Guide to the Walmart Spark Good Local Grants
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 a program through the Walmart Spark Good Local Community Grants.
Walmart believes that strengthening local communities creates value for business as well as society. Each year, Walmart U.S. stores, Sam’s Clubs and Distribution Centers award local cash grants ranging from $250 to $5000. These local grants are designed to address the unique needs of the communities where they operate.
New guidelines are coming soon for Spark Good Local Grants.
The application will open in March 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, USA
About Walmart's Community Programs
Walmart’s approximately 2.1 million associates live and work in local communities around the world. Strong, vibrant towns and cities that provide convenient access to healthier food, stable jobs and support in times of disasters are essential to building strong local economies.
Over the years, Walmart has been intentional about leveraging our strengths, associates and other resources to build resiliency in communities.
Through collaboration and philanthropic funding, they’re working to strengthen the charitable meals system, provide emergency relief in the face of disaster, and support more than 10,500 communities our stores, club and facilities serve.
Walmart’s community programs include Spark Good Local Grants, Local Community Support, Caring & Connected Communities, Healthier Food for All, and Disaster Preparedness & Response.
Guidelines
- Spark Good Local Grants are awarded through an open application process to eligible organizations operating locally and directly benefiting the service area of the facility from when they are requesting funding.
- All organizations interested in applying for a Spark Good Local Grant must have a Spark Good account on Walmart.com/nonprofits and be verified by Walmart’s third-party verification partner, Deed. Only authorized users of the organization’s Spark Good account may apply.
- Grant amounts range from a minimum of $250 to a maximum of $5,000.
- New guidelines are coming soon for Spark Good Local Grants. The application will open in March 2025.
- Organizations may only have a combined total number of 25 submitted and/or approved applications at any given one time for the calendar year, regardless of quarterly submission.
- Final decisions on applications submitted within each quarter are made prior to the next quarter’s application opening.
- If approved, grant funds are distributed through electronic payment.
Eligibility Checklist
Organizations must have a Spark Good account and be verified by Deed, Walmart’s third-party verification service provider.
If recommended for funding, the organization must provide electronic payment information to complete the approval process. All grants are disbursed through electronic payment.
Organizations applying must meet one of following criteria:
- An organization holding a current tax-exempt status as a public charity under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, listed on the IRS Master File and conducting activities within the United States, classified as a public charity under Section 509(a)(1), (2) or (3) (Types I or II); and Deed verified.
- A recognized government entity: state, county or city agency, including law enforcement or fire departments, that are requesting funds exclusively for public purposes and Deed verified.
- A K-12 public or nonprofit private school, charter school, community/junior college, state/private college or university; or a church or other faith-based organization with a proposed project that benefits the community at large, such as food pantries, soup kitchens and clothing closets and Deed verified.
Note: Non-charities, including organizations recognized as 501(c)(4)s, (c)(6)s, and (c)(19)s like homeowner’s associations, civic leagues, or volunteer fire companies, are not eligible at this time.
Selection & Approval Process
- Facility management review applications and make initial funding recommendations on all submitted requests.
- Each facility manager may set the frequency and process in which application determinations are made.
- The facility manager and the grant administrator reserve the right to adjust the amount awarded to each organization without prior notice.
- Organizations will be notified of any decision via e-mail. All funding decisions are final.
- If an organization is recommended for funding, organization will be notified about how to set up electronic payment to complete the final approval step in the grant application process.
- Upon receiving a grant, organizations may contact the local facility from which funds were awarded to discuss their announcement and/or a formal recognition event (only if desired).All grant applications are made subject to review of the organization’s reputation and activities and its agreement to comply with applicable terms and conditions. Submission of an application does not guarantee funding.
- Funding exclusions include: organizations that deny service, membership or other involvement on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, veteran, or disability status.
Grant Fit with Makers Empire
Makers Empire helps 5-15YO students become resilient creators, persistent problem-solvers, and empathetic innovators. As they use Makers Empire, students develop important 21st century learning skills like critical thinking, communication, collaboration and citizenship. They learn how to identify real-world problems and to create solutions for them using Makers Empire’s 3D design tools and Design Thinking,
Makers Empire helps elementary, middle and high school teachers across America (see above) improve their students’ spatial reasoning skills and creative confidence, and reduce students’ Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) anxiety. Our products are aligned to the NGSS and international Design & Technology curriculum and are ideal for use in cross-curriculum project-based learning.
What could my school receive with the Classroom Grant?
The Walmart Local Community Grants program allows schools to get up to $5,000 in funding towards classroom programs.
With this grant, schools could fund:
- Two Flashforge Adventurer 5 Pro 3D printers
- 3D printing filament
- Professional development
- Online training
- Maker Empire 3D design software
- 150+ curriculum-aligned lesson plans
- Dozens of in-app Challenge Courses
- Ongoing support
for all students and teachers in a school for 24 months.
What does my school need to commit to?
To apply for the Walmart Spark Good Local Community Grants 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 Walmart Spark Good Local Community Grants 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 these short videos. 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 and dozens of in-app challenge courses, 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 Walmart Local Community Grant to purchase a Makers Empire solution, you must request a quote as quotations are required as part of the application.
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 Walmart grant 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 at the grant website 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: “WALMART GRANT SUPPORT.”
Good luck!
