7th Grade Student
Grant Program 2025
What impact could you make with $1000?
Student Voices: For the past six years, the Florham Park Education Foundation (FPEF) has funded grant requests from teachers and administrators in an effort to enhance education in the school district. Past grants at Ridgedale Middle School have included compact scales for the science labs, a digital piano for the music program, 3-D printing pens for the art program, flexible seating and benches for the outdoor classroom.
Thanks to a generous gift from New Horizon Day Camp, for the second year, the FPEF is now giving RMS students the opportunity to make meaningful change in their own community. What would you do with a $1,000 budget? All enrolled 7th grade students are encouraged to submit their ideas for a funding project of up to $1,000 that will improve student life at the middle school. All submissions will be reviewed by a panel of judges selected by the FPEF and one lucky winner will see their idea funded within the school.
Important:
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7th graders must be signed into your SCHOOL EMAIL ACCOUNT to complete the Google Form.
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If you are uploading anything from your Google Drive, make sure that you SHARE WITH ANYONE WITH THE LINK to ensure the FPEF can have access to the documents.
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Do not click submit until you are confident that it is complete.
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You will receive an email with a PDF of your responses after you submit the application.
What You Need to Know
What is the Florham Park Education Foundation (FPEF)?
The Florham Park Education Foundation (FPEF) is a group of community volunteers dedicated to enhancing education with the local school district. The FPEF achieves its goals through grant funding that allows teachers and administrators to procure classroom materials and resources that go beyond the annual district budget.
What is a grant?
In its simplest form, a grant is a gift given for a stated purpose with no requirement to pay the money back. In a typical grant program, many organizations will apply for a limited pool of funding. All applications are reviewed by a panel of stakeholders. Generally, the proposals that present the strongest case for support are chosen to receive funding. Grant-writing is an important skill for many career paths including public policy, research and development, and nonprofit work.
Grant Requirements:
All students who wish to participate must submit a written proposal. Grants submitted for consideration of the New Horizons 7th Grade Grant Program must meet the following requirements:
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• Must make a meaningful impact on one aspect of student life at Ridgedale Middle School
• Must have a budget of $1,000 or less
• Must have an implementation timeline of one year or less
• All grant proposals must be submitted by April 4th, 2025.
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Please note: All grant monies will be paid to an account at Ridgedale Middle School and no funds will be directly paid to the student grantee.
2025 Application, Guidelines, & Scoring Rubric
Application Guidelines
Scoring Rubric
The panel will use the following rubric to evaluate all proposals. We encourage all students to provide as many details as possible and support their argument with research when appropriate.
Submit Application by April 4th
Scoring Rubric
The Madison Area YMCA
7th Grade Grant Award
The $500 scholarship will be presented to the student with the winning grant proposal during the 8th grade commencement and awards ceremony. The YMCA and FPEF believe in empowering our youth to affect change in their communities, and the FPEF is grateful for the YMCA's partnership on this scholarship.
Please read the information below to learn more about the 7th Grade Initiative Program offered at the Madison Area YMCA. The program includes a FREE membership to the Madison Area YMCA as well as free or reduced rates for Teen Programs.
