Special Education Grants
Grants to support dedicated special education teachers and therapists
The Special Education Resource Grants Program has brought numerous benefits, resulting in resources to teachers to maximize the skills of their students – teaching them to read, write and even speak, for the first time. It has helped fund opportunities to develop self-help skills and maximize students’ ability to be independent, sensory tools that serve as a calming influence to get students ready to learn, field trips, enriching the lives of students and providing them with new experiences and concepts, assessment tools so teachers can better understand a child’s issues and then formulate an education plan and improved teaching, not only in providing teachers with resources to meet the needs of the children but in boosting teacher’s morale.
Program Details
Any teacher or therapist at a low-income public school serving TK-12th grade special needs children (with moderate to severe disabilities) in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties is eligible to apply. Limit of two grants per school and one grant per teacher.
Low-Income Eligibility Guidelines:
All Title 1 schools are eligible for all grants within a given program. If your school does NOT have Title 1 status, the following percentages of students eligible for Free and Reduced-Price Lunch applies:
- 50% or more – Eligible for all grants within a given program
- Under 50% – Staff will consider requests on a case by case basis
Grants of up to $500 are available to public school teachers and therapists to serve special education students TK through 12. Requests can be for classroom supplies and resources, educational field trips, or professional development. Examples: sensory integration resources, developmental toys, speech and language materials, oral motor kits, math manipulatives, resource books.
Send your application in as soon as it is ready – money is limited. Funding will be immediately available, if approved.
We’ve made it easy! Simply scan and email slira@venturesfoundation.org a description of your idea on school letterhead, including the following information:
- Date and “Special Education Resource Grant” notation
- School and district name, address, telephone, and fax number
- Teacher/therapist name, grade level, job description, and email address
- Classroom description (Please state whether the majority your students have moderate or moderate-severe disabilities)
- Title 1 status and/or percentage of students eligible for Free and Reduced-Price Lunch
- Description of your project
- How many students will benefit
- Total amount requested
- Itemization of how money will be spent
- Applications must be signed by both the submitting teacher/therapist and the school principal
- Who the check should be made payable to (school, district or PTA only) and the address the check should be mailed to.
For questions, please contact us at (510) 645-1890 or slira@venturesfoundation.org.
We will begin accepting applications for the 2025-2026 school year on September 15th.
This program is made possible with funding by the Thomas J. Long Foundation.
Top banner photo credit: Martin Klimek
Help us keep this program thriving.
“I have a special day class for students with severe autism. One of the key deficits of autism is sensory processing and regulation — because these students are not in control of their bodies, it is even harder for their minds, hearts and spirits to work well. Your grant allowed me to buy equipment to set up a SensoryActivity Center that we now use first thing every morning. I cannot begin to tell you the impact this has had. The sensory input they get from these activities helps the students stay calmer, more centered and more in control all day long. The equipment has also helped them work together, building social skills and friendships through cooperative play.”
– Sonia Thacher, Brookfield Elementary School, Oakland,California