2025 Evidence for Impact

First, make sure your organization is eligible to apply for Accelerate’s Evidence for Impact grant by completing the Eligibility Form. If eligible, you will be redirected to complete the Letter of Interest (PDF preview) which will include questions for us to better understand your organization’s mission, scale, current implementation, and ability to successfully execute your proposed research evaluation as intended. Competitive applications demonstrate a stable tutoring model with a relatively fixed program design that’s ready for rigorous evaluation, rather than one still undergoing significant redesign or active development. Operational sustainability is essential, as Accelerate is not an operational funder—our grant dollars provide a strategic, time-limited investment specifically to build your evidence base and contribute knowledge to the field, meaning your organization should have sustainable funding for ongoing program operations.

Applicants that align with one or more of Accelerate’s research priority areas will be heavily considered to complete the full application. Additionally, strong consideration will also be provided for applicants who have prior evidence suggesting positive effects on student achievement – either through pre-post assessments, quasi-experiments, or experimental evaluations, since grantees will be expected to participate in a Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) in SY 2025-26.

If helpful, read more about current and former grant recipient organizations here.

If you have further questions, please reach out to the Accelerate team at program@accelerate.us.

Accelerate’s aim is to promote the project goals while providing grantees with maximum flexibility. Funding of up to $250,000 may be used to support operational costs, pre-evaluation costs, staff and direct program costs. All grantees will have their research and evaluation study funded separately through Accelerate, and should not budget for this expense.

Applicants are asked to submit a proposed budget with their full application; those selected will work with Accelerate to determine the final allocation of funds, with the understanding that some shifts may occur during the grant year, which can be addressed with budget amendments.

Up to 5% of the grant amount may cover indirect costs.

For the purpose of the Evidence for Impact grant program, the term ‘tutoring’ includes a variety of delivery models, including in-person, virtual, hybrid, or fully tech-enabled. The key component is that students are receiving personalized instruction tailored to their needs during the school day.

The prevailing research (Kraft & Falken, 2021; Nickow et al., 2020; Robinson et al., 2021) indicates that effective high-dosage tutoring is typically (i) individualized, with student:tutor ratios not higher than 4:1, (ii) intensive, with dosage between 3-5 sessions/week, at least 30-60 minutes/session, (iii) sustained for 50 hours (over 36 weeks, with some effective tutoring programs lasting for at least 10 weeks), and (iv) based on high-quality instructional materials (HQIM). However, we encourage applicants to submit proposals featuring program designs that may deviate from these guidelines so long as the applicant presents a well-defined theory of action supported by evidence demonstrating the effectiveness of the alternative design.

Accelerate will assist with matching selected grantees with a researcher in Summer 2025. Accelerate will then collaborate with the grantee and its matched researcher to support the development of a study design and timeline. Research may begin in Fall 2025 or Spring 2026, depending on the study design, program design and parameters, and as outlined in the grantee agreement.

Accelerate has also developed partnerships with external funders who are interested in funding rigorous formal evaluations of tutoring programs. As needed, Accelerate will support grantees in applying for and accessing this funding.

A timeline for the application process is below. Please note that this timeline is not exhaustive.

A calendar of key dates, particularly those relating to research, are below. Please note that this timeline is not exhaustive.

Grantees will be asked to complete four phase reports on the project during the grant period. The reports will be a mix of surveys and meetings with Accelerate staff. The schedule below is a tentative timeline of the phase updates and month due and is subject to change.

Please email program@accelerate.us with a description of the issue you are experiencing. Our team will be closely monitoring the inbox and will provide support as needed.

Questions may be emailed to program@accelerate.us at any time. Our team will be closely monitoring the inbox.