of resources that are above and beyond typical classroom supplies. To help offset that challenge, we offer educator funding – in the form of Micro Grants (from $100-$500/academic year) – to any eligible* Empowered Educator.
These grants are given directly to educators for them to used to purchase just about anything they feel will enhance student learning* including (but not limited to):
- Materials for specific activities
- Specialized classroom items and equipment
- Incentives that boost engagement
- Rewards that recognize valued contributions
* Learn more about eligibility, fund usage, and more in the FAQ below (and/or on Empowered Hub).
Micro Grant Qualifying and Reporting
Requesting Teacher Funding:
We’ve made the process of qualifying and applying for funding as simple as practical:
- Create/Log in to your Empowered Hub account
- Complete our Class Registration survey
- Fill out our X question application
- Verify eligibility by completing/submitting the W-9 Form emailed with grant approval
Reporting and On-Going Eligibility
The hardest part about most grants is close-out paperwork. Not with us. Simply:
- Remain a part of the Empowered Community
- Completing our reporting form (5-15 minutes) sharing top-line insights on:
- What challenge(s) did funding help you address?
- Did these dollars increase your impact and/or create meaningful learning?
Check out the FAQ below for more information on our overall process.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Want to know more? The below should help. Please contact us if we can provide additional information.
The Application Process
An Empowered Micro Grant is a $100-$500 grant available to registered Empowered teachers to help cover expenses tied to bringing principled-based, student-centered, experiential learning to life. The grant is designed to cover items such as supplies for Empowered activities and small classroom incentives that help you build meaningful learning experiences throughout the school year.
Our Micro Grant “cycle” aligns with the typical academic year – with applications opening in July and closing on May 31. No grant requests are accepted nor can PEX cards be (re)ordered or funded during the black out period (June 1 – relaunch in July).
We use our blackout month (June and, as needed, early July) to summarize funding requests/fulfillments/etc. for our financial partners (donors) and to prepare and roll out our next year’s grant application, all coinciding email templates, the new class registration form, and the new wrap-up report.
You know your students and your classroom best. We’re here to support your path, not prescribe it.
We request that you consider our Foundational Principles (especially Sound Judgment and Integrity) and use the funding to source the necessary items for your classroom to become more experiential and to motivate student engagement and reward valued contributions.
This will vary for each classroom, teacher, and group of learners but typically supplies for experiential, hands-on activities (like those in our Activity Library) and classroom incentives are the most common uses.
You may NOT use your Empowered funding for school administrative and start-up costs (payroll, capital assets, class furniture, event expenses, Uber, Lyft, etc.) or personal expenses (personal food, entertainment, sending funds (PayPal, Cash App, Venmo, etc.), household bills/utilities, etc.).
Micro Grants will be assessed and approved based on alignment with Empowered’s mission of advancing principled-based, student-centered, teacher-guided, experiential learning.
We understand $500 may not cover all of your funding needs – especially if you teach multiple classes/preps.
We encourage you to pursue additional funding from your communities and other funding initiatives. Consider using our “Marketing Package” (inside Empowered Hub) to request additional money.
For additional support or ideas on how to secure external funds, reach out to our Educator Support team.
You must meet our banking partners’ identity verification requirements by completing and submitting the W-9 Form that is emailed with your approval letter.
Please fill out your W9 as an “Individual/Sole Proprietor” with your personal information, (not your school or district’s information).
All Micro Grant funds will be disbursed through a PEX Pre-paid Visa card (see above).
Failure to return your W-9 Form or to provide the relevant individual information for the grantee will delay your funding (see below for more).
We encourage you to apply again (you will not need to re-register your classes if re-applying in the same academic year) with greater emphasis on meeting evaluation criteria (see above).
Receiving and Using Funding
Empowered Micro Grants are exclusively distributed via “Empowered PEX Cards” (branded, pre-loaded Visa debit cards).
- Register your card online . Follow the prompts. Use 01/01/2000 as your date-of-birth (DOB).
- Download/log-into the “PEX: Spend Nimbly Spend Wisely” from the Google Play Store and/or Apple App Store to check your balance.
- Start using your available funds when you’re ready (see above for availability timing).
Use the “PEX: Spend Nimbly Spend Wisely” (available in the Google Play Store and/or Apple App Store) to check for approved funding to be reflected in your available balance.
- THOSE NEEDING A PEX CARD Cards are ordered once your W-9 is approved and should arrive within 10-15 (business) days.
- THOSE WITH ACTIVE PEX CARDS Typically your approved grant funds will be available within 5-7 (business) days.
You can use your Empowered PEX Card anywhere (online or in person) that Visa cards are accepted.
Empowered PEX Cards do not come with PIN assigned so you should always use your PEX Card as you would a credit card.
Should a merchant require you to use your card as a debit card, our Support Staff can create a PIN code for you upon request.
These expenses may be flagged as misuse, leading to the closure of your Empowered PEX card (holding remaining funds) and the denial of future grants. Market Day/start-up loans and goods should be funded through an Empowered Market Day Loan to keep your grant funding free to purchase other classroom activity supplies and incentives.
Please contact our Educator Support team immediately. Be careful with your card.
- You will have to wait until your new card is ordered and activated (allow for 10-15 days unless otherwise arranged with our staff) before remaining funds can be transferred to your new card for continued spending.
- You are responsible for any usage of your lost card prior to cancellation.
PEX automatically sends a new card to all active accounts about 30 days before the current card expires (3 years after initial issuance).
Automatically re-issued PEX cards can not be activated on your own. Please contact our Educator Support Team for assistance.
Always strive to remain diligent and purposeful with how you use your PEX funding.
Our Support Team can view all PEX expenses and declines. If we recognize or suspect fraudulent spending or abuse of grant funding, we may temporarily de-activate your PEX card (and will contact you for clarification on suspicious usage).
We understand accidental personal purchases may occur. If you accidentally use your PEX funding for personal use or something else not covered (see above) we encourage you to let us know.
No, we do not offer reimbursements.
Occasionally, teachers may experience issues at the point of sale with their PEX card and opt to use their own funding instead.
Please note that, even this situation – with our apologies – we cannot offer reimbursements.
We encourage you to ensure your PEX card is activated and funded before attempting to use it. Check the PEX dashboard or PEX app (see above). NOTE – If you need a PIN, please engage our support team at least two business days in advance of purchases to have one created. You can NOT create one on your own.
The $500/year grant limit was intentionally selected based on typical, previous educator usage during any given academic year.
To that end, we expect grantees to use each year’s funds and submit their grant report (see below) before the black-out period begins on June 1.
That said, funds do NOT expire so it is not a use-it-or-lose-it proposition as the school year winds down. Remaining funds (for teachers who submit an impact report (see below)) will “roll-over” (without impact on future grant requests/funding).
If you go 365 days (1 year) without using your PEX Card, your card will be cancelled and funds will be re-distributed to other applicants (you are welcome to re-apply for a new grant (any roll-over funds will be lost)).
No. As long as your PEX card is active, your funds will remain available to you UNLESS you go 365 days (1 year) between purchases.
At that time your card will be cancelled and ALL available funds will be re-distributed to other applicants. You are welcome to apply for a new grant for up-to-maximum funding but any/all roll-over funds will be lost.
Understanding Reporting
A wrap-up report is a summary of how you used your funding and what impact or learnings it created.
Reports are submitted through a simple form that takes 5-15 minutes (on average) to complete.
The information collected in the recap is not an evaluation of you, but rather a chance to gather stories of impact and transformation from your project or activity to share with our generous donors.
Reports are required to maintain eligibility for future Empowered funding and are due by May 31 each funding year.
Those with active funding can access the survey through their Submittable account.
Yes. You will receive your first reminder (by email) three months after your grant is awarded. Additional reminders are emailed after six months and nine months from issuance. Grantees that miss the May 31 deadline each year will receive a final reminder, on/around June 1.
You must submit a report before you will be eligible for any additional Empowered funding.
Additional Common Questions
Yes. Market Day loans are available to eligible teachers. Check out the Funding section of Empowered Hub (free account required – create one here) and/or contact our Educator Support Team for more information.
Join the Empowered Community Today
Learn more about the ways we collaborate with and support educators, access our free educator resources, and find easy ways to begin your Empowered journey.
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