Jun

Together We Thrive grants awarded

Under Secretary for Education Monique Chism announced more than $1.6 in funding June 13.

Winning proposals were selected by an external panel of individuals whose expertise includes education policy, museum education, STEM education, teacher outreach and engagement, and educational technology. Together, these grants represent $1.6 million in funding for our Smithsonian educators and their partners.

“Please join me in congratulating this new cohort of grantees,” Chism said. “We look forward to hearing what they learn and accomplish through these exciting and meaningful projects.”

Assessing PreK-12 STEAM Educators’ Needs for Smithsonian Tools and Resources to Teach About Life on a Sustainable Planet (1-Year Planning Grant)

Smithsonian Science Education Center (Carol O’Donnell, PI) + National Museum of Natural History (Carla Easter, Co-PI)

The planning grant will fund research to better understand the needs of PreK-12 teachers, administrators, parents, and youth across the U.S. for Smithsonian Institution classroom tools, resources, and professional development offerings that use STEAM methods to teach about Life on a Sustainable Planet (LOSP). Research will include standards alignment, needs assessment, technology assessment, gap analysis, and dissemination. Other participating units include: STRI, NMAACH, SERC, NASM, NZCBI, SAAM, NMAH.

Get a Head Start with the Smithsonian, Year 2 (1-Year Planning Grant)

National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute (Emily Porter, PI) + National Museum of American History (Eden Cho, Co-PI) + National Air and Space Museum (Ann Caspari, Co-PI) + Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden (Tiffany McGettigan, Co-PI) + National Postal Museum (Maureen Leary, Co-PI) + National Portrait Gallery (Beth Evans, Co-PI) + Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center (Julia Smith, Co-PI)

Building on its first planning grant, the project team will work with the National Head Start Association to develop, deliver, and assess models of professional development resources for Head Start teachers and staff that support and guide the implementation of the Smithsonian’s unique early childhood education practices and culturally responsive approach to meet crucial academic and developmental goals for Head Start students nationwide.

Youth Leadership Team for the National Youth Summit (1-Year Planning Grant)

National Museum of American History (Megan Linehan, PI) + Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibits Service | Smithsonian Affiliations (Christopher Aaron Glavas, Co-PI) + National Postal Museum (Maureen Leary, Co-PI)

The grant will fund the development of a pilot Youth Leadership Team program to enhance teen advocacy and agency in the National Youth Summit, a program that brings middle and high school students together with scholars, teachers, policy experts, and activists for a national conversation about important events in America’s history that impact our nation’s present and future. The Youth Leadership Team will center youth voices in the planning and development of summit programming for a greater impact with youth audiences nationwide.

Creating Portraits of Community (2-Year Implementation Grant)

Smithsonian American Art Museum (Elizabeth Dale-Deines, PI) + National Museum of American History (Orlando Serrano, Co-PI, Eden Cho, Co-PI) + National Portrait Gallery (Briana Zavadil White, Co-PI, Jocelyn Kho, Co-PI)

Project collaborators will work with teachers in Kansas, Kentucky and the District of Columbia to help students research and document their communities through photographs and oral histories. Students will gain a deeper understanding of the social, cultural, political, and historical contexts of their own communities and develop important research, communication, and critical thinking skills. Teachers will build new national connections and will gain skills and resources in supporting arts integration and student-driven inquiry. Student work will be featured on SI websites and complements for a 2026 exhibition at SAAM.

Engaging Middle School Students in Plant Ecology Research (2-Year Implementation Grant)

Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (Karen McDonald, PI, Alison Cawood, Co-PI) + Smithsonian Gardens (Cindy Brown, Co-PI)

The project team will work with local environmental centers, teachers, administrators and students to adapt and expand existing SERC and SG programs to create robust, cohesive, and authentic plant ecology research units for middle school students in the Washington, DC region; the Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota region; the Wilmington, Delaware region; and the Kenai Peninsula of Alaska region. The project aims to support advancement of middle school students’ STEM skills, science confidence, and native plant ecology understanding; to increase teacher knowledge and confidence implementing authentic research activities in their classrooms; and to improve teacher data literacy.

Engaging Youth in Environmental Science in West Baltimore (2-Year Implementation Grant)

Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (Alison Cawood, PI) + National Museum of Natural History (Robert Costello, Co-PI, Gary Krupnick, Co-PI)

SERC, NMNH, and Temple X schools, students, teachers, and Black churches in West Baltimore will co-develop a program based on a framework of place-based outdoor education and authentic environmental science research practices that will engage youth in efforts to monitor and understand urban ecosystems and the impacts of restoration activities in those systems. Core activities–designed to promote STEM identities, science self-efficacy, environmental science agency, and data literacy–include an internship program for high school students; data collection and outdoor learning for elementary school students; and professional development for educators.

About Together We Thrive

Research shows that with the right supports, all children can learn and thrive. Building on the Smithsonian’s respected reputation as a trusted resource, Smithsonian educators working Together with educators across the nation can help students and ultimately our nation Thrive. Through the creation of the “Together We Thrive” initiative, OUSE is excited to support Smithsonian educators’ pan-institutional efforts to reach educators, students, and families in our unique Smithsonian Institution spaces and in classrooms across the nation.

The Together We Thrive Grant Initiative is funded through an endowment from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and from a gift from Jeff Bezos to the National Air and Space Museum.

For further information on this message, contact Karen Garrett, Office of Under Secretary for Education, x3-0628 (VoIP) or 202-633-0628 (non-VoIP), GarrettK@si.edu