Teacher Ranger Teacher Program | P17AS00550

Opportunity Information: Apply for P17AS00550

The Teacher Ranger Teacher Program (Funding Opportunity Number P17AS00550) is a National Park Service (NPS) professional development initiative designed to help K-12 classroom teachers strengthen their instruction by connecting it to national parks and the educational assets the NPS maintains. The core idea is to give teachers meaningful access to NPS educational resources, including primary source materials and scientific data, and then help them translate those resources into project-based learning experiences that make classroom content more engaging and authentic for students. A major emphasis of the program is equity of access: recruitment is aimed especially at teachers working in rural, urban, and tribal schools where many students have had little or no direct exposure to national parks or related learning opportunities.

Through participation, teachers build new knowledge and practical skills centered on using real-world NPS resources to design classroom materials and activities. The opportunity explicitly focuses on project-based learning methods, meaning teachers are expected to learn approaches that allow students to investigate questions, analyze evidence, and develop products or presentations grounded in real data and primary sources. The expectation is not just that teachers will learn about parks, but that what they learn will be incorporated into concrete instructional materials that can be used with their own students, extending the program impact beyond the participating educators.

The opportunity is offered as a discretionary cooperative agreement under the Department of the Interior, National Park Service, within the Natural Resources funding activity category (CFDA 15.945). Eligibility is limited to public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, indicating that colleges or universities are intended to be the applicant and likely serve as the partner organizing or administering the teacher professional development experience in coordination with the NPS. The program also includes a credentialing benefit for participating teachers: they earn graduate credits during the program that can be applied toward renewing or upgrading teaching credentials, which makes the professional development both immediately practical for classroom improvement and formally valuable for career advancement.

In terms of scale and timing, the posting listed an award ceiling of $56,340 with an expectation of one award, suggesting a single funded partner would run or support the program for that cycle. The opportunity was created on July 26, 2017, with an original closing date of August 4, 2017, reflecting a relatively short application window typical of some targeted federal education and outreach initiatives. Overall, the grant supports a partnership model where a qualifying higher education institution collaborates with the NPS to train teachers, expand student access to national park-based learning, and produce classroom-ready materials grounded in the resources and scientific work of the National Park Service.

• The Department of the Interior, National Park Service in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Teacher Ranger Teacher Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.945.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jul 26, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 04, 2017. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $56,340.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education.

Apply for P17AS00550

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