A team is composed of three to six members, with preference given to teams of at least four members.

• At least three of the team members must be full-time classroom teachers (defined by spending at least 60% of time in the classroom).
• Specialists, TOSA’s, and/or instructional coaches may be included on a team. There needs to be a minimum of three full-time classroom teachers on the team and an explanation of why the role of the additional member(s) is essential to the success of the project.
• One paraprofessional is eligible to participate on each team.
• Teacher’s aides and part-time teachers are not eligible.
• Administrators may not be team members unless the project cannot happen without their participation.
• One team member must be identified as the Team Contact; the Team Contact must spend a portion of their time in the classroom.
• Current LIGHT Award grantees are not eligible.

Applicants must be at least in their second year of teaching when submitting the application.

• Elementary, middle, high schools and cross-school projects are eligible.
• Applications from teachers at brand-new schools (in their first year of operation) will not be considered.
• Team members must teach in traditional public or charter schools OR in private schools that serve a majority (50% or above) free-and-reduced lunch qualifying students. While applications from all schools are encouraged, Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation prioritizes support for under-resourced schools.
• Eligibility is limited to the following California counties: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Monterey, Napa, Sacramento, San Benito, San Francisco, San Joaquin, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, Sonoma, and Yolo.

Team members can be at the same school in the same or varying grades/subjects OR teams members can come from from different districts in the same or varying grades/subjects. In all cases the mix of educators should make sense for the proposed project.

Project has support from the principal from each participating school. If invited to submit an application, teams will be required to provide a letter from each principal explaining that the principal endorses the project and articulates any support the principal is able to provide, such as providing feedback, fostering leadership within teams, providing release time, and remaining open to the benefits of teacher-driven innovation.

If a principal is unavailable to write the letter, applicants should reach out via email to info@lightawards.org to explain the circumstances. The LIGHT Awards team will work with them to determine an appropriate alternative.