This section offers tips and tools to help you write your proposal. If you face challenges
accessing these tools, have questions about their meaning, or need assistance, please
email us at [email protected].
Virtual Workshops
We offer free proposal writing workshops that provide step-by-step guidance, offering
a detailed overview of each application section.
QSM Grants can only be awarded to full-time classroom teachers assigned to teach science,
mathematics, or STEM courses/subjects in a PK-12 public regular education program.
Classroom teacher is defined as “any employee of a parish or city school board who
holds a teacher’s certificate and whose legal employment requires a teacher’s certificate.”
Grants will not be awarded for special education instruction. This includes gifted
and talented classes.
Grants will not be awarded for enrichment classes, after-school programs or club organizations.
PK–12 public, charter and university laboratory schools, the Louisiana School for
the Visually Impaired, and the Louisiana School for the Deaf are eligible for QSM
Grants.
Private schools are not eligible for QSM Grants.
The maximum award is $1,000 for PK-2nd grade proposals, $1,500 for 3rd-5th grade proposals,
and $2,000 for 6th-12th grade proposals.
A teacher may only receive one grant award per fiscal year.
Grant funds may only be used to purchase QSM Eligible items.
QSM Eligible items include equipment and materials directly related with instruction
and student use. Grant funds may be used to cover shipping and handling costs but
cannot be used to cover taxes of items.
Safety equipment such as goggle sanitizing cabinets and appropriate chemical storage
cabinets are eligible items as long as use supports the learning of a standard. Example:
if a lesson to learn specific standards requires chemicals that need to be stored
safely in an acids cabinet, etc., the chemicals are ineligible, but the safety cabinet
would be eligible as long as you describe how the students will be using the chemicals
and the requirement for proper storage for those chemicals.
Ineligible items include, but are not limited to, furniture, TV/utility carts, computer
desks, software subscriptions, field trips, registration fees, teacher trainings,
consumables, and supply kits that are mostly consumables.
All grant funds must be expended on items as specified in the approved budget or as
approved by the QSM Grant Administrator.
Items purchased from grant funds are considered property of the school and shall remain
with the school if the teacher leaves.
If unforeseen developments occur that make it impossible for the project to be completed
as submitted, the teacher or principal shall contact the QSM Administrator to decline
the award or transfer the award to a teacher at the school who can implement the project.
Failure to adhere to any of the stated policies or guidelines may result in revocation
of the grant which requires the reimbursement of the full amount of funding to the
QSM Grant Program and the disqualification of the applicant or school for future funding.
A teacher is allowed to submit one proposal for each grant round per fiscal year if
they have not been awarded a grant in the same fiscal year.
Proposals must be submitted by the grant closing date and time.
Group submissions are not allowed and will be disqualified.
All applications must give priority to the Louisiana Student Standards for Mathematics
or Science. The use of National Standards is allowed if Louisiana Student Standards
are not available (e.g., upper-level subjects, STEM subjects, and Pre-K).
The application must include an itemized budget. Shipping costs should be included
in the budget when applicable. Sales tax is not fundable.
Prior to submitting a proposal, the school principal must review and approve of the
proposal. A Principal Statement of Support will be required if awarded.
Any of following actions will result in the disqualification of a submission:
Missing or incomplete proposal component(s)
Any mention of names, schools, parishes, districts, or towns within the responses
to the proposal questions or budget file
Failure to identify how QSM Ineligible Items required to complete the project successfully
will be funded (only if necessary)
Eligible items including more than 10% essential consumables, consumables not related
to the project, or typical classroom supplies
Failure to identify funding source for QSM Eligible Items budget if total exceeds
award limitations (only if necessary)
Violations of the state’s policy regarding use of confidential student data or implication
of knowledge of the content of an assessment beyond what has been provided by the
governing agency. For example, including student names on reports is a violation of
student confidentiality laws. Inclusion of information that could only have been obtained
by reviewing individual items on a state assessment is a violation of state policy.
Evidence of plagiarism. This includes, but is not limited to the following:
Substituting synonyms for another individual’s words but preserving sentence structure
Mixing the individual’s words or phrases with the applicant’s paraphrasing
Using the exact text that a company uses in their product descriptions
Recipients of the grant must comply with all post-award reporting. This includes completion
and submission of the Itemized Expense Report and Final Report by the stated deadline.
The Itemized Expense Report verifies that the amount awarded is spent as specified
in the proposal and approved budget.
The approved budget items must match an attached original receipt. Packing slips or
unpaid invoices are not sufficient.
The total amount expended must be within $100 of the amount awarded.
If there is $100 or more unreconciled (this may occur due to fluctuations in prices),
then a budget item adjustment must be requested for additional items or the amount
remaining must be returned.
Any budget item adjustments must be requested and approved by the QSM Administrator
prior to expenditure.
The Final Report summarizes the implementation of your project and its impact on students.
Terms Defined
Please refer to the following terms and definitions relevant to QSM Grant Proposals.
Proposal: Entire grant application.
Project: Refers to the instructional plan, classroom activities and evaluation methods you
are proposing to increase student learning in the specified standards. This term DOES
NOT refer to project based learning.
Proposal Component: Major section of the QSM grant application. Components include Project Overview,
Rationale, Project Description, Evaluation, and the Budget.
Evaluation Methods: Assessments that quantitatively and qualitatively gage the increase or decrease
in student content knowledge, skills, or practices.
Students’ Actions: Any activity carried out by the students to increase their content knowledge, skills,
and practices. Examples: measure diameter of a circle, calculate speed, watch a video
of a dividing cell, build a robot.
Consumable: One-time use products or services.
QSM Eligible Items: Allowed equipment and materials directly related with instruction and student use.
QSM Ineligible Items: Equipment and materials not funded by the QSM grant program or unrelated to instruction
and student use. Unfunded items include, but are not limited to furniture, TV/utility
carts, computer desks, software subscriptions, field trips, registration fees, teacher
trainings, consumables, and learning kits that are mostly consumables.
While this list is not exhaustive, it is provided to highlight primary examples of
items that cannot be funded with a QSM grant:
One-time use items — playdough, craft items, live specimens, etc.
Writing supplies — pencils/pens, markers, highlighters, etc.
Paper based materials — graph paper, chart paper, paper plates, construction paper,
etc.
Batteries
Adhesives — tape, glue, etc.
Edible items
Chemicals
Plastic bags, wrap, utensils
Subscription based software programs
Field Trips
Teacher trainings
Registration fees — conferences, competitions, etc.
Before submitting your application, please review the following checklist against
your proposal to ensure that you have completed each section.
Standards Sources
Sources of Standard Identified
Standards Outline
Standards Listed
Student Actions Listed
Evaluation Method(s) Listed
Project Summary
Provides a clear and concise summary of the project
Rationale
Motivating factor is clear and concise
Motivating factor evidence is presented
Timeline
Time frame is reasonable and within grant requirements
Aligns to project
Description
Instructional plan and activities are well described, providing a clear vision of
the project.
Plan includes evidence that project adequately aligns with selected standard.
Description shows evidence of how items requested will be used to increase students’
knowledge, skills and/or practices
Project description shows evidence of subject and grade level appropriateness
All major budgetary items are included in the description narrative
Student use of requested budgetary items well described
Quantity of budget items requested is reasonable for implementation of the project
Evaluation Tools
Presents assessment tools used to identify students’ baseline skill(s), content knowledge,
and/or practice(s) prior to implementing the proposed project in the classroom.
Assessment tools used during and after project implementation are described
Target outcome & criteria
Target outcome included
Provides criteria for determining success
Budget
Budget aligns to standards and student actions
Budget includes necessary items for successful implementation
The total of QSM Eligible Items requested does not include restricted items. QSM Ineligible
items includes, but is not limited to, furniture, fixed assets, TV/utility carts,
computer desks, subscriptions, tickets, consumables, and supply kits that are mostly
consumables
Explanation of how QSM Ineligible Items/over budgeted items will be funded is provided
(if necessary)
Writing
Clear and concise writing
Grammar, mechanics, and spelling
Disqualifications
Proposal has all required components
Proposal is not plagiarized
Proposal does not include any identifying information within the responses in the
Application and Budget sections. This includes any mention of names, schools, parishes,
districts, or towns.
Proposal does not violate the State’s policy regarding use of confidential student
data or imply the knowledge of the content of an assessment beyond what has been provided
by the governing agency.
We provide a range of frequently asked questions (and answers) addressing inquiries
on policies and sections of the application that impact the QSM grant process.
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