Concord teachers are asking for more classroom grant money than the Concord Education Fund (CEF) can give out, and the nonprofit is turning to the broader community for help.

CEF awarded approximately $65,000 in teacher grants in 2026, below its seven-year average of roughly $73,000 annually, according to board member Lynda Ferrari. The gap isn't a fundraising problem. More teachers across elementary, middle, and high schools are submitting proposals that meet the fund's criteria, and the money isn't keeping pace.

"We want to say yes more often," Ferrari told The Concord Bridge.

The fund, established around the time of the 1990 Massachusetts Education Reform Act, bankrolls teacher-designed projects that fall outside the district's regular operating budget. Over its lifetime, CEF has disbursed more than $3 million to Concord schools. Its donor rolls have leaned heavily on parents, and the board is now asking neighbors without kids in the system to pitch in.

Superintendent Laurie Hunter, speaking through district spokesperson Tom Lucey, attributed the uptick in applications to schools doing a better job promoting the grants to teachers. She did not answer questions about how decisions are made to roll CEF-funded programs into the regular budget or what happens to grant-funded projects if the fund can no longer support them.

Recipients in 2026 include Mental Health Matters, a Concord-Carlisle High School program bringing art therapy to students experiencing anxiety; a communication-support initiative providing alternative tools for CCHS students with complex needs; and a garden laboratory at Willard Elementary School where students will study pollinators and ecosystems as part of the new EL Education curriculum.

Some CEF-seeded programs eventually become permanent. Rivers and Revolutions, an interdisciplinary CCHS course combining English, history, math, and science, started with CEF support and now sits in the regular curriculum. Math teacher Ashley Cohane, who leads the program, said recent grants funded rechargeable hand warmers, ponchos, portable stools, and field guides for outdoor lessons at Estabrook Woods and along Boston's Rose Kennedy Greenway. Cohane said the gear lets students work outdoors in any conditions.

A Concord teacher and public school parent, Cohane said she has seen the grants' benefits from both sides.

Ferrari declined to say which proposals were turned down in 2026, noting CEF does not publicly release its full applicant list.

Residents interested in donating can visit concordedfund.org or follow @theconcordedfund on Instagram. The fund's mailing address is PO Box 202, Concord, MA.