TVA Partnership Provides $1.5 Million in STEM Awards to 339 Schools, Supporting 114,000 Students

Nov 24, 2025

Contact: Adam May

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Release Summary

About 114,000 students will benefit from the grants for science, technology, engineering and math projects.
Since 2018, the program has provided over $9 million in STEM awards supporting over 845,000 students.
Complete list of grant recipients is available at tva.com/stem.
Editor's Note: Click here for STEM photos, audio, and video/b-roll.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. ― The Tennessee Valley Authority, in partnership with Bicentennial Volunteers Inc., a TVA retiree organization, is awarding, for the third year in a row, $1.5 million in awards to educators to develop science, technology, engineering, and math education projects across the Tennessee Valley region.

“Inspiring young people to pursue careers in STEM fields is so important,” said TVA President and CEO Don Moul. “A workforce with specialized skills means more economic opportunities for people across our seven-state region and more opportunities for our students to achieve high-paying jobs that will support their families and make their communities a better place to live when they grow up.”

The competitive STEM classroom award program is operated in partnership with the Tennessee STEM Innovation Network, managed by the Battelle organization. The program received 528 applications, and 339 were selected for funding. Since 2018, TVA/BVI has provided over $9 million in STEM grants supporting over 845,000 students.

“BVI is proud to stand alongside TVA in sparking curiosity and building pathways for young people across the Tennessee Valley,” said Kathy Black, president, Bicentennial Volunteers, Inc. “The STEM Awards program reflects our shared belief that investing in education today fuels the talent and innovation that will sustain our communities for generations to come. The awards meet the diverse needs of local communities.”

For example, Northeast Elementary School in Clarksville, Tennessee, is using its award to purchase much-needed supplies.

"We are going to be creating kits for kindergarten through fifth grade where teachers can just check out the materials they need to complete STEM projects," said Amber Di Silvio, academic coach at Northeast Elementary School. "STEM opens up opportunities for different careers for these students to be exposed to later in life."

Awards up to $5,000 were awarded in a competitive process, and preference was given to grant applications that explored TVA’s primary areas of focus: environment, energy, economic development, and community problem-solving. Any school that receives its power from a local power company served by TVA was eligible to apply.

A full list of the grant recipients can be found at tva.com/stem.

About TVA

The Tennessee Valley Authority is the nation’s largest public power supplier, delivering energy to more than 10 million people across seven southeastern states. TVA has one of the most diverse energy systems – including nuclear, hydro, coal, gas, solar and advanced technologies. TVA is making significant investments in its power system toward new generation and transmission. 

TVA is a corporate agency of the United States, receiving no taxpayer funding, deriving virtually all of its revenues from sales of electricity. TVA maintains some of the lowest energy costs and highest reliability in the nation. TVA’s residential rates are lower than those paid by 80% of customers of the top 100 U.S. utilities, and its industrial rates are lower than those paid by over 90% of customers of the top 100 U.S. utilities. In addition, TVA provides flood control, navigation, and land management for the Tennessee River system, and assists local power companies and state and local governments with economic development and job creation. Learn more at tva.com.

Contact

Adam May
TVA Media Relations
[email protected]
865-632-6000

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