Welcome to the Dallas Education Foundation Grants Portal
The Dallas Education Foundation (DEF) is Dallas ISD's designated, nonprofit, philanthropic partner. We align with the District’s strategic initiatives and partner with our city’s business leaders, residents and philanthropic community to (a) raise funds for programs that enrich the lives of our students; (b) disburse funds efficiently and effectively to teachers, campuses, administrators, and partners.
Below you will see all of our current opportunities.
- You will need to create a free Submittable account, or sign in with Google or Facebook credentials in order to submit these forms.
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The Dallas Education Foundation is excited to announce its fourth annual Heart of Teaching Grant: Expanding Extracurricular Excellence.
This year, the grants will create opportunities for educators to support, enhance, and expand extracurricular activities on campuses. The maximum grant award will be up to $2,500 per project; grant funds must be used in the 2026-2027 school year.
The application is open to all campus staff who serve students, including but not limited to teachers, administrators, librarians, and support staff. Grant applications may focus on launching new student organizations, strengthening existing programs, or introducing innovative initiatives that support student involvement.
Key Dates:
- March 26 - Application opens
- April 26 - Application deadline
- May 15 - Awardees announced
- August 1 - September 30 - Grant disbursement
ABOUT THE DALLAS EDUCATION FOUNDATION
The Dallas Education Foundation (DEF) serves as Dallas ISD’s direct and designated philanthropic partner. Our mission is to inspire community investment to accelerate student success. We align with the district’s strategic initiatives and partner with our city’s business leaders, residents, and philanthropic community to raise funds for programs that enrich the lives of our students. In 2025, DEF disbursed nearly $3.1 million to Dallas ISD to support our students, teachers, and schools. To learn more, visit DEF at https://dallasedfound.org and follow us on social media (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, X, and YouTube) at @dallasedfound.
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2026 HEART OF TEACHING GRANT GUIDELINES
Guidelines:
- Grant proposals must serve Dallas ISD students by enhancing or establishing extracurricular activities.
- Grant requests cannot exceed $2,500.
- Stipends are not funded by this grant.
- Projects are funded via reimbursement for verified expenditures. Receipts should be collected and submitted for one lump sum payment. Please see this document for information on how reimbursement will work through the Dallas Education Foundation.
- Awardees must execute the grant in the 2026-2027 school year. Multi-year grants will not be awarded.
- One Dallas ISD employee must be identified as the primary contact for the grant application.
- All applications must have prior approval of the campus principal or department head.
- If you are a previous Heart of Teaching grant recipient, you must have submitted all required grant reports in order to be eligible to apply.
- Application Submission Deadline: Tuesday, April 21, 2026, 5:00 p.m. CDT
Grantee Commitments:
- Projects must be approved by the campus principal.
- Awardees must be a Dallas ISD employee in the 2026-2027 school year to receive the funds. Awardees who separate from the district forfeit their opportunity to execute the grant.
- Awardees will receive grant funds via reimbursement, pending approval of receipts submitted to Dallas Education Foundation.
- Project expenses must not already be covered by Dallas ISD budgeted funds.
- Projects containing a technology component must demonstrate compliance with district E-Rate policy and must be purchased through your Dallas ISD line code.
- Projects containing any type of permanent installation or alteration to a classroom or campus must demonstrate approval from Dallas ISD Facilities Department prior to submission.
- Products and services purchased with grant funds become property of Dallas ISD. Dallas ISD accepts ownership, responsibility for implementation, operation, overhead, indirect cost, and any ongoing maintenance.
- Awardees must expend funds and request reimbursement by September 30; unexpended funds will revert to the Dallas Education Foundation general funds.
- Grantees must document their project's implementation, expenditures, and impact according to established timelines. Grantees must also work with DEF in acknowledging support of originating donors to DEF.
- Awardees are responsible for reporting on the success of the project by May 15, 2027.
- Awardees may be asked to participate in interviews, photo/video shoots, classroom visits, and external/internal communications about this project.
Submission:
All applications must be submitted through this online system. We strongly urge you to download a copy of the application (linked here) and draft your application before entering it into the online form.