PHOENIX (November 8, 2021) – A for Arizona announced today the awardees of the first-in-the-nation Arizona Transportation Modernization Grant Program, a $20 million initiative to modernize K-12 transportation options and improve access to reliable and safe transportation for students. The grant program, administered through the A for Arizona Expansion & Innovation Fund, supports locally driven solutions to provide reliable access for more families to the public learning options that best meet each child’s needs.
“Arizona has a system of public school options envied across the country, but transportation barriers to these quality schools are a reality for far too many Arizona families,” said Governor Doug Ducey. “Arizona kids deserve access to a classroom that meets their needs, and the Arizona Transportation Modernization Grants Program is providing new ways to make this a reality. These solutions will strengthen opportunities for K-12 kids and their families in rural communities and all areas of the state. I thank A for Arizona for their partnership in launching this vital effort.”
Grant applications were reviewed and assessed by a Vetting Committee of local and national industry, philanthropic and community leaders. In this first round, the Vetting Committee awarded more than $18 million in awards to seed 24 proposals across Arizona, including in our most remote and hard to reach communities.
Grant awardees will deliver a wide range of solutions to tackle problems identified at the local level. This includes solutions to provide direct to family grants to help assist with transportation costs, high-efficiency vehicles to bring down short-term and long-term costs, innovative approaches to technology to create more efficient routes and better communication with parents, micro-transit efforts to target key subgroups of students, and collaborative solutions to target underserved communities. To find out more about the final awardees, click here.
“The Arizona Transportation Modernization Grants will accelerate the pace at which the Grand Canyon State can move past an antiquated education transportation system and respond to the student-focused needs of the 21st century,” said Emily Anne Gullickson, Founder and CEO of A for Arizona. “It is evident by the competitive cycle and number of high-quality proposals that school leaders, entrepreneurs, and community partners have forward-thinking and innovative solutions ready to address our K-12 transportation needs. This first round of awardees will serve as a catalyst to tearing down long-standing access barriers and inform playbooks on how others can deliver multiple transit options to better serve every K-12 student.”
The Arizona Transportation Modernization Grants Program was established in the FY2022 budget by the Arizona State Legislature. The grant program provides resources to incubate and advance ideas to improve access to reliable and safe transportation for students who attend a district school through open enrollment or attend a public charter school, and to accelerate innovation and efficiency solutions in all systems.
Since its launch, A for Arizona has awarded over $20 million in seed funding through its Expansion & Innovation Fund forming a diverse portfolio of school replications, solutions to modernizing K-12 transportation, innovative learning models aimed to boldly redefine education, and best practices to better support Arizona’s most vulnerable student populations.
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About A for Arizona
At A for Arizona, we firmly believe that expanding excellence is our best chance to ensure all K-12 students have access to, and benefit from, high-performing schools, learning communities, and opportunities. We imagine a day where excellence has spread, and failure has fallen away, leaving only the best learning options available for all students.