ICTM Scholarship

The Illinois Council of Teachers of Mathematics will be presenting its annual Scholarships in Mathematics Education in October of each year.  ICTM has been awarding Scholarships to college students since 1989.  You can see a list of past winners here. See our current winners at the bottom of this page!

There will be up to three scholarships granted of $1,500 to help defray educational expenses of the recipients. Awardees also get a free 1-year ICTM membership, free registration to the annual ICTM conference, and an ICTM board mentor. You can help ensure that these scholarships are available for future generations by donating to the scholarship fund.

To be eligible for the 2024-2025 scholarship, a student must:

1. Be enrolled as a junior or senior in an accredited university or college in Illinois during Spring 2025 with a graduation date of May 2025 or later.
2. Be working on their first bachelor’s degree with an intent to teach in Illinois upon graduation.
3. Be a mathematics education major, a mathematics major with an education minor, an early childhood major, or an elementary education major.
4. Have a total overall GPA of at least 3.00 from all colleges attended (based on 4.00).
5. Submit digital copies of the following through the ICTM Scholarship Submission Portal:
   1. A completed ICTM scholarship application form that includes:
      1. Applicant information
      2. Two 200-300 word essays
      3. A complete lesson planning form
   2. Transcripts from ALL COLLEGES ATTENDED.
   3. Letters of recommendation from two mathematics or mathematics methods teachers, high school or college. These letters must state the capacity in which the writer knew the applicant and address their potential as a mathematics teacher.
   4. Some verification of the applicant's enrollment in a teacher education program (e.g. letter from advisor, copy of registration materials, notation on transcript etc.)

Applications will be scored by a committee of readers using the following evaluation rubric:

• Application information = 5 points (completeness, GPA, clarity)
• Activities = 10 points (how strongly are the work/leadership/extracurricular activities from your college years connected to mathematics and/or teaching?)
• Essay #1 = 10 points (writing quality, anticipated contribution to teaching mathematics, enthusiasm for teaching and mathematics)
• Essay #2 = 10 points (writing quality, degree to which the question is answered, quality of the answer to the prompt)
• Lesson Planning Form = 15 points (clarity and appropriateness of objectives/goals, level of student engagement opportunities, methods of evaluating student understanding, clarity of flow of lesson which includes introduction and closure)

Applications are due by May 8, 2025.

You may download and complete the 2024-2025 fillable PDF version of the application here.  Completed applications need to be submitted by May 8, 2025.  Questions regarding the application process may be directed to Ms. Shelly Murphy at scholarships@ictm.org. Once you've gathered all of the materials listed in item 5 above, submit your documents in our online portal.