Purpose & Scope

School Liaisons

Have a question? Contact your LEF School Liaison. See the full list of liaisons here.

LEF’s School Community Grant (SCG) Program encourages, supports, and enables creative educational initiatives that will strengthen learning and build community school-wide. Each of Lexington’s ten public schools receives a School Community Grant each year. The school principal submits an SCG proposal early in the academic year for implementation during the same year.

A hallmark of the School Community Grant program is its dedication to supporting initiatives that have been identified and developed through a collaborative process that involves a school’s entire professional community and that have the demonstrable support of a majority of the faculty.

The size of the grant for which each school may apply during a given school year is established in advance by LEF. Generally, available funding is set at different levels for preschool, elementary, middle, and high schools. Your LEF school liaison or any member of LEF’s School Partnership team, can tell you how much funding will be available to your school this year.

To give you a sense of the types of activities LEF School Community Grants support, click here for descriptions of recent SCGs.

Eligible Activities

Eligible SCG activities and expenses include:

• School-wide community-building programs and projects
• Professional development activities – such as conferences, expert lectures and presentations, educational collaborations, and visiting artists – that will have broad and immediate classroom applications
• Strategic initiatives that address a unique situation or need that faces the school as a whole or a particular student population, grade, or area of study
• The acquisition of materials and equipment necessary to implement a clearly defined educational initiative (such as software used to facilitate student scheduling or equipment that will broaden student access to innovative educational resources).
• The adaptation at the applying school of an initiative previously funded by LEF at a different school
• Art, music, literary and other projects designed to promote and express the school's values
• Prosocial initiatives and other activities addressing students' physical and emotional growth and well-being.

School Community Grant funds may not be used to cover the costs of:

• Salaried positions
• Building projects and renovations
• Capital acquisitions such as photocopiers, computers, and furniture
• Programs, services, and equipment that are now part of, or have been cut from, the school’s operating budget
• Maintenance or repairs of, or renovations to, school buildings or equipment
• Hospitality costs, such as food, beverages, and entertainment
• Basic supplies such as paper, pens, and toner