The SPNovation Awards celebrate and showcase state think-tank innovations.
Know a state think tank that has been particularly innovative and should be recognized?
Nominate it for an SPNovation Award!
Awards will be given for innovative publications, websites, marketing campaigns, fundraising or outreach efforts, programs, events, or any other innovative undertaking.
Prizes. The award includes $2,500 for the winning organization and covers travel expenses for a staff member to present the winning idea on an innovation panel at the SPN Annual Meeting
Eligibility. Only SPN members are eligible to win.
Time frame. Awards will be presented quarterly. Deadlines to apply are Feb. 15, May 15, August 15, and November 15
Nominations. Anyone may make a nomination; groups may nominate themselves.
See below to fill out the SPNovation Award Nomination Form.
Judges.
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Whitney Ball, President & CEO, Donors Trust
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John Kramer, Vice President for Communications, Institute for Justice
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Jo Kwong, Director of Philanthropic Services, Philanthropy Roundtable
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Tracie Sharp, President, State Policy Network
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Bridgett Wagner, Director of Coalition Relations, Heritage Foundation
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Lindsay Young Craig, Vice President, Communications & Marketing, Manhattan Institute
Questions? Email SPNovation@spn.org.
Other details.
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An innovation may be nominated for up to 12 months after it was released, published, put into practice, et cetera. An innovation is not eligible until it has debuted (i.e. don't nominate the fantastic project you're launching next month; wait until the next round of nominations).
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If an innovation does not win the award given immediately after the nomination, it will continue to be eligible to win for up to a year after the innovation was originally released, published, put into practice, et cetera.
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An organization can win more than one award in a year.
Congratulations to
Texas Public Policy Foundation
for winning the SPNovation Award for their
Charter School Lottery Media Project
To increase school choice in Texas by raising awareness of the demand for charter schools, the Texas Public Policy Foundation secured extensive media coverage of a lottery selection process at Harmony School of Excellence in Austin. In the week of the lottery, TPPF released a media advisory to notify local media of the event. TPPF's Education Policy Analyst was featured in radio stories on the top-rated AM radio station in Austin. These stories explained how the demand for alternatives to traditional public schools and the limit on the number of charter schools in Texas forces charter schools to hold a lottery to randomly select their students. TPPF coordinated with NBC affiliate KXAN to show live coverage from the school during its 5pm, 6pm, and 10pm newscasts. ABC affiliate KVUE also aired a story on the lottery during it 10pm news, the most watched news show in Austin. For both news stations, TPPF arranged interviews with school staff and families of students. Through informed news coverage, TPPF was able to raise awareness of the demand for charter schools in Texas and effectively put a face on the need for choice in education.
"TPPF's project does an excellent job of humanizing the educational choice problem. Parents everywhere can relate to the helplessness, and anxiety, of a process that is out of their hands--for one of the most important aspects of their children's lives," said Jo Kwong, SPNovation judge and director of philanthropic services at Philanthropy Roundtable.
Visit SPNovation Archives to view past awards.
