Our mission is to bring innovative and creative teaching into the classroom through our Educator Grant Program.  The purpose of the Educator Grant is to increase student achievement in schools for students at all levels.  The Dearborn County Retired Teachers Association recognized a need for improved learning when we realized the direction that some of the state and federal standards were heading.  The retired teachers encourage project-based learning activities to encourage more analytical and hands-on learning opportunities.

 The Educator Grant is clearly designed to encourage reading, comprehending, analyzing, responding, and other activities in the school curriculum.  Meaningful purpose is given to the tasks because the learning is relevant yet supplemental to the standard curriculum.

 The number and description of participants varies annually, based on the current selected project.  Five hundred seventy active teachers work with a population of 8762 students, many of whom are special need/special education students.

 Students in the area schools are primarily rural with few opportunities for experiences outside the classroom.  According to the data collected by the Kids Count Data Center, 35.1%-49% of students in Dearborn County, IN are on free or reduced student lunches (varies by school district).  The nearest major city is located in an adjacent state. 

 The needs of the students in our area are great.  It is the hope of the Dearborn County Retired Teachers Foundation, Inc., that the size of the award and/or the number of grant/awards given can be increased with increased participation from the communities in which the students live.