Chapter Community Grants Information

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Chapter Community Grants Information
Washington ChapterMarch of Dimes
March of Dimes Contact Cherish Hart State
Program Director chart_at_marchofdimes.com
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Presentation Objectives

• By the end of this presentation, you
• will be able to
• Identify the mission of the March of Dimes.
• Identify community grant giving priority areas.
• Understand the timeline and application process
  for the community grant cycle.

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Overview

• The mission of the March of Dimes is to improve
  the health of babies by preventing birth defects
  and infant mortality.
• The March of Dimes carries out its mission
  through programs of research, community services,
  advocacy, and education.
• In 2003, the March of Dimes launched a multi-year
  campaign to address the increasing rate of
  premature birth.
• Chapter community grants provide one tool for
  advancing the March of Dimes mission in community
  services, public/professional education and
  Prematurity Campaign areas.
• Community grants do not fund research projects or
  advocacy. Research projects are funded through
  the March of Dimes National Office. Email
  researchgrants_at_marchofdimes.com for more
  information.

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Community Grants Purpose

• The chapter community grants program is designed
  to invest in priority projects that further the
  March of Dimes mission and support the
  Prematurity Campaign.
• Proposals will be accepted for projects
  supporting one of the following strategies
• Increasing Access to and Quality of Health Care
  for Women and Infants
• Increasing Availability of Prevention Services
  including projects related to smoking cessation
  for pregnant women, substance abuse and sexually
  transmitted infections.
• Increasing Availability of Genetics Services and
  Folic Acid Education
• Priority is given to projects that help to reduce
  disparities in preterm birth rates.
• Another goal of the community grants program is
  to increase community partnerships, which are
  important in sustaining the program.

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Eligibility

• An organization must be an incorporated
  not-for-profit 501(c)(3) or for-profit
  organization or a government agency (e.g. health
  department, university, WIC program).
• Individuals are not eligible for community
  grants.
• Services must be provided in Washington State.
• Grants may be renewed only twice for a total
  project time span of three (3) years. Renewal
• requires resubmission of a proposal or planned
  activities for the next year
• is based on the review of progress and
  expenditure reports
• is based on the availability of funding

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Available Funding

• The chapter community grants fund for 2006 is
  approximately 118,000.
• It is anticipated that between 6 and 10 projects
  will be funded.
• Awards will range from 10,000 - 25,000 each,
  with an average of 15,000.
• A limited number of community awards are
  available for projects under 3,000 through a
  separate process (contact March of Dimes for more
  information).

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2006 Priority Areas

• Increasing Access to and Quality of Health Care
  for Women and Infants
• Enhancing education and support services for
  high-risk pregnant women. Preference will be
  given to interventions that focus on reducing
  disparities in birth outcomes. This may include
  March of Dimes programs such as Pregnancy
  Workshop and Comenzando bien.
• Increasing participation in state or local
  maternal child health programs (e.g. Medicaid,
  SCHIP, WIC) through enhanced outreach, education
  and public awareness.

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2006 Priority Areas

• Increasing Availability of Prevention Services
• Increasing smoking cessation services available
  to pregnant women who smoke. Preference will be
  given to prenatal health education and
  information/referral services that utilize the "5
  A's" counseling approach.
• Increasing prenatal health education and
  information/referral services available to
  pregnant women who use alcohol or other drugs.

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2006 Priority Areas

• Increasing Availability of Genetics Services and
  Folic Acid Education
• Enhancing the availability, quality and
  utilization of genetics services and/or other
  patient services related to preventable birth
  defects.
• Increasing folic acid education and use of
  multi-vitamins among women of childbearing age.

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Grant Application Timeline

• Letters of Intent Due August 26, 2005
• Full Proposal Invitations September 28, 2005
• Full Proposals due October 28, 2005
• Notification of Awards January 6, 2006
• Project Year Jan. - Dec. 2006

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Letter of Intent Process

• Must address the following eight questions
• Which of the funding priorities is the project
  addressing?
• Who is the target audience?
• How many people will the project reach?
• What are the measurable objectives?
• How will project success be evaluated?
• What impact will the project have?
• What is the amount of funding requested?
• What are the major budget categories?
• No longer than 2 pages
• Must be received by August 26, 2005.
• Email submissions preferred.
  Send to chart_at_marchofdimes.com

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Full Proposal

• Proposal must have the following components
• Project Abstract
• Project Description
• Project Objectives /Activities
• Evaluation Plan
• Project Impact
• Budget
• Letters of Support
• Required application forms
• Cover Sheet (must be signed)
• Objectives and Methods/Activities Form
• Budget Form (must be signed)

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Project Need

• Identified chapter areas of need/focus for this
  application cycle include
• Programs to address birth outcome disparities for
  African American and Native American women
• PeriStats (perinatal statistics) is an excellent
  tool to get perinatal statistics for our state.
  marchofdimes.com/peristats

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Measurable Objectives

• Process Objectives
• Refer to something the target group will receive
  or do within a specified time.
• A process objective answers the question How
  many people did we reach?
• Example
• By March 2006, 100 pregnant women will receive
  information about the smoking cessation program.

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Measurable Objectives

• Outcome Objectives
• Shows measurable change in a target group within
  a specified time.
• An outcome objective answers the question What
  difference did we make?
• Example
• By December 2006, at least 40 of pregnant women
  enrolled in the smoking cessation program will
  quit smoking.

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Measurable Objectives

• Specific
• specifies a target and intended outcome
• Measurable
• includes a baseline to measure change
• Achievable
• can be achieved with a reasonable amount of
  effort and application
• Relevant
• the goal can actually have impact and is
  important to the organization
• Time-limited
• objective includes a timeframe for when it will
  be met

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Evaluation - Process vs. Outcome

• Process Evaluation
• Assesses how a program was implemented and
  operated.
• Outcome Evaluation
• Measures the health, knowledge or behavioral
  change for a target population.
• Measurement tools
• Survey, Interview, Observation, Questionnaire,
  Focus Group, Records. These tools should be set
  up at project start.

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Measurable Objectives

• The objectives you set for your project should
  include both process and outcome objectives.
• Think S.M.A.R.T when you are writing objectives
• Make sure your evaluation measures process and
  outcomes, and identifies the measurement tools
  you will need to conduct your evaluation.

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Budget - Allowable Costs

• Salary - Grant funds may be used to cover
  salaries for project-related employees, but
  cannot be used to pay salary costs for employees
  who are already employed full time.
• Consultant fees.
• Materials and supplies (e.g. office supplies,
  health-related materials, refreshments).
• Printing and travel that are reasonable and
  necessary for project implementation.

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Budget - Not Allowable Costs

• Salary for existing full-time staff
• Construction, alteration or maintenance of
  buildings/building space
• Dues for organizational membership in
  professional societies
• Tuition, conference fees, or awards for
  individuals
• Billable services provided by physicians or other
  providers
• Permanent equipment unless essential to project
  implementation and not available from other
  resources
• Non-March of Dimes educational materials
• Indirect costs
• Advertising of materials and purchase of media
  time/space

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Budget Justification

• Written budget justification should include the
  calculations used to estimate each cost (line
  item) listed in the proposed budget.
• Example
• Line Item Purchase mama Magazine - 225
• Justification 10 pkgs _at_ 22.50/pkg 225

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Proposal Writing Resources

• The Grantsmanship Center
• http//www.tgci.com
• Granthelp
• http//granthelp.clarityconnect.com
• The Foundation Center
• http//fdncenter.org
• Support Center for Nonprofit Management
• http//www.supportctr.org/

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Checklist For Success

• Make sure your proposal concept has
• Project goals compatible with the March of Dimes
  mission.
• A specific target audience.
• A measurable and realistic number of people who
  can be reached.
• Projects objectives that are measurable and
  realistic, especially given the one year
  time-frame.

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Checklist For Success

• Make sure your finished proposal
• Shows community collaboration through letters of
  support
• Demonstrates a need for your project
• Describes any salary budget items to ensure that
  they are allowable costs
• Is free of grammar and spelling errors.
• Contains all required components.
• In the full proposal review process, the Review
  Committee may request additional information or
  clarification from applicants. It is very
  important to respond thoroughly and promptly to
  these requests in order to be considered for
  funding.

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For technical assistance contact

• Cherish Hart
• Director of Program Services
• [phone]
• chart_at_marchofdimes.com