July 2012– Volume X, Number 7
Compiled & edited by Deb Miller-Slipek & Ann Treacy
—FUNDING
—TRAINING/MEETINGS
—OPPORTUNITIES
—MISCELLANEOUS
FUNDING
–The Ruddie Memorial Youth Foundation is offering funding for innovative services to benefit underprivileged youth. Grants of up to $25,000 are available to nonprofits providing innovative services to help underprivileged youth reach their full potential. Deadline to apply: 7/18/2012. http://www.rmyf.org/
–The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration is offering grants to nonprofits and public agencies for programs that expand substance abuse treatment in conjunction with HIV/AIDS services in African American, Latino/Hispanic and/or other racial or ethnic communities highly affected by these epidemics. Deadline: 7/20/2012. To learn more about this opportunity and to apply, http://tinyurl.com/cjxyn64
–DR PEPPER, SNAPPLE AND KaBOOM! are offering “Let’s Play” Community Construction Grants of $15,000 to municipalities, neighborhood associations, schools, day care centers and nonprofit organizations who provide or improve on a playground in an underserved community. Deadline to apply: 7/20/2012. http://tinyurl.com/c75gwb7
–The Department of the Treasury has issued a NOFA for the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund inviting applications for the FY 2012 Bank Enterprise Award Program. Deadline to apply: 7/27/2012. To read the NOFA http://tinyurl.com/7qvxc6c
—The Minnesota State Arts Board Arts Access grant program is designed to help arts organizations broaden arts opportunities for underserved groups. More information is available at www.arts.state.mn.us Deadline: July 27, 2012.
–THE USDA Rural Utilities Service has issued a NOFA for the Assistance to High Energy Cost Rural Communities program. Grants are available to individuals, states, political subdivisions of states, and other entities organized under state law, including Indian Tribes. Deadline: 7/30/2012. Funds may be used to acquire, construct, extend, upgrade or otherwise improve energy generation, transmission or distribution facilities serving rural communities in which the average residential cost for home energy exceeds 275 percent of the national average. To read the NOFA, http://tinyurl.com/cf4oo2g
–STATE FARM™ and Youth Service America are offering grants of up to $1,500 for programs enhancing student achievement through service-learning in K-12 public schools in all fifty U.S. states and the District of Columbia. Grants will engage participating teachers and students in a service and learning program that promotes academic achievement, student outcomes, and stronger communities. Deadline to apply: 7/31/2012. http://www.ysa.org/goodneighbor
–The Wells Fargo Foundation is offering grants to local nonprofit housing organizations to create sustainable homeownership opportunities for low-to moderate-income people. Deadline to apply: 8/1/2012. Areas of interest include homebuyer education, counseling and prevention. To learn more about this program, visit the website http://tinyurl.com/6rr8szc
–The Department of Health and Human Services, Indian Health Service, has announced two limited competition cooperative agreements available to national Indian health care organizations with at least ten years of experience providing education and outreach on a national scale. Application deadline: 8/2/2012. The first is an award for Methamphetamine and Suicide Prevention Intervention outreach and education; the second is for an HIV/AIDS outreach and education award. Read the NOFA http://tinyurl.com/bvf9g96
—The Minnesota State Arts Board Arts Tour Minnesota grant program provides project grants to support touring performances, exhibitions, and other related activities throughout the state of Minnesota. More information is available at www.arts.state.mn.us Deadline: August 3, 2012.
–USDA is offering grants to nonprofits and IHEs to improve the economic condition of rural areas through cooperative development involving partnerships of IHEs and nonprofit organizations. Deadline: 8/6/2012. Visit the USDA website http://tinyurl.com/c3kg9kh
— Application deadlines have been announced for the Rural Cooperative Development Grant http://tinyurl.com/cjrpxug (RCDG) program and the Rural Business Opportunity Grant http://tinyurl.com/cp3v47f (RBOG) program. Deadlines for both programs are Aug. 6, 2012. The RCDG program offers grants up to $175,000 to nonprofits and institutions of higher education to pay for up to 75 percent of the cost of establishing and operating rural cooperative development centers. Recipients must match 25 percent of the award amount and the grant period should begin no earlier than Oct. 1, 2012, and no later than Jan. 1, 2013.
The RBOG program provides training and technical assistance grants for business development, entrepreneurship training, planning and economic development activities. Grants are awarded to rural public bodies, nonprofits, Native America tribes and rural cooperatives. For more information on both programs, see the June 7, 2012, Federal Register. http://tinyurl.com/d74hg9v
–The Convergence Innovation Fund has issued a request for proposals for new grant making initiatives designed to enhance the built environment and/or expand healthy food access in low-income communities and communities of color in order to improve health and promote equity. Local nonprofits can initiate the proposal by approaching local foundations to discuss opportunities, but applications must be submitted by the local foundation. Deadline to apply: 8/9/2012. To read the RFP, http://tinyurl.com/7n7x92u
–The Union Pacific Foundation is offering grants to nonprofit organizations located in Union Pacific communities. Click http://tinyurl.com/cjzzlvv to see a map of where Union Pacific Railroad operates in the United States. Deadline to apply: 8/15/2012. The Foundation will dedicate the majority of these grants to help nonprofit organizations build their capacity, increase their impact, and operate more efficiently and effectively. To learn more about this opportunity, click http://www.up.com/found/grants.shtml
TRAINING/MEETINGS
—GrantStation is offering a webinar titled “Now Is the Time – Mobilize Your Board to Raise Funds: Part I” on Thursday, July 26, 2012 from 2:00-3:30PM EDT. This webinar will provide tools to help board members become more comfortable with the fundraising process. Participants will learn who should and should not be on your board, and what policies and structures need to be in place to facilitate fundraising by board members. Nonprofit development staff and volunteers should consider attending with a member of their board. Part II of this series will be held on Thursday, July 26, 2012. (These webinars may be taken individually.) The cost is $89.00/person, $150.00 per site. To register, click http://tinyurl.com/bv6l33m
–Farm Beginnings Course. The Land Stewardship Project (LSP) is now accepting applications for its 2012-2013 Farm Beginnings course. Farm Beginnings class sessions will begin this fall and LSP is providing participants two options for getting involved in one of the most successful beginning farmer training initiatives in the country. Classes will be offered in the communities of Morris, MN and River Falls, WI.
The application deadline for the 2012-2013 Farm Beginnings course is August 1, 2012. For application materials or for more information, see http://tinyurl.com/8jmwnw or contact Karen Benson at 507-523-3366; lspse@landstewardshipproject.org.
In 2012, LSP’s Farm Beginnings program is marking its 15th year of providing firsthand training in low-cost, sustainable methods of farming. The course is tailor-made for people of all ages just getting started in farming, as well as established farmers looking to make changes in their operations. Farm Beginnings participants learn goal setting, financial planning, enterprise planning, marketing and innovative production techniques.
Classes are led by farmers and other agricultural professionals from the area. The classes, which meet approximately twice-a-month, run until March 2013, followed by an on-farm education component that includes farm tours and skills sessions. The fee is $1,500 per farming partnership (flexible payment plan and partial scholarships available), and early-bird registrants are eligible to attend on-farm education events this summer and fall. For information go to: http://tinyurl.com/c9r5462
–The 2012 Joint Annual Conference, Allied for Action: Bridging Differences for the Greater Good, will be held on November 1 and 2, at the St. Paul RiverCentre. Join the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits and the Minnesota Council on Foundations for this two-day event, bringing together nonprofit and philanthropic leaders who will work together on behalf of a new Minnesota. As a participant, you can join in on mold-breaking plenaries, interactive breakouts and productive dialogues, where we all will learn how to harness the power of our differences and truly work together toward a greater good. Visit thehttp://alliedforaction.org, for a sneak peek.
OPPORTUNITIES
–MnDOT releases 20-year Statewide Multimodal Transportation Plan for public review and comment. The public is invited to review and provide comments through July 31, 2012 on Minnesota’s draft 20-year Statewide Multimodal Transportation Plan, a policy guide for making transportation investment decisions for all of Minnesota. The plan is a result of extensive collaboration during the past year between the Minnesota Department of Transportation and citizens, stakeholders and partners. Go to: http://tinyurl.com/cy53wjp
–Board Openings. The East Central Regional Arts Council (ECRAC) recently had two resignations due to busy schedules and illness. If you are either a Pine or Chisago County artist, arts organization member, or arts advocate and are interested in board membership please contact ECRAC for a self-nomination form by telephone (320) 396-2337; or by e-mail at info@ecrac.org. The deadline for nomination forms/resumes is August 3, 2012.
–Cultural Data Project Launches in MN. The Cultural Data Project (CDP) is an online system for arts, culture, and historical organizations to report their organizational and financial data. Currently, 12 other states have implemented CDP, and 16 more have started conversations about bringing the project to their state.
To participate in the Minnesota CDP, your organization will fillout a yearly Cultural Data Profile online and then be able to run reports on your organization, which you can use to “analyze your organization’s operations over time and inform your strategic planning; as one part of the grant application process to partnering funders; and to make your case to board members, potential donors and grantmakers, advocates and policy makers.
Along with the MN State Arts Board and many other Minnesota foundations, ECRAC and the rest of the MN Regional Arts Councils have contributed financially to the MN Cultural Data Project. There is a free CDP orientation sessions coming up August 6, Webinar, 1:00 pm-2:30 pm. Go to www.mnculturaldata.org to register for your orientation and to learn more about the Cultural Data Project.
–HUD Office of Affordable Housing Preservation is seeking comments by August 24, 2012 on its Multifamily Housing Mortgage and Housing Assistance Restructuring Program (Mark to Market). The purpose of this program is the refinancing and restructure of the property’s FHA insured mortgage, the reduction of Section 8 rent payments and establishment of adequately funded accounts for repair and rehabilitation of the property. To read the Federal Register notice, http://tinyurl.com/6r68pqs
–First Peoples Fund is seeking Native American Artist-Entrepreneurs for a business leadership program. One-year fellowships of up to $5,000 as well technical assistance will be awarded to professional Native American artists to help develop their small business skills. Deadline: 9/1/2012. For details and to apply, http://tinyurl.com/3pdl6mc
–US EPA Clean Water Act Video Project. As a part of US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) 40th Anniversary celebration, the EPA Agency is hosting a video project asking Americans everywhere to send in a 15-second video clip explaining the important role that water plays in their lives. EPA will feature selected video clips on its website and “Water Is Worth It” Facebook page as part of its anniversary celebration.
So grab your friends, family, coworkers, neighbors, classmates, and pets and join in. Each video should include the phrase “Water is worth it…” but the rest is up to you! To register, fill out a video entry form at the web site above. Videos will be accepted through September 14, 2012. Go to: http://tinyurl.com/cmyq5aa
MISCELLANEOUS
–Since the turn of the century, rural America has struggled with the erosion of its manufacturing base. During the past two years, however, rural manufacturing has rebounded with a vengeance. This issue of the Main Street Economist explores the rebound in rural manufacturing and the potential for additional growth at
rural factories. Go to: http://tinyurl.com/ckwhfv2
—Increased economic growth, diversity forecasted for Twin Cities region by 2040. Increasing racial diversity and continued economic and population growth are all anticipated changes to the seven-county Twin Cities region by 2040, according to a preliminary regional forecast prepared by the Metropolitan Council. In 2010, people of color comprised 24 percent of the regional population. By 2040, projections suggest that 43 percent of the residents in the region will be persons of color. The senior population in the Twin Cities area will more than double between 2010 and 2040, from 307,000 in 2010 to 770,000 in 2040.
The region is expected to gain almost 900,000 people by 2040; economic opportunity in the region will attract population growth. The region’s Gross Metro Product, the sum of value added by all industry sectors, will rise to $400 billion in 2040 – equivalent to 1.5 percent of the US Gross Domestic Product. This is a remarkable share, considering the Twin Cities region has less than 1.0 percent of the nation’s population.
The Council’s forecast projects that the region will continue to be an immigration gateway to the nation throughout the 30-year period, and immigration will substantially advance the region’s diversity. Of the expected 463,000 international immigrants, 83 percent are expected to be people of color from all continents; the remaining 17 percent, non-Hispanic whites.
A larger share of the region’s population growth will come from natural growth, as births outpace deaths in the region. Birth rates will continue to be higher among families of color than white families, thus accelerating the increasing racial diversity in the region.
See details and more information in “What Lies Ahead: population, Household and Employment Forecasts to 2040” (5 pages, pdf) at http://tinyurl.com/c5yjvys or go to: http://tinyurl.com/cy8urxj
—William Mitchell College of Law students recently designed a website focused on protecting senior citizens from financial exploitation. http://www.cejp.org/financialexploitation/
—The 2012 Legacy Destination Weekends featuring arts, history and outdoors activities to showcase projects funded through the Legacy Amendment have been scheduled. The Legacy Destination program is a collaboration of Explore Minnesota Tourism, Conservation Minnesota, Minnesota Citizens for the Arts and the host communities. More information is available at www.exploreminnesota.com/legacy
Minnesota Rural Partners 