Over the course of the FY16-17 academic year, the Personalized Learning Team visited a number of schools around the state – from Bennington to Canaan – to have conversations about the successes and challenges of implementing personalized learning and flexible pathways at their schools. Many themes emerged from those conversations and informed the development of updated resources and a professional learning series that can be found at the Vermont Professional Learning Network (http://pln.education.vermont.gov/).
Personalized Learning team awards Flexible Pathways grants to Supervisory Unions to support their work in the following areas:
The Flexible Pathways Initiative, created by Act 77 of 2013, encourages and supports the creativity of school districts as they develop and expand high-quality educational experiences that are an integral part of secondary education in the evolving 21st-century classroom. Flexible pathways also promote opportunities for Vermont students to achieve postsecondary readiness through high-quality educational experiences that acknowledge individual goals, learning styles, and abilities; and increase the rates of secondary school completion and postsecondary continuation in Vermont. Flexible Pathways provides for:
In the spring 2017 the personalized learning team awarded 14 Flexible Pathways grants to Supervisory Unions. In the spring 2018 the Agency of Education awarded Flexible Pathways Expansion Grants to four additional supervisory unions and school districts throughout Vermont.
Previously funded Flexible pathway programs can be seen at http://education.vermont.gov/sites/aoe/files/documents/edu-press-release-flexible-pathways-grants-winners.pdf.
Current grant opportunities and descriptions can be seen at the following links:
Applications were to be submitted by May 11, 2018.
Applicants may apply for grants in the following ranges: $7,500 - $10,000, $20,000 - $30,000 or $50,000 - $75,000. Multiple awards are anticipated.