Results
In the grant's first year, the Steelcase Education grant team hoped to receive 200 applications. Instead, a remarkable 535 proposals were submitted, prompting the team to staff up their grant review process and recalibrate expectations for this runaway success. Participation continues to rise with each passing year: In 2018, application submissions surpassed 1,000. National media has also responded very positively; paid and social media campaigns had more than 100,000 impressions and yielded nearly 1,000 clicks to the Active Learning Center Grant landing page. In 2019, 12 classrooms were awarded in the spirit of creating environments that encourage engagement, collaboration and creativity. And despite the challenges 2020 brought, four studio classrooms were awarded in May.
Building on the program’s massive success, Steelcase launched an Active Learning Symposium in 2017, gathering together former grant recipients. In its second year, this exclusive learning and sharing event in Grand Rapids serves as an excellent opportunity for teachers, staff and education thought leaders. Williams Group assists in a variety of ways, including consulting and project management support, content creation, design, scheduling and general logistics.