Please review all FAQs before starting your Champions Grant application.
The Jimmie Johnson Foundation’s Champions Grant Program has historically supported K-12 public schools in California, North Carolina, and Oklahoma. In February of 2024, the JJF Board of Directors voted to narrow our geographic focus and award Champions Grants that have the potential for high impact and significant positive change to K-12 public schools in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Champions Grants are awarded in the following areas: Arts, Health & Wellness, Language & Literacy, and Science & Technology. Applications will open in May, and grants will be awarded in December 2025. Schools can request between $15,000 and $35,000.
ELIGIBILITY
Who is eligible to receive a Jimmie Johnson Foundation Champions grant?
K-12 public schools in Charlotte, North Carolina, that have been fully operational and serving students for a minimum of 3 years, are eligible to apply. Past Champions Grant recipients are eligible to apply.
Please note:
- Teachers and staff who are currently employed by a K-12 public school in Charlotte, North Carolina are eligible to apply.
- Parent/Teacher Organizations (PTO) may not apply on their own or on behalf of a school. Champions Grant applications must be completed and submitted by school staff, managed by the school, and follow all district guidelines and requirements.
- Non-profits and/or community organizations are not eligible to apply.
FUNDING PRIORITIES
What types of projects qualify for a Champions Grant?
Projects must address a critical need, and advance equity and opportunities for all students. The Jimmie Johnson Foundation believes that every student should have an equal chance for success, and deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.
Champions Grants are awarded in the following areas: Science & Technology, Language & Literacy, Health & Wellness, and the Arts.
Required project components:
- Addresses a critical need for the majority of students in the school.
- Promotes and/or advances equity and opportunities for all students within the school. Specifically, the project must help ensure all students have access to equipment, materials, resources, and opportunities to be successful in school and beyond.
- Projects must directly relate to and impact classroom instruction.
- Projects must be sustainable after the initial grant period.
- Projects must be completed within 17 months (January 2026-May 2027). To be considered complete, all funds must be spent by May 2026, the project must be fully implemented and in use by December 2026, and it must be able to be measured using approved Outputs and Outcomes by May 2027.
- If a project requires teacher/staff training, no more than 10% of any award granted can be used toward training fees.
Champions Grants will not be considered for:
- Scholarships
- Salaries, stipends, consultant fees, memorials, honorariums, or artists in residence
- Travel expenses, including field trips
- Third-party funding (ex: paying an outside group to facilitate a program or activity)
- Construction projects including new construction, expansion, renovation, or replacement of an existing facility (we may consider material costs for projects such as play spaces or gardens, however, we cannot pay for labor, project management, installation, consultation, etc).
- Capital campaigns
How much money is available per Champions Grant?
Eligible schools can request between $15,000 and $35,000. Requests for less than $15,000 or more than $35,000 will not be considered. JJF may decide, in its sole discretion, to award partial funding for any selected project.
APPLICATION
How do I submit an application for my school?
Schools interested in applying for a Champions Grant must create an account in our online grant management system to access the application. Only teachers and staff employed by a K-12 public school in North Carolina may create an account on behalf of the school.
Required Components of the Application
- Written application outlining a critical need within the school, how the proposed project addresses that need and helps advance opportunities for all students
- Budget worksheet. Note – all items, materials, and services must be purchased through district-approved vendors. It is the applicant’s responsibility to confirm all items and vendors are approved by the district BEFORE submitting your proposal
- Project plan including the scope, objectives, timeline, outline for sustainability, and evaluation (Outputs and Outcomes) of your proposed project
- Written permission to apply from the school’s principal and all appropriate district departments, as well as confirmation of support for the project from the principal
Be sure to follow the instructions exactly as stated within the application including file types, size limitations, and other requirements for attachments to ensure that your submission is considered for review. Applications that do not follow instructions and/or include all required information will not be considered.
The deadline to submit a 2025 Champions Grant application is 8:00pm ET on Wednesday, October 8, 2025.
Information Calls
We strongly recommend that all schools interested in applying for a Champions Grant participate in an Information Call prior to submitting an application. Dates, times, and registration details for Information Calls can be found HERE.
Measures of Success – Outputs and Outcomes
Measures of Success are the expected results of your proposed project, and must include specific, numeric outputs and outcomes, including the number of students you are measuring, tools you will use to measure, timelines for measurements, etc.
- An OUTPUT is what your program does and how many activities, services, approaches you are using to measure the project. Outputs must include the number of students/teachers/people served.
- An OUTCOME is the result and/or impact you aim to achieve through the activities, services, approaches (what change occurred, and how much change occurred as a result of the program). Outcomes must include numeric goals.
Data you are already gathering through benchmarking, End of Year tests, etc. may be included if the information directly relates for your proposed project.
Examples of outputs and outcomes:
- Output 1: 858 students will complete a survey on career choices before and after participating in the 12- week computer science course.
- Outcome 1: By the end of the 12-week computer science course, we hope to see 20% growth in the number of students who select the computer science as a career goal.
- Output 2: 858 student projects will be evaluated using a teacher-created rubric based on the common core technology standards
- Outcome 2: 80% of student projects will score above 90%
What is an EIN #?
An EIN # is your district or school’s 9-digit Employer Identification Number (EIN), also known as a Tax Identification Number or Federal Tax Identification Number. Please check with your financial secretary or district finance office to ensure you include the correct EIN # when you register in the Foundation’s online grants management system. Note: most schools fall under their district EIN. Please do not use PTA/PTO EIN #s.
Champions Grant Review and Selection Process
The Champions Grant Program is a competitive grant process, generously funded by public donations. As such, funds are limited, and the Jimmie Johnson Foundation is obligated to be good stewards of the monies entrusted to us.
The Jimmie Johnson Foundation utilizes a multi-step review process to ensure fairness in determining which projects will receive funding.
Considerations during review:
- Has the school made a compelling case, supported by data, that their project addresses a critical need and helps promote/advance opportunities for all students?
- Is the project sustainable after the grant period?
- Is the budget realistic?
- Is the return on investment (ROI)/cost per student reasonable for the proposed project?
- Has the school provided verifiable, quantitative Outputs and Outcomes?