The J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation will award grants of up to $5 million to applicants that successfully demonstrate their capacity to launch an early college high school in collaboration with a higher education institution and an industry partner or consortium of partners.

This project was inspired by the Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH) schools that have been opened in partnership with IBM in New York and Illinois.

Idaho’s P-TECH schools will offer individualized pathways to allow students to progress through course requirements at their own pace and graduate with an associate’s degree or equivalent certificate at no cost to the student.

The three-way partnership between the early college high school, higher education institution and industry is the essential element of the proposed project, said a foundation news release.

Awards will be between $1 million and $5 million over a five-year grant period, depending on the size of the schools serving at least 100 students. More funds will be released as grant winners achieve agreed-upon benchmarks.

The letter of intent — the first deadline — is due March 8. A signed application is due April 5. For complete details, click here.

Disclosure: Idaho Education News is funded through a grant from the J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation.