Grant Spotlight

ED's Magnet Schools Assistance Program Accepting Applications from LEAs Through May 15

• By Kristal Kuykendall
• 04/10/23

Applications are now being accepted for the U.S. Department of Education’s Magnet Schools Assistance Program, which provides funding to eligible local education agencies to establish and operate magnet schools, with special curricula, to attract a diverse group of students and desegregate public schools.

The deadline to give notice of intent to apply is Thursday, April 13, 2023; intent to apply notice is not required to apply for the grant but is encouraged. File notice of intent to apply by emailing [email protected] with the subject line, “[LEA Name(s)] Intent to Apply”].

Deadline to apply is 11:59 p.m. ET on May 15, 2023. 

The MSAP program grants — totaling approximately $122 million — will be awarded to about 25 applicants, in increments of $1.5 million to $3.5 million annually for up to five years, according to ED’s notice on the Federal Register website.

The MSAP grant program, authorized by Congress in the 1965 Elementary and Secondary Education Act, aims to assist in the desegregation of schools served by local educational agencies by providing financial assistance to eligible local educational agencies for the following initiatives and programs (verbatim from ED’s application announcement):

• The elimination, reduction, or prevention of minority group isolation in schools with substantial proportions of minority students

• Magnet school programs that assist LEAs in achieving systemic reforms and providing all students the opportunity to meet challenging State academic standards

• Innovative educational methods and practices that promote diversity and increase choices in public educational programs

• Courses of instruction within magnet schools that strengthen knowledge of academic subjects and attainment of tangible skills

• Improving capacity to continue operating magnet schools at a high-performance level after Federal funding

• Ensuring that all students in the magnet schools have equitable access to high quality education to succeed 

MSAP webinars with technical assistance for interested applicants can be viewed on the MSAP website. 

The MSAP Team will hold open virtual office hours on Microsoft Teams on Thursdays, April 13 and 20, 2023 from 1–2 p.m. Eastern; potential applicants can ask questions and get help from the MSAP staff during this time. These sessions will not be recorded, ED said.

To join the open office hours on Teams, use the following: 

• Meeting ID: 215 541 491 016

• Passcode: zTucLn

Alternately, open office hours can be joined by phoning in (audio only): 202-991-0393,,25733361#; use Phone Conference ID: 257 333 61#

Applicants may also email [email protected] with questions or to schedule a meeting time.