Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google


Follett Challenge Invites Schools to Share Programs with a Positive Impact

  • By Dian Schaffhauser
  • 10/31/18
Alaska's Tutor Elementary School won the 2018 Follett Challenge with its

Alaska's Tutor Elementary School won the 2018 Follett Challenge with its "Young Global Citizen" program. (Photo: Tutor Elementary School)

Education technology company Follett has opened its latest challenge, inviting schools to submit video entries about their programs that have made a positive impact. Prizes include $200,000 worth of Follett products and services. The company provides books, entertainment products, digital content, multimedia and technology for libraries and schools.

Last year's top winner, Tudor Elementary School, part of the Anchorage School District, received recognition for its "Young Global Citizens" program, which showcases how global connections affect students' learning and their perspective on the world. Each year, as the school's video entry showed, the students participate in "self-created global projects" with hundreds of "schools, educators, scientists, activists and ordinary human beings" to teach about Alaska, learn about the world and "make an impact."

"Winning the Follett Challenge has been a validating motivation for our students that the world recognizes children can be change makers as young global citizens," said school librarian Michelle Carton, in a statement. "The passion to do more, learn more and be more is a driving force thanks to Follett's gracious award."

Three semi-finalists, one each from elementary, middle and high schools, will be selected to receive $30,000 prizes. From among those, the top winner will be chosen to receive an additional $30,000 in goods, along with a personal visit from children's book author Kwame Alexander, a Newberry Medalist whose latest book is Swing. Alexander will also serve as a judge for challenge, which is open for entries through Dec. 14.

Entrants need to fill out an online application and submit a video that shares their program and how it has made a positive impact. There's a special emphasis on programs that promote 21st century skills, including critical thinking, communication, creativity and collaboration. Submissions can be made by teachers and parent-teacher organizations.

Ten $8,000 prizes will be awarded to "people's choice" winners, based on the number of online votes they receive from the public.

To learn more about the challenge, visit its dedicated website.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • Students using laptops in classroom

    Stop Asking Whether Students Can Use AI

    As generative AI has become embedded in the tools students use to search, write, create, translate, organize, and receive feedback, the boundary between "using AI" and "not using AI" has become increasingly difficult to define. More importantly, treating AI use as a binary choice does little to help students understand the different roles AI can appropriately play in learning.

  • broken digital lock and glowing chain

    Check Point Researchers: AI Has Crossed into the Live Attack Chain

    AI is moving beyond assisting cybercriminals and beginning to operate within live attacks, according to a recent report from Check Point Research. The technology is making sophisticated capabilities faster and more accessible while creating new security risks for businesses deploying their own AI systems.

  • Businessman using laptop to analyze and control information security data

    Survey Identifies Data Governance Enforcement Gap for Agentic AI Tools

    According to a new survey from identity security company Delinea, 99.7% of IT and security leaders said their organization has a formal policy governing what data AI tools and agents are permitted to access. Yet only about 51% said AI access is checked against those policies in real time.

  • abstract spiral of multi colored lights

    OpenAI's New Astra Model Reaches Critical Cyber Threshold

    OpenAI has introduced GPT-6 Astra, its most capable broadly deployed model and the first system the company says has reached the "Critical" cybersecurity capability threshold under its Preparedness Framework.