Co-ops Award $650,000 in Education Grants in 2017

North Carolina electric cooperatives awarded more than $650,000 in Bright Ideas grants last year, supporting the work of K–12 teachers across the state.

More than 620 grants were awarded of the nearly 1,650 applications received. Those funds will support innovative classroom projects benefiting an estimated 150,000 students in North Carolina. 

“The projects supported through the Bright Ideas program are always exceptional – they’re a testament to the caliber of our state’s educators and the care they take in bringing lessons to life in their classrooms,” said program coordinator Safaniya Stevenson, community relations specialist for North Carolina’s Electric Cooperatives. “It is an honor for electric cooperatives to support their efforts through this program.”

Since the program began in 1994, educators statewide have received more than $11.5 million in Bright Ideas grant funding, impacting well over 2.2 million students.

Grant applications for 2018 will be accepted beginning Sunday, April 1 through September. Grants are awarded in November.