National Moonshot Grants

Bold ideas for the future of learning

National Moonshot Grants support the testing of bold, future-facing ideas that push the limits of what is possible in learning—and generate insights that can shape what comes next.

Overview

National Moonshot Grants were launched in conjunction with Forge Futures, a national summit focused on community-wide learning ecosystems.

At Forge Futures, educational leaders come together to imagine what learning could look like in a rapidly changing world—and to prototype actions that can be taken today to move toward that future. National Moonshot Grants provide funding to bring select prototypes to life in real-world contexts across the country and beyond.

THE OPPORTUNITY

Participants of Forge Futures 2.0 are invited to apply for National Moonshot Grant funding to support the testing of bold ideas.

Bold ideas:

Push beyond incremental improvement
Test new assumptions about how learning happens
Generate valuable insights and shifts that can inform the field

Applications should focus on testing ideas surfaced during Forge Futures 2.0 in a real-life setting.

A PREFERRED FUTURE OF LEARNING

National Moonshot Grants challenge applicants to articulate their preferred future of learning—what they hope learning will look like 10 years from now.

Applicants are asked to:

Paint a clear picture of this preferred future
Identify its defining attributes
Explain how it differs from today’s learning systems

This future-oriented framing should ground the proposed prototype and guide decision-making throughout the project.

FUNDING

Applicants may request up to $50,000 to support the implementation and testing of their idea.

It is anticipated that 12-15 Moonshot ideas will receive funding.

FUNDING PRIORITIES

We are especially interested in projects that:

Activate ideas surfaced at Forge Futures by putting them into practice

Build on relationships formed through Forge Futures or AASA’s National Conference on Education

Demonstrate what is possible when learning is designed and supported at a regional, ecosystem level

Take informed risks through bold experimentation and rapid learning

ELIGIBILITY

To be eligible for a National Moonshot Grant, applications must:

Be submitted by a person who attended Forge Futures 2.0 in Nashville.
Be submitted by a charitable or non-governmental organization
- U.S.-based applicants must be registered 501(c)(3) organizations
- Additional partners or individuals may be included, but the lead applicant must meet the criteria above
Organizations may be included in only one National Moonshot Grant application, whether as a lead applicant or as a partner organization

TIMELINE

Applications

Application opens: February 11, 2026
Application closes: March 31, 2026

Information Sessions

Apply for a National Moonshot Grant

Start Your Application

ABOUT FORGE FUTURES

Presented by Remake Learning and AASA, in partnership with KnowledgeWorks, Forge Futures is a national summit that brings together superintendents and education leaders to author the next chapter of public education—integrating the possibilities presented by local learning ecosystems.

ABOUT REMAKE LEARNING

Remake Learning demonstrates how place-based learning ecosystems can generate globally relevant insights for the future of education.

What began as a regional collaboration in Pittsburgh has grown into an internationally recognized learning ecosystem, spanning schools, museums, libraries, early learning centers, out-of-school programs, and more—informing how regions worldwide approach systems change in learning.