GRANTEE APPLICATION PHASE Content:
If you are interested in participating in Project Ignition, presented by State Farm Insurance® and the National Youth Leadership Council, you must be willing to create and produce an innovative public awareness, service-learning project based on Teen Driver Safety. Students must create this project, with the support of a teacher/advisor and by the school/organization. Your application should include: Judging Criteria:
Project Ignition judges will include creative professionals, teachers, administrators and students in its initial round. The judges will be asked to rate each application based on the following criteria: - Feasibility: The idea is feasible to implement given the timing and budget parameters. (10%)
- Overall Impact of Project (quantitatively measurable results): Demonstrates ability to educate and impact real change among the target audience and the community. This section also takes into account the reach of the project. (25%)
- Learning Objectives: Meets clear learning objectives and is effectively integrated into the curriculum. (25%)
- Content of Message: Shows good insight and clarity of execution. Shows that the communication is clear, concise, relevant, and delivered in an effective manner. (20%)
- Originality: Project is innovative in idea and execution, and memorable in its presentation [or message]. (20%)
All decisions by the judges are final. The sponsors reserve the right to disqualify and remove from participation any entry which is, in the judging panel’s discretion, inappropriate, offensive, defamatory or demeaning to sponsors' reputation or goodwill. Who can participate:
Young people in grades 9-12 who are US citizens or resident aliens and enrolled currently in a public school (including public charter and public alternative schools) are eligible. The student(s) must have a teacher/advisor and principal signatures. Schools already implementing service-learning in their curricula are encouraged to participate. Participation is not limited to service-learning schools or above described organizations. Format:
Initial format for submission in round one is simply filling out the ONLINE application and completely answering all of the questions. Qualified applicants must then print and mail their application with their teacher and principal signatures to be considered valid. Entries without a teacher, principal and parent/guardian signatures will not be accepted. Communicating this issue to peers in a creative, exciting and impactful way is completely in the hands of the students. Applicants are strongly encouraged to think “out of the box.” Elements could include both traditional and non-traditional media: TV, print, radio, internet (email blasts, web-casts, etc.), direct (mail, posters, flyers, etc.), events/festivals, performance art (dance, drama, music), exhibitions (art, photography, sculpture), short films, cinema trailers, publishing (book, magazine, etc.) and more. Creative Criteria:
How you choose to communicate your message is in your hands. Using TV, film, radio, the internet, direct mail, performance art, a community event or anything you can imagine that would help educate and change behavior in your community as it relates to Teen Driver Safety. No matter what the project is, it must stay in line with the following creative criteria: •
| No sexual content
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| No violence
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| No profanity
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| No glorification of underage drinking or illegal drug usage
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Eligibility:
Project awards are offered only to persons in grades 9-12 as of the date of entry, who are US citizens or US resident aliens. Project is offered only in the 50 United States and the District of Columbia. Void where prohibited by law. Students must have a teacher/advisor, school/organization and parent/guardian permission to participate in this project, as evidenced by signatures of same on application materials. Application Year:
An application year is 18 months from applying for the grant to the final awards at the National Service Learning Conference. Our current application year is: 2008-2009 •
| Applications must be submitted no later than 11:59 pm (CST) on May 16, 2008
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| Applications will be reviewed on or around May 30.
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| Notification of winning grants will as soon as possible after June 1.
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| Presentation of $2,000 grant check will be in early September 2008.
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| Implementation of grant will be September – December, 2008.
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| Submission of final project will be postmarked by December 1, 2008.
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| Selection of 10 finalists will be made by mid-January, 2009.
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| National Service Learning Conference will be in March, 2009.
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Grants:
Upon review of our panel of judges, 25 applicants will be selected to move into phase two of the project. These 25 entrants will be notified in June of the application year, and schools will receive their grant check for $2000 in early September of the application year. Winning entries will then have from September to December of the application year to complete and implement their project and to submit said projects again to Sponsor for further review by judges. For example, if a school applies by May 16, 2008, they will be reviewed on or around May 30, and schools will be notified as soon as possible after June 1, receive their check in early September 2008, and must have their project complete by December 2008. In January 2009, the 10 finalists will be notified and will receive an award of up to $5,000 for travel to the National Service-Learning Conference in Nashville, Tenn. in March 2009. At the Conference, the projects will be presented to an audience of peers and a single Best of the Best award of $10,000 will be given to a selected school. | 
