Lawton Teachers: Fund for Teachers Fellowships Offer Up to $10,000 for Summer Learning

Oklahoma educators have a chance to turn a summer idea into a funded adventure. Fund for Teachers is accepting applications for its 2027 fellowship cycle, and the numbers are worth a second look: up to $5,000 for an individual teacher and up to $10,000 for a team of two or more. The money goes toward a professional learning experience the teacher designs from scratch, whether that means studying wildlife conservation overseas or researching anything else that feeds back into the classroom.

Eligibility covers more ground than you might expect. You need to be a full-time pre-K through 12 educator, spend at least half your working time on direct instruction, and have three years of teaching experience by the end of the current school year. That includes plenty of teachers here in Lawton, from the elementary schools up through Lawton High, MacArthur, and Eisenhower, plus the educators serving military families around Fort Sill.

Past Oklahoma fellows built projects around literary history in Europe, elephant conservation in Asia, and alternative energy in Iceland. Elizabeth Inbody, chief executive officer of the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence, said the fellowships empower educators to seek development that fits their students’needs. The Oklahoma program runs in partnership with the Tulsa Community Foundation, and applications close at 5 p.m. on Jan. 21. If you teach, or you know someone who does, what would you build with a fellowship like this?