Grant Funding From Massachusetts PTA to Support Your PTA

Massachusetts PTA is proud to be able to offers awards or funding to honor or support PTAs as they engage families, support student success, improve the health and safety of students and families, increase access to arts education or celebrate advocacy and diversity.

$6,000 in Grants To Be Awarded as Twelve (12) $500 Grants to Local Units

The Massachusetts PTA, through the generosity and funding of two of our major Sponsors and Donors, Massachusetts Teachers Association (MTA) and Mountain America Credit Unit (MACU), has been given the opportunity to award twelve (12) $500 grants to individual PTA Units across the state. That will be 12 Units who will be able to initiate new programs and/or continue program Health, Safety and Wellness events. It is our hope that all of you will seize this possibility of funding for your PTA Unit’s Health, Safety and Wellness Programs either already in existence and/or programs that are yet on the horizon for you to engage in.

Awards Timeline

The funding will be announced and awarded on April 6^th at the MA PTA Annual Meeting. A representative of each of the twelve PTA Unit Awardees will have to be present at the MA PTA 2024 Annual Meeting to accept the $500 Gran Award. The grant project will begin on May 1, 2024, and conclude on June 30^th, 2025. As you can see this will span a duration of 14 months, allowing you time to organize, develop, plan, and implement your Health, Safety and Wellness program event.

This occasion is an exciting time for Massachusetts PTA (MA PTA) and your PTA’s leadership, membership, and communities to collaborate with the MA PTA and your local PTA Unit in the endorsements of these mini grant applications and programs with focus on Health, Safety and Wellness. The MA PTA will also provide guidance and support throughout the project and year. A total of twelve proposed grants will each be awarded $500 for a total of $6,000 from our two generous donors, MTA and MACU. The entire $500 grant award goes directly to the 12 individual PTA units involved with and for the project.

The MA PTA is inviting you and your Local PTAs to be part of this project. We seek you because we believe that, as PTA units, you are strong, productive, and committed to the mission: “EveryChild. OneVoice.” For these reasons, we invite you to be part of this program and the initiative to continue serving your community schools, families, and all children! We hope you are interested and will seize this opportunity to assist you. Please see the general regulations and timeline provided at the bottom of this letter invitation and attachment.

Besides the Healthy Living for Everyone Health Safety and Wellness Grants Massachusetts PTA is offering your local unit, National PTA also offers significant funding to support local efforts for your students, families and community to participate in educational activities that are engaging, inspiring and fun.

Massachusetts PTA is committed to promoting and encouraging diversity, equity and inclusion as part of our commitment to every child. In addition to evaluating the merits of each application, geography, need, and other criteria may be considered to ensure a robust and diverse pool of grantees.

Purpose and Goals of Project:

Mission of MA PTA Health Safety and Wellness Initiatives: Massachusetts Parent Teacher Association believes that All Massachusetts children and families should be safe and live in an environment that promotes Health, Well-being, Confidence, Equity and Security free of all harm, dangers, and ill-treatment including racist, unjust, and biased attitudes and behaviors. To this end, the Massachusetts PTA, through the Massachusetts PTA Health, Safety and Wellness Standing Committee (the Health Committee), will explore, promote, and develop activities, resources and partnerships to assist with this purpose.

Projects should encompass any aspect(s) of MA PTA Mission as well as your own PTA Unit’s Health Mission. This lends for a variety of ideas, events and programs including enhancing mental health activities, safety programs, healthy eating, physical well-being, school gardens, hosting health and wellness fairs, incorporating nutrition information and physical activity programs. It also could include a speaker(s) and fees, an already established program that these funds would just enhance the magnitude of the program, or NEW reading material and information for families to read together or in the classrooms on any aspect of Health, Safety and Wellness. This should really help enhance information, knowledge and comprehension for parents, families, educators, community members with a huge emphasis on children and youth.

If awarded, your PTA may use the funds for any expenses associated with addressing the need for the grant goals and purposes:

• Such as promoting, hosting, and implementing your PTA unit’s Health, Safety and Wellness Goals and Programs.
  • May include in person and virtual expenses such as translation services, facility costs, virtual meeting platform costs, advertising costs, prizes for families, food, program materials and promotional items.
  • Funds may not be used for guns, alcohol, illicit drugs or tobacco or any initiatives, goals, purposes, and objectives that go against the National PTA and MA PTA Mission as well as The MA PTA Health, Safety and Wellness Goals and Objectives.

Timeline and Due Dates:

This announcement is a prompt turnaround with a series of dates which, as an applicant, you will have to adhere to specifically. Please notify us immediately at MA PTA if you are interested and would like to participate.

Announcement of Grant, the Informational Zoom meeting, the process of submitting a grant application and the announcements of the grant awards to the 12 individual grantees.

1. The Grant Announcement will be from January 17^th to January 28^th. You will see and view it in multiple MA PTA communications, newsletters, announcements, emails, MA PTA website and social media.
2. An Informational Q & A Zoom Webinar Session regarding this grant and your participation will be held on Monday evening, Jan. 29^th from 7:15 pm to 8:15 pm. We will review with you but, most importantly, answer any of your questions regarding this grant application.
3. Grant Proposals are to be submitted by email to MA PTA between January 30^th and February 28^th. The last day a Grant Proposal will be accepted is February 28^th by 5pm. Your proposal will be submitted to health@masspta.org.
4. All grant Proposals will be read and selected between February 29th and March 27^th. You will be notified by March 30^th.
5. All Grant Awardees will receive their Grant and Recognition on Saturday April 6^th at the MA PTA Annual meeting. The President or representative of your PTA Unit must be present for this on April 6^th.
6. All PTA Units must be a Unit in Good Standing with the Massachusetts Parent Teacher Association (MA PTA).
7. No later than June 9, 2025, or the ending date of your project whichever comes first, all Grantees awarded must submit to MA PTA, the final four outcomes (results) of your project accompanied by 2 to 3 pictures of the project. Remember, any children being photographed must have parental permission for pictures to be used for PR and Communications.

Section A – Grant Proposal Information and Application

• Grant Program Name: MA PTA Health, Safety and Wellness Grant
• Grant Number (to be assigned by MA PTA)*
• Amount Requested: $500.00
• Program or Project Title: ____________________________________________________________________
• PTA Name: * ________________________________________________________________________________
• Street Address: * ____________________________________________________________________________
• City, State & Zip Code: * ____________________________________________________________________
• Phone Number: * ___________________________________________________________________________
• Contact Name & Title: * ____________________________________________________________________
• Contact Person Phone Number: * __________________________________________________________
• PTA President’s Name: _____________________________________________________________________
• PTA Treasurer’s Name: _____________________________________________________________________
• Summarize the organization’s mission (2-3 sentences) and state year PTA Unit was founded: ________________________________________________________________________________________________
• Summary of project or grant request (2-3 sentences): * ________________________________________________________________________________________________
• I am attesting that “name of PTA unit” ____________________________ is a unit in good standing with the MA PTA

Authorized Signature (Type in name and check I Agree below)

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________I “name” agree on “date” PTA Position: _______________________________________________________________________

Email: * ____________________________________________ Secondary Email: ________________________________________

Grant Number (to be assigned by MA PTA)

Section B – Complete the Information requested in #’s 1-8.

Please complete each question with responses in short essay format (1 to 5 complete paragraphs). Please note: you may alternatively answer these questions in a three-page narrative incorporating all answers and responses to Questions 1 through 8. Your Budget is completed separately as an additional document (see document A below).

1. With respect to the funding requested, please identify program(s), initiative and people that will most benefit from this grant.
2. Describe your specific program, project or initiative and the geographic area your proposal would most likely benefit. If your project, program, or initiative is being run or is proposed to run out of a physical location please specify that location.
3. Describe specifically what aspect(s) of your program you seek funding for, and the percentage of the proposed foundation grant you seek to allocate to each area.
4. Describe the overall goals and objectives of your proposal and how your proposal will help to enhance the Health, Safety and Wellness mission of your PTA organization as well as MA PTA. If applicable, please also specify the number of projected people participating in the program or that you anticipate will participate in the program. (i.e., the specific types of services to be provided, the number and types of people to be served). note: this question can assist your response in Document C; Final Project Outcomes Achieved below.
5. Please describe whether this program, project, or initiative is currently in existence, and if so for how long? If this is a new program, please describe the projected longevity of your program.
6. Describe your organization’s experience/capacity to complete the proposed project or implement the proposed program.
7. Please describe the specific need for this program, project, or initiative within the PTA Unit, School and/or community and how the requested expenditure will ensure and/or assist that the need is met?
8. How will you evaluate this program? Think about how you will assess your work, project and summarize this Program.

Attach all copies of required documents A & B; Document C is due at close of your project.

• Budget for the MA PTA Grant Funds
  • If the MA PTA Grant is covering the full cost of your program, then a completed budget for the full program should be submitted
  • If the MA PTA Grant is covering only a portion of the total project budget and additional grants and/or funding has been allocated for the total project, please indicate the Total Program Budget as well as MA PTA Grant Portion of the Project Budget Dollar Amount equaling $500 (Please submit a budget for the total program and indicate in that budget, monies budgeted for the proposed $500 MA PTA program/project).
  • Provide a short budget narrative (a short paragraph) describing each cost item of the $500 MA PTA grant funds
• Description of Program/Event: If you are submitting the Narrative, as noted in Section B above, no more than 3 typed pages describing and summarizing the total project, answering the eight questions.
• Project Outcomes Achieved: No later than June 9, 2025, or the closing date of your project whichever comes first, you must submit to MA PTA the final Four Outcomes (results) of your project accompanied by 2 to 3 pictures of the project. Please refer to your original response in Questions 4 to assist your response here. Remember any children being photographed must have parental permission for pictures to be used for PR and Communications

Information on the Webinar Series

Massachusetts PTA is the organization that solves the toughest problems and creates valuable tools for schools, families, and students. Join the excitement and be a part of our latest Health, Safety and Wellness programming – Healthy Living for Everyone – A Unified Voice! During this three part, year long program you will connect with some of the state’s most influential healthcare leaders, as well as other parents and educators with us on Zoom and in person. All webinars are being presented at no-cost to you thanks to our sponsors. Webinars will be pre-recorded so you can view them on your schedule but you do need to register to receive the link to the webinar when it is posted.

Schedule for Webinars (register here to receive link access to webinar):

Supporting the Whole Child: Putting Local Wellness Policies into Practice; presented by Judy Crocker, Statewide Coordinator for the Massachusetts Department of Transportation’s Safe Routes to School Program & Sarah Littmann, MS, RD is the director of food and nutrition for Triton Regional School District & Nicole Goode, School Wellness Specialist at the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Investing time in school wellness helps students thrive in the classroom and community. While many Massachusetts schools have a Local Wellness Policy, putting policy into practice can be challenging. Join Massachusetts’ Safe Routes to School, DESE’s School Wellness Specialist, and Triton Regional Schools as they dive into best policy practices around nutrition, physical education, and active transportation.

Accessibility & Belonging in Schools & Fitness, presented by Liam Riley, Senior Program Leader, Northeast Team, Booster Enterprises. This presentation delves into the ideas, stories and reflection involving how we can use our strengths and backgrounds to better cultivate a sense of inclusivity and affirmation of students across schools nationwide in academic and athletic contexts.

Working Together to Advocate for Healthy Communities Where All Children Can Flourish, Presented by Massachusetts Senator Sal DiDomenico

Senator DiDomenico has been a vocal advocate of ensuring high quality and accessible early education and care for children in the Commonwealth, tackling environmental injustice, improving economic opportunities for working families, fighting food insecurity in our communities, increasing public education funding, and providing world-class healthcare for all children and their families in Massachusetts.

Peace Play in Urban Settings, presented by McCawley Bercy (MC), Louis D. Brown Peace Institute’s (LDBPI) Community Outreach Coordinator. Peace play is a form of sandtray therapy where individuals are encouraged to reflect on their own strengths and struggles without using words. The workshop we will be providing is a hands on healing modality based on sand tray world play therapy and the use of miniatures. This is a culturally relevant modality that offers an alternative to traditional talk therapy. We will be going through a Peace play session, explain the clinical side, how our organization has adapted it and an experiential section where participants try on the process.

Saving Lives With Mental Health Literacy Education; presented by Marissa Carty, Program Development & Marketing Manager for Mental Health Collaborative. Save lives with mental health education! Mental Health Collaborative is a 501(c)3 dedicated to building resilient communities through mental health education & awareness. At this session, learn the basics of mental health literacy: decreasing stigma, understanding illnesses, promoting positive mental health, and accessing care. In addition to teaching you the core concepts of mental health literacy, we will review our evidence-based school programming, including our educator training, student curriculum, coaches training, and parent/caregiver training.

PTA Connected: Take Charge of Your Digital Life; presented by Cecily Goulange, National PTA Connected MA State Champion. Raising children can be fraught with challenges, especially in an evolving digital world. PTA Connected provides tools, workshops and support to help families in your community navigate raising children in the digital age. This presentation will highlight how families can work together to find balance and digital wellness through these free National PTA programs, as well as program help available across the state with our PTA Connected State Champion.

Adolescent Substance Use: Screening, Prevention, and Treatment; Presented by Dr. Safdar Medina Adolescent Substance Use is a major public health concern. Use of nicotine products, cannabis products, and alcohol, continue to be prevalent among teens. Some go on to use other drugs, including opioids. Screening and prevention are key. Treatment options exist, including motivational interviewing and medication. This presentation will provide an overview of recent trends and discuss strategies to help parents and educators.

“Teaming up with Health and School Professionals for School Success: Pearls on Accessing Special Ed Services”; Presented by Dr. Mary Beth Miotto, MD, MPH, FAAP Pediatrician, Mattapan Community Health Center and President MCAAP

With Massachusetts Teachers Association’s (MTA) major sponsorship and partnership, MA PTA is providing a full year of statewide, compressive health, safety and wellness programming. Healthy Living for Everyone: A Unified Voice includes four virtual and hybrid events throughout 2023 – 2024 addressing health specific needs and concerns in our Massachusetts communities including healthcare equity and access, food insecurity and nutrition, mental health and wellness, and physical fitness and heart health.

Don’t miss the opportunity to:

• Get Healthy Ideas to use at School and Home
• Be inspired by Healthy Thinkers
• Learn new ways to make your Family, School, and Community Healthy