• $3,300,000Active Strategy

  2012 (Duration 3 years)

  NEW YORK, NEW YORK — In collaboration with the Gates Foundation and Electronic Arts, the largest video game company in the world, the Institute of Play, a not-for-profit games, learning, and research organization, will use this grant to establish a Games, Assessment and Innovation Lab to create validated exemplars of game-based assessments and to help create a new model of partnership between the commercial game industry and public education. It also will develop assessments to be included in popular video games.

• $400,000Active Strategy

  2011 (Duration 2 years)

  NEW YORK, NEW YORK — The Institute of Play promotes media literacy as a critical 21st century skill and games as a new learning environment. Its executive director is Katie Salen, a leading U.S. game designer who founded the Quest to Learn schools. Salen will work with designers from Filament to develop a suite of interactive video games that assess systems thinking: considering all the elements and relationships in a system, and knowing how to structure them more efficiently and effectively. The games will be pilot tested at the New York-based Quest to Learn and ChicagoQuest schools, and used in schools in seven states.

• $150,000Active Strategy

  2011 (Inactive Grant)

  NEW YORK, NEW YORK — To extend the Gamestar Mechanic game to include new activities for parents and teachers, and a badge system for game design.

• $1,800,000Active Strategy

  2011 (Duration 3 years)

  NEW YORK, NEW YORK — To develop the Quest to Learn schools in New York City and Chicago (over three years).

• $1,000,000Active Strategy

  2009 (Inactive Grant)

  NEW YORK, NEW YORK — To develop the Quest to Learn School public school in New York City (over two years).

The MacArthur Foundation awarded Institute of Play $6,650,000 between 2009 and 2012.