Welcome to ShapeAR

The Society of Health and Physical Educators of Arkansas

We are a non-profit organization of teachers, researchers, college students, and other professionals that network and advocate for physical education and health across the state. We are dedicated to the promotion of quality programs in public schools, private schools, universities, and community agencies throughout Arkansas.

Fund For Teachers

Fund for Teachers gives grants to teachers, including PE teachers, to fund fellowships, networking and continuing education. Available to any educator in the United States, Fund for Teachers' mandate is to help teachers, including PE teachers, continue their studies and build expertise that improves student outcomes.

About the Grant

The organization is a nationwide program with different resources available in different places but consistently emphasizes teacher independence, funding fellowships designed by applicants to meet their specific needs. The program is unique in funding for PE teachers, because the funding is for the professional development of the teacher as opposed to grants for programming or equipment.

Examples of past projects include:

Participating in a dance retreat in Kauai, Hawaii to learn how to incorporate self-awareness and social-emotional learning techniques into a teen wellness program
Go to Outward Bound in Colorado to learn how to put together a backpacking unit study
Touring the western United States to learn how to incorporate challenging physical (and mental) activities into curriculum
Going to Europe to investigate fitness habits and low obesity rates in a few European countries

How to Apply

The Fund For Teachers website provides a clickable map for PE teachers to explore options in their area. Before you begin your application, you'll also want to peruse the Application Learning Center which answers questions you might have. Deadlines and exact amounts depend on location, but grants are generally limited to $5,000 for an individual, or $10,000 for a team.

Good Sports is a nationwide program that donates clothing, equipment and other resources to physical education programs in need. The organization works to make sure every PE program and after-school sports team in the country has the gear they need to play.

About the Grant

Through partnerships with professional sports teams, other charities and state and local government, Good Sports provides in-kind donations of sports equipment to programs. Donations are open to any sport, recreational or physical fitness program in the United States that serves children ages 3 to 18. Recent donations include $30,000 worth of equipment to the Jersey City Soccer Program and $10,000 to PE programs at Lake Highland Church in Florida. Good Sports does not provide monetary donations. Instead, an accepted program gets the opportunity to choose from a catalog of all the resources Good Sports has available.

How to Apply

To apply, you must be serving kids in an economically disadvantaged area. Programs are expected to pay a shipping and handling fee for their donation equal to 10 percent of its value. Good Sports has rolling deadlines, so programs can apply at any time. The application is available at their website. Programs are limited to 3 applications per year.