New York State Education Department (SED)

SED announces the availability of grants to provide assistance in promoting the dissemination of effective practices that have been designed, developed, tested and proven successful in charter schools.
ELIGIBILITY: Boards of Trustees of successful charter schools that have completed three consecutive years of operation.
FUNDING: It is estimated that the maximum grant award will be $75,000 per year for dissemination grants.
DEADLINE: Applications continuously accepted until 5 p.m. on February 28, 2005.
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Contact Dr. Darlene Mengel at (518) 474-1762. Additional information, including the documents necessary to prepare the application and budget for these grants, is also available at SED’s web site, http://www.emsc.nysed.gov/funding/currentapps.htm.

 
Charter Schools Planning and Implementation Grants 2002-2005

New York State Education Department (SED)

SED announces the availability of grants to assist charter school applicants and potential applicants with the planning process and to assist approved charter schools in the implementation of their charter.
ELIGIBILITY: Potential charter school applicants, charter school applicants and charter schools.
FUNDING: It is estimated that the maximum grant award will be $175,000 per year.
DEADLINE: Applications continuously accepted until 5 p.m. on February 28, 2005.
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Contact Dr. Darlene Mengel at (518) 474-1762. Additional information, including the documents necessary to prepare the application and budget for these grants, is also available at SED’s web site, http://www.emsc.nysed.gov/funding/currentapps.htm.

 
Passenger Transportation Services for the Elderly and Disabled

New York State Department of Transportation (DOT)

DOT has announced the availability of funding for vehicles to provide passenger transportation services for elderly persons and persons with disabilities.
ELIGIBILITY: Private non-profit corporations; public bodies in rural counties that are approved by the State as the coordinator of transportation services for elderly persons and persons with disabilities; and public bodies in rural counties that certify that no non-profit transportation services are available in the area to provide transportation services for elderly persons and persons with disabilities.
FUNDING: A total of $6.5 million, which includes a required 20% local share, will be made available.
DEADLINE: Requests for application information must be made prior to March 1, 2003, and applications will be accepted through April 15, 2003.
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Contact Michael R. Baker, Program Manager, Specialized Transit Section, DOT, 4 Harriman Office Campus, Room 134, Albany, New York 12232-0414; by e-mail at mbaker@dot.state.ny.us; phone (518) 457-8335.

 
2003 Community Development Block Grant Small Cities Program

New York State Housing Trust Fund Corporation (HTFC)

HTFC's Office for Small Cities has announced the availability of funding to assist communities to: ensure decent affordable housing for all; provide services to the most vulnerable in our communities; create jobs and expand business opportunities; and implement a wide variety of community and economic development activities directed toward neighborhood revitalization, economic development and the provision of improved community facilities and services. Single Purpose and Comprehensive Grants may be used for projects in three categories: Housing, Public Facilities, and MicroEnterprise programs. Economic Development Grants will be available for general economic development activities that create and/or retain permanent, private sector job opportunities principally for low- and moderate-income persons, through the expansion and retention of business and industry in New York State.
ELIGIBILITY: Cities, towns and villages having a population under 50,000 and counties with an unincorporated population of under 200,000. Metropolitan cities, urban counties and Indian tribes are not eligible.
FUNDING: Approximately $52 million in total funding is available.
DEADLINE: Postmarked by April 11, 2003 for Single Purpose and Comprehensive Grants. If hand-delivered, deadline is 4 p.m. on April 11, 2003. For Economic Development Grants, interested applicants must first contact the Office for Small Cities to complete the preliminary evaluation process in order to determine that the project meets requirements.
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Applications for Single Purpose and Comprehensive Grants are available from the Office for Small Cities, Agency Building 4, 6th Floor, Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York 12223-1350 or by calling (518) 474-2057. For Economic Development Grants, a copy of the guidelines for the program is available at the NY Small Cities web site or by contacting Stephen McGrattan or Chris Hunsinger, Economic Development Program Administrators, Office for Small Cities, Agency Building 4, 6th Floor, Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York 12223-1350; phone (518) 474-2057; fax (518) 474-5247.

Drug-Free Communities Support Program

Department of Justice (DOJ)

DOJ is accepting applications for the Drug-Free Communities Support Program. The intent of this program is to reduce substance abuse among youth and, over time, among adults.
ELIGIBILITY: Eligible applicants will be community coalitions whose members have worked together on substance abuse reduction initiatives for a period of not less than 6 months and that meet all the coalition eligibility requirements outlined in the program announcement. By definition, a coalition “is a formal arrangement for cooperation and collaboration between groups or sectors of a community, in which each group retains its identity but all agree to work together toward a common goal of building a safe, healthy, and drug-free community.” The requirements that must be adhered to by coalitions can be found in the program announcement at the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention web site.
FUNDING: Grantees will receive up to $100,000 in funding, in addition to training and technical assistance. Approximately 150 grants will be awarded.
DEADLINE: Applicants must register by February 25, 2003, and applications must be received by March 11, 2003. Applicants must submit applications through the OJP Grants Management System. To learn how to begin the online application process, see page 3 of the program announcement. A toll-free telephone number, (888) 549-9901, is available to assist applicants with the online application process.

New York Council for the Humanities

The New York Council for the Humanities is a private, not-for-profit organization dedicated to ensuring the presence of the humanities in New York State’s cultural and intellectual life. Their grants program is divided into Major Grants and Mini Grants, and is designed to provide financial support for humanities programming, conceived and implemented by not-for-profit organizations across New York State, that brings humanities scholars and scholarship to a general public audience.
ELIGIBILITY: New York State not-for-profit organizations or institutions with IRS tax-exempt status. Projects must be rooted in one or more of the humanities disciplines, integrally feature humanities scholars, be intended for the general public, and comply with federal nondiscrimination statutes, federal debt status, debarment and suspension requirements and drug-free workplace requirements.
FUNDING: Major Grants are for project requests of $2,500 or more; although there is no upper limit on the grants, grants awarded rarely exceed $10,000. Mini Grants are for project requests between $250 and $2,500.
DEADLINE: The next deadline for Major Grant applications is March 1, 2003. Mini Grants applications may be submitted at any time. Mini Grant projects for public programs taking place in October 2003 (State Humanities Month) have a special deadline of May 15, 2003.
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Guidelines and forms are available at the NY Council for the Humanities web site or by calling (212) 233-1131. Please note that guidelines were revised in 2002; applications using the prior forms and guidelines will NOT be considered.

 
...Grant Writing

New York Council for the Humanities

On February 21, 2003 from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m., the New York Council for the Humanities will be offering a free grant workshop in Manhattan, hosted by the Office of Sponsored Research of Baruch College (CUNY) at Baruch’s 17 Lexington Avenue Building, Skylight Room (Room 306). This workshop is sponsored by New York State Assemblyman Steven Sanders, and is designed for grant writers, program directors, development officers, and other representatives of non-profit cultural organizations seeking funding for humanities programs. For more information, visit the NY Council for the Humanities web site. To make reservations, call (212) 233-1131, ext. 30.

Grantsmanship Training Program

The Grantsmanship Training Program will be coming to New York: Painted Post (Corning), March 3-7, hosted by Watson Homestead and Conference and Retreat Center; New York City, March 10-14, 2003, hosted by the Harlem Partnership Center; and Buffalo, March 24-28, 2003, hosted by the American Red Cross, Greater Buffalo Chapter.
The five-day program will be conducted by The Grantsmanship Center (TGCI), the world’s oldest and largest training organization for the nonprofit sector. This is an opportunity to improve your grant research and proposal writing skills. The class is kept at a maximum of 27 participants. The cost of the program is $775, which includes a one-year enrollment in the TGCI Membership Program. A limited number of half-tuition scholarships are available to agencies with annual budgets of less than $300,000.
To register, contact The Grantsmanship Center at (800) 421-9512 or visit their web site. For local information and arrangements: For Painted Post, call Donna Cummings at (607) 962-0541; for New York City, call Stephanie Penceal at (212) 283-7122; and for Buffalo, call Loren Smith at (716) 878-2374.

Council on Opportunities for Professional Excellence, Inc. (COPE)

COPE, a for profit corporation dedicated to helping nonprofit and for profit corporations find and/or generate funding, has announced an upcoming grant-related seminar. On February 24, 2003 in Kingston, New York, Guerilla Grantsmanship will provide the opportunity to learn how to write effective grant proposals. The registration fee is $285 per individual or $250 if two or more attend from the same organization. Attendees will receive a copy of the Guerilla Grantsmanship Manual on CD and a copy of COPE’s P2G Grant writing software. You can register for this seminar by calling COPE at (845) 756-COPE (2673).

Syracuse University

The Continuing Education/University College Humanistic Studies Center at Syracuse University will be holding two grant writing courses.
Introduction to Grant Writing is scheduled for March 7, 2003 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. This workshop will introduce the grant-seeking process to directors, staff, and volunteers of not-for-profit organizations and educational institutions. The process will be outlined through a step-by-step overview of environmental scanning, needs assessment, program design, evaluation, and budgeting. The workshop also will include hands-on practice using Internet resources to identify and match program needs with funding resources.
Producing Successful Grant Proposals is scheduled for April 11, 2003 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Directors, staff, and volunteers of not-for-profit organizations and educational institutions with some grant writing experience will learn what makes a winning proposal and how to connect the workshop with the practical challenges of fundraising in their own work settings. Attendees will learn how to target grantors for their project, develop a comprehensive budget, and create an evaluation plan, as well as how to use advanced Internet tools and resources to support proposal development. Attendees should bring a project idea to the workshop to develop or refine.
Interested parties can call Peg at 315-443-3271 to register for these courses.