CAEEF was created in 2015 to benefit the students, staff and schools of the Crawford AuSable School District through college scholarships for seniors and grants for projects and programs in pre-K-12th grade classrooms.

By May 2018, CAEEF had enough funds to begin its grants program. As of spring 2024, the foundation has given $41,200 in grants for programs and projects at the pre-school, elementary, middle and high school levels.

The photo at the top of the page was taken by a student in one of Justin Davis' GMS art classes using a digital camera funded by a CAEEF grant in 2021.