There are two types of schools in the FAS Network: Affiliate Schools and Project Schools.

FAS Affiliate Schools may or may not be engaged in the intensive work of comprehensive school reform. They are all, however, interested in ensuring that all members of their school community – from the faculty to the administration to the parents, students, and custodial staff – understand the importance of individual rights, civic responsibilities, and communal respect.

The Affiliate Program gives schools a less intensive entryway into the larger work of FAS. It allows school communities to identify themselves with the FAS aims of educating for freedom and responsibility, and provides them with useful resources to help them in their daily work.

FAS Affiliate Schools applications are considered year-round, on a rolling basis.

FAS Project Schools receive a three-year grant stipend of $36,000, and commit to transform their schools and develop new models for democratic education. Project Schools don’t claim to have all the answers, either; but they are required to work across the community to come up with ideas that will change the way their school works, in the hopes of providing an example for other schools across the country.

FAS Project School applications are considered once a year, in the spring.

It is important to note that these two groups are not mutually exclusive. We hope and expect that many of our Affiliate Schools will apply for Project School status in coming years. In addition, all Project Schools may remain in the FAS Network as Affiliate Schools once they have completed their three-year grant cycle.

FAS awards supplementary grants on a rolling, first-come-first-serve basis to both Project and Affiliate Schools. Most of these grants range between $500 and $1,000 and fund best practices or projects that help implement the principles of the FAS Vision Statement. To apply for an FAS supplementary grant, download the PDF file.

For more information on either program, contact the First Amendment Center’s Sam Chaltain (703.284.2808, schaltain@freedomforum.org) or ASCD’s Molly McCloskey (703.575.5475, mmccloskey@ascd.org).