Grants & Contests Archives

‘CineSpace’ Short Film Competition

Written by Nathan Smith on March 25, 2018. Posted in Grants & Contests.

Audience: All Educators and Students 

Submission Deadline: Aug. 1, 2018 

Contact: cinespace@cinemartsociety.org   

NASA and the Houston Cinema Arts Society invite professional and aspiring filmmakers to share their works using actual NASA imagery. The “CineSpace” competition will accept all genres, including narrative, documentary, comedy, drama, animation and others, up to 10 minutes long. Entries must use at least 10 percent publicly available NASA imagery. Entries will be judged on creativity, innovation and attention to detail. Cash prizes will be awarded to the top submissions.

Zero Robotics High School Tournament 2017

Written by Nathan Smith on September 7, 2017. Posted in Grants & Contests, STEM and STEAM.

Audience: 9-12 Educators and Students
Kick-Off Event: Sept. 9, 2017, at 1 p.m. EDT
Registration Deadline: Sept. 27, 2017
Contact: zerorobotics@mit.edu

Teams of U.S. high school students are challenged to design a software program for small satellites called SPHERES that operate inside the cabin of the International Space Station. Finalists will have their codes sent to the station, where an astronaut will program the SPHERES to run their tests. Visit the site on Sept. 9, 2017, at 1 p.m. EDT, to watch this year's live kickoff event.

#UCET17 Grants

Written by Pam Turley on January 30, 2017. Posted in #UCET17, #ucet4success, 2017 Conference, Grants & Contests.

We're giving away money! Certified classroom teachers who attend all sessions of #UCET17 March 16-17 can apply for a $1500 grant from one of the UCET vendors.

Last year these grants funded Lego Mindstorm sets, lighting and sound equipment for student video production, an Ozobot Classroom Kit, and funds toward a zSpace Machine.

More Grant Information

Student Film Opportunities

Written by Kathryn Blunt on January 18, 2017. Posted in Grants & Contests.

Digtial storytelling and filmmaking are great educational processes. They foster the development of research, organization, planning, analysis, and synthesis skills. Digital storytelling and filmmaking are rich methods for exploring content and surrounding a class project with authentic experiences. (Source: Nikos Theodosakis – The Director in the Classroom)

The final step in any good digital storytelling project is to celebrate the creative works developed by students. This can be done by holding a viewing party in the classroom, holding a school or district film festival, and posting student work online for the world to see. Another great way to recognize students for their work is to encourage them to submit their films to student film contests. Following is a list of just a few of the possible student film contests and other opportunities for students and teachers:

Filmmaking Opportunities

The Courageous Persuaders
This is a PSA (Public Service Announcement) competition sponsored by the DADA (Detroit Auto Dealers Association). The entry deadline is February 9, 2017, and over $26,000 in scholarships and awards are available! Courageous Persuaders is a peer-to-peer national scholarship competition that invites high school students in grades 9-12 to create a 30-second commercial to warn middle school students about the dangers of underage drinking and the dangers of texting while driving.

Official Rules: www.CourageousPersuaders.com/Official-Rules/
Brochure: www.courageouspersuaders.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/17-CourageousPersuadersBrochure.pdf
Poster: www.courageouspersuaders.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/17-Poster.pdf

White House Student Film Festival
We're inviting U.S. students, grades K-12, to participate in the White House Student Film Festival. Currently, the 2016 Festival winners are posted. Check back frequently to look for information regarding the 2017 festival. Click HERE for more information.

American Graduate
The Utah Education Network's Utah American Graduate project is always on the lookout for films that fous on education and graduation. Films can feature stories of teacher champions who encourage students to succeed in school, students who have overcome difficulties in order to reach graduation, and anything that encourages students to stay in school and graduate. Visit the AmGrad website for more information.

SciTech Now – UEN
SciTech Now captures the latest breakthroughs in science, technology and innovation. UEN is seeking segments for their SciTech Now video series that cover topics in science, technology, and engineering. Take a look at their existing programs online at uen.org/scitechnow to get a feel for what they are looking for. UEN shares their segments with national partners, so this could be a great portfolio piece for students.

Next Vista For Learning
Next Vista For Learning provides a library of free videos made by and for teachers and students everywhere. Their site not only features videos for consumption by students and teachers, but also has a listing of numerous video competitions students may enter. Learn more at http://www.nextvista.org/.

Project Ed – Amplify
At Project Ed, they challenge filmmakers, animators, artists, teachers, and students to create short films that teach. Each month Project Ed hosts multiple contests on topics from English, Math, and Science. These contests empower creators to build narratives around specific learning goals while giving them opportunities to jumpstart their careers and earn rewards. The best videos win prizes, are featured across the web, and are used by teachers and students. – See more at: https://www.projected.com/about#sthash.Vwe88tLB.dpuf

Sundance Film Festival – Students at the Festival
Teachers have the opportunity to register for their classes to participate in special high school screenings of Sundance films. There are also opportunities for students to volunteer at the Sundance Film Festival. Visit http://www.sundance.org/festival/students/ for more information.

Film & Broadcast Coalition's Utah High School Film Festival
The UHSFF is the longest running high school film festival in the nation. Every April, students from around the state submit films in various categories ranging from highlight videos and short comedies to documentaries and short films. Visit http://www.filmandbroadcast.org/uhsff/ for more information.

Big Screen Science
Teachers — Join SHIFT in partnership with the Leonardo and the Utah State Office of Education in a seven-month professional development initiative to train STEM educators (grades 6-12) how to facilitate the production of student-produced instructional and documentary videos. Bonus: Earn credit toward your Ed Tech teaching endorsement!
Visit http://www.shiftworkshops.org/workshops/ for more information.

Spy Hop
Spy Hop provides a variety of paid film classes, workshops, and internships for student filmmakers.
Visit http://spyhop.org/film/ for more information.

What’s In Your Backpack?

Written by Michael Hakkarinen on September 23, 2016. Posted in #UCET17, #ucet4success, Grants & Contests.

Or more importantly, do you have a nice backpack?
No? Would you like one?
If so, keep reading!

This year UCET has teamed up with Steph Davis and Osprey Packs to give away one "Pixel Daypack" each month starting in October 2016. To win, all you have to do is tell us "What's In Your Backpack" on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.

Post a picture of you and/or your students using Instructional Technology to enhance learning. Use the hashtag #ucet4success with your post. We will scour the web each month and select the best image that captures the spirit of UCET and award the educator who posted it a free Osprey Pixel Daypack and two tickets to next year's UCET Conference. From now until March that's six opportunities to snag one of these awesome packs. You'll be the coolest educator carting around your edtech gear at #ucet17!

To learn more about the Osprey Pixel visit the official Osprey Packs website.

To learn more about Steph Davis, our keynote speaker on Friday, March 17th, check out her website StephDavis.co