Funding Opportunities
We do our best to keep MarineLab program fees as low as possible, but sometimes students need some extra help to attend a program with their classmates! Here are some ideas to help you help your kids come to MarineLab.
Are you a teacher at a Florida Title I school who feels that your students would LOVE a MarineLab program but they can’t afford it? WE HAVE MONEY FOR YOU! Thanks to many individual donations and a generous gift from the Annette Urso Rickel Foundation, our Art Mitchell Memorial Fund (AMMF) can be used to pay for MarineLab programs. Awards are limited to a max of $4,000 per school, but that can be a big help, especially if you are able to get additional funds from local civic organizations! This fund also provides scholarships for teachers from Title I schools to attend our summer workshop. Ask us about how you can get these funds.
Maybe you have just one student who would really love to go but family finances are too tight. A non-profit called Alice’s Kids (www.aliceskids.org) exists to help individual students get financial assistance to get what they need to participate in a prom, or a sport, or a class field trip. They make very discreet awards and have chapters throughout the US. The link to make a request is on their website.
A happy group on a beautiful day on the reef!
Another option to help individual students could be through your local civic groups such as Rotary Clubs International. Maybe someone in your PTO is in Rotary and can make a pitch to the local club for your field trip.
Need help with transportation costs? Target used to offer travel grants for field trips, but we have not been able to find current information on that. Check with your local store and also with your local Walmart, which also supports local communities with some funds.
There are always larger organizations that may provide funding to help with field trip costs. Try Duke Energy Foundation’s community program if you are located in one of their service areas . One of the grant making organizations listed on fieldtripdirectory.com may be helpful too.
MarineLab programs are all inclusive, so you don’t have to worry about finding hotels or arranging meals during the trip. We can also customize a program to help you meet your field trip budget while still ensuring the full MarineLab experience. Book your program, book your transportation, and you’re done! We’re a one-stop shop for an amazing, life-changing experience for your students!