Varkey Foundation Global Schools Prize: $1 Million Awarded in the Inaugural 2026 Cycle (Closed)
The inaugural $1 million Varkey Foundation Global Schools Prize is closed: applications ended on 9 February 2026, and Lebanon’s Alsama Project won in May 2026. This archive explains the award, the eligible schools, and what a future applicant should prepare if a new cycle is announced.
Varkey Foundation Global Schools Prize: $1 Million Awarded in the Inaugural 2026 Cycle (Closed)
Status: historical reference. The inaugural Global Schools Prize cycle is closed, its awards have been announced, and no new application round is listed by the Varkey Foundation.
The Varkey Foundation launched the Global Schools Prize in 2025 as an institutional counterpart to the Global Teacher Prize and Global Student Prize. The first cycle was presented as a US$1 million award for schools that could show substantial, practical work in education. The final application deadline was 9 February 2026 at 8am GMT. The official programme page says that the finalists and winner would be announced in May 2026; the foundation subsequently published the category results and the overall winner.
There is no open form or current deadline to use from this page. The foundation’s official Global Schools Prize overview now links to the inaugural results and describes the prize structure. The linked programme page on the Global Teacher Prize site still carries the original 2026 application copy, including the extended deadline, but it does not announce a later cycle. Treat this page as an archive of the completed round, not as a live funding opportunity.
What the inaugural prize awarded
The structure was larger than a single $1 million cheque to one school. Ten category winners each received $50,000, and one of those ten schools received an additional $500,000 as the overall Global Schools Prize winner. The published structure therefore totals US$1 million across the ten category awards and the additional overall award. The Varkey Foundation also says that longlisted schools would receive a Global Schools Prize Badge and join the Global Schools Network, with opportunities for collaboration and professional development.
The overall winner was the Alsama Project in Lebanon, announced at the Education World Forum in London on 13 May 2026. Alsama received the additional $500,000 after also winning the Overcoming Adversity category, whose award was $50,000. The official winner announcement describes Alsama as a refugee-led education organisation serving more than 1,100 displaced teenagers through education centres in Lebanon and Syria. It reports that the project maintained daily teaching during the 2024 and 2026 conflicts and planned to use the prize funds to open another accelerated learning centre in Homs.
The ten category winners announced on 10 May 2026 were:
| Category | Winner | Country |
|---|---|---|
| AI Transformation | IISS Ettore Majorana | Italy |
| Arts, Culture and Creativity | Freedom International Schools | Kenya |
| Character and Values | Escuela de Talentos Guanajuato Azteca | Mexico |
| Global Citizenship and Peacebuilding | LEAD 359 | United States |
| Health and Wellbeing | IES Carmen de Burgos Seguí | Spain |
| Overcoming Adversity | Alsama Project | Lebanon |
| SEND and Inclusive Education | Suubi Community Primary and Secondary Schools | Uganda |
| STEM Education | Neeson Cripps Academy | Cambodia |
| Sustainability | Institución Educativa Comercial de Envigado | Colombia |
| Teacher Development | Reach Academy Feltham | United Kingdom |
The category announcement says the entries came from almost 3,000 applications and nominations across 113 countries. That is useful context for a future applicant: the prize was international and competitive, but the results were not limited to schools from one region or one type of education system.
Who was eligible in the completed cycle
The official eligibility page opened the prize to government-run and privately funded schools in every country, subject to local law. The terms were more precise: a qualifying school was an educational institution serving students of compulsory school age, generally described as ages 4 to 18. The published rules excluded pre-schools and nurseries, further- and higher-education institutions, colleges, and universities. A school could be state-maintained, fee-paying, independent, faith-based, specialist, or another recognised school type, provided it met the age and legal requirements.
Eligibility was not the same as an automatic right to receive funds. The terms required an applicant not to be barred under the law of its country and not to be insolvent, bankrupt, in receivership, administration, or liquidation. The foundation also reserved the right to exclude a school or connected person where conduct had brought the educational profession or foundation parties into disrepute. The terms specifically refer to serious regulatory, special-measures, and safeguarding concerns. Those conditions matter for any future round because a strong educational story would not cure a legal or safeguarding problem.
Schools could apply to multiple categories. The categories were judged separately, so a school entering more than one category needed a credible, category-specific case for each. The ten published categories covered AI Transformation; Arts, Culture and Creativity; Character and Values; Global Citizenship and Peacebuilding; Health and Wellbeing; Overcoming Adversity; SEND and Inclusive Education; STEM Education; Sustainability; and Teacher Development.
A school could also be nominated by another person or organisation. Nomination did not complete the entry. The foundation’s programme page states that a nominated school still had to complete an application, and the terms direct applicants to the prize platform’s application form. That distinction is important for a future cycle: a nomination is an invitation to participate, not a substitute for the school’s own submission.
How applications worked in the 2026 cycle
Applications and nominations were submitted through the Varkey Foundation’s prize platform. The application window is closed, so the following is a record of the completed process rather than an instruction to submit now.
- A school applied directly or was nominated by someone else.
- A nominated school completed the application form itself.
- Online judges read and scored the submissions after the application process closed.
- The judges selected a longlist. Longlisted schools received the badge and network access described on the programme page.
- The Prize Council selected ten finalists, with one school representing each category. The terms also allow for online interviews and possible school visits during selection.
- The Global Schools Prize Academy selected the overall winner after further screening, background checks, and reference checks.
The terms state that the process was monitored by MediaSense and PricewaterhouseCoopers, or another firm selected by the foundation, to support transparency. They also explain that prize money could be used only for purposes or activities supporting the Varkey Foundation’s charitable objects. The foundation could impose further grant conditions, pay funds in instalments, and require evidence that the receiving account was held in the school’s name with at least two authorised signatories. Future applicants should read the new terms if another cycle opens; the completed cycle’s rules should not be assumed to carry forward unchanged.
What a future applicant should prepare
No new round is announced on the verified programme pages, so there is no current application checklist to follow. A school interested in a future cycle can still use the completed round to organise its evidence.
Document a completed school practice
The prize was designed to recognise schools already producing meaningful results, not just an attractive proposal. Assemble a clear record of the initiative: the problem students faced, the intervention the school put in place, the people responsible, the period covered, and the evidence of change. Useful evidence might include attendance, retention, assessment progress, participation, wellbeing measures, teacher development records, or independently verified outcomes, depending on the category.
The evidence should distinguish activity from result. A list of workshops shows what happened; it does not by itself show that students learned more, stayed in school, felt safer, or gained access to opportunities. A future application will be stronger if it explains the baseline, the method of measurement, the limits of the evidence, and what has continued after the first project period.
Match the case to one category
The categories were broad, but the judging was category-based. A school should identify the category that best matches its strongest evidence and then explain why the work belongs there. An AI entry should address how technology was integrated responsibly and inclusively, not merely list software. A sustainability entry should connect environmental education or practice to the school community. A Teacher Development entry should show how professional growth affected teaching and student experience. The category descriptions on the official eligibility page are the best starting point if a new application form appears.
Prepare governance and funding information
The financial terms were part of eligibility and post-selection, not an afterthought. Keep the school’s legal identity, governing structure, authorised signatories, and bank-account evidence ready. Confirm that proposed use of any award would support educational or charitable purposes allowed by the foundation. Review safeguarding, regulatory, insolvency, and conflict-of-interest records before applying. If the school is part of a wider organisation, make clear which entity would apply and receive funds.
Check the source before acting
The safest signal for a future cycle will be a new official announcement from the Varkey Foundation accompanied by a new deadline, current terms, and an active application form. The existing programme page is valuable for understanding the inaugural award, but its 2026 deadline is historical. Do not treat an old form, an old deadline, or an undated third-party listing as evidence that applications have reopened.
What this page is not
This is not a live grant application, a rolling school-improvement fund, or a promise that another cycle will occur. It was a retrospective prize for schools with a documented record of educational impact. It was not an award to an individual teacher or student, and it was not unrestricted operating cash. The terms attached use-of-funds, due-diligence, account, and conduct conditions to the award.
FAQ
Can a school apply now?
No. The inaugural cycle’s final deadline was 9 February 2026 at 8am GMT, and the category winners and overall winner have already been announced. No later application round is listed on the official Varkey Foundation programme page.
What was the total award?
The published structure was US$1 million: ten category winners at $50,000 each, plus an additional $500,000 for the overall winner. Alsama Project received both the Overcoming Adversity category award and the additional overall award.
Did nomination count as an application?
No. The official programme page says that nominated schools still had to complete an application. A future cycle may change the process, so applicants should use its current instructions rather than rely on an old form.
Which schools could enter?
Government-run and privately funded schools serving students up to age 18 could enter from any country, subject to local law and the terms’ restrictions. Pre-schools, nurseries, colleges, universities, and other higher-education institutions were outside the published definition of a school.
Will there be another Global Schools Prize?
The Varkey Foundation has not announced a next cycle on the verified pages used for this update. A future round is possible, but it should not be treated as scheduled until the foundation publishes new official dates and application instructions.