Guide to the Voya Unsung Heroes Awards Program

If you are looking at introducing or expanding 3D printing and design for your school, then Makers Empire can try to help you achieve funding for such a program through the Voya Unsung Heroes Awards Program.

Each year, 50 educators are selected to receive $2,000 to help fund their innovative class projects. Three of those are chosen to receive the top awards of an additional $5,000, $10,000 and $25,000.

The grant program is now open and closes on April 19, 2025.

Makers Empire provides schools with all the tools for a successful 3D printing and design program. This includes 3D printers, easy to use 3D design software, lesson plans aligned to standards, professional development and teacher management tools.

“This has been a wonderful new way to teach and motivate my students… They are beginning to see real-life implications to what they learning to do in class and how they could develop prototypes of objects that they could develop and then produce to sell…The overall enthusiasm towards school and learning has increased tremendously. Students who are typically reluctant learners have come to life,”

– Robin McGinnis, Teacher
North Elementary School, USA8,

About the Voya Unsung Heroes Awards Program

With over $5 million in awarded grants, the Voya Unsung Heroes® Awards Program has proven to be an A+ program with educators. The program’s “alumni” have inspired success in the classroom and impacted countless numbers of students.

The program is administered by Scholarship America®, the nation’s largest designer and manager of scholarship, tuition assistance, and other education support programs for corporations, foundations, associations, and individuals.

Guidelines

All awards must be used to further the projects, as described in the submitted application, within the school or school system. Indirect costs or administrative fees should not be paid or withheld from the grant award. Each of the 50 finalists will receive an award of $2,000.
Of the 50 finalists, three will be selected for additional financial awards. First place will receive a bonus of $25,000; second place will receive a bonus of $10,000, and the third place winner will receive a bonus of $5,000.
Awards are granted without regard to race, color, creed, religion, age, gender, disability, or national origin.
Previous recipients of the Unsung Heroes Awards Program top three awards are eligible to apply for another award; however, applicants may receive a top award one time only.
Download the grant guidelines.

Eligibility Checklist

Applicants to the Voya Unsung Heroes Awards Program must be:

Employed by an accredited K-12 public or private school located in the United States.
Full-time educators, teachers, principals, paraprofessionals, or classified staff with effective and innovative projects that improve student learning.

All K-12 education professionals, whether or not they are clients of Voya Financial® are eligible. Non-profit groups which are not schools are not eligible, i.e., 501(c), etc.

Applications must be verified by the school superintendent, principal or applicant’s immediate supervisor. If selected as a finalist, the school official will be contacted to verify your employment status and proposed project.

What could my school receive with this funding?

The Voya Unsung Heroes Awards Program allows 50 educators to get up to $2,000 in funding towards classroom programs.

With this grant, educators could fund:

Makers Empire School 250 Plan Package: Makers Empire School 250 Plan + 1 3D printer FlashForge Adventurer 5M Pro bundle including:

Professional development
Online training
Maker Empire 3D design software
150+ curriculum-aligned lesson plans
3D printing filament
Ongoing support

What does my school need to commit to?

To apply for the Voya Unsung Heroes Awards Program to get 3D printing with Makers Empire, a school needs to simply request a quote, and submit an application.

No financial commitment from the schools is required. The Voya Unsung Heroes Awards Program do not require any matching funding, and all the tools for a school to successfully implement 3D printing into the classroom are covered by the grant.

The grant application form is straightforward, Depending on your previous grant writing experience, you can complete the application in a day or two.

Application Process: Suggested Steps

For schools who choose Makers Empire for their grant submission, we recommend the following approach.

Please read over all the steps before starting your application.

Step 1: consider Makers Empire

To learn more about Makers Empire, and see if this is the right solution for your school, please watch this tour video. Most 3D design programs for students focus solely on the Teaching part of the teaching cycle Differently, Makers Empire can be used for all three stages:

Plan – complete the two hours of professional development, browse 150+ curriculum aligned lesson plans, watch 3D printing video guides, undertake the getting started guide to set up your classes and get ready to teach your first class
Teach – you can set students work both in the classroom or remotely if they are learning at home via the Teacher Dashboard (missions or tasks will appear in students’ devices as a notification).
Assess – built-in assessment tools and rubrics make assessing students’ work simple.

Step 2: start your application

Start your application at the grant website.

If you decide to apply for a Voya Unsung Heroes Awards Program to purchase a Makers Empire solution, you must request a quote as quotations are required as part of the application.

Step 1 of 2

Name *

Email *

Name of School *

State *

Number of K-10 Students at Your School *

Message

Step 3: request a quotation

Tell us a little more about your school so we can generate your personalized quotation for you to submit with your Voya application. We promise never to share your information – see our Privacy Policy.

“We first began designing using Tinkercad, a terrific CAD program and widely accepted by schools. Some of my older students were able to grasp the mechanics of designing things but that’s all it was, designing things. It had no connection to what we were learning and studying in school. It was isolated and, to be honest probably more trouble than it was worth. I hadn’t found a way to connect this great tool to the needs of my students… I had been searching the blogs looking for resources to teach the curriculum when I discovered the Makers Empire software… Clicking on their website and watching a few tutorials I immediately could tell I had found something special. There was something simplistic to Makers Empire’s approach of complex design. The website offered video tutorials, downloadable resources, and an iPad friendly interface… It took me a while, but what I finally realized was that 3D printing and design is not what I am teaching, but rather how I am teaching… Sure, there are technical skills that both the teacher and students need in order to make a design and have it print out correctly but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. The Makers Empire software allows kids to express themselves and to show what they have learned in other realms of the curriculum.”

Christopher Burdman, STEM Teacher
Tynan Elementary School, Boston

Step 4: Submit your application

We suggest having your application fully prepared in a seperate document so that you can submit it easily online.

Then submit your application online as per step 1 above if you created a grant application account. Make sure to include your school’s quotation for your Makers Empire solution.

If you need help with your application please email us at info[at]makersempire.com with subject: “Voya awards support.”

Good luck!