The Foundation for Newark’s Future is partnering with the Support Center | Partnership in Philanthropy (Support Center) to offer capacity building support for up to 15 community-based organizations in Newark, NJ working to improve educational outcomes for youth. The program is open to any community organization in Newark that serves Newark youth (ages 0-18) through education-related programming. For the purposes of this program any organization with early childhood services, Pre-K, after school programming, youth development, school partnerships, special needs and enrichment programs, programs that serve at-risk youth, etc is eligible to apply. Larger community development corporations (CDCs) and community organizations should focus their application on one of their educational divisions that they feel can most benefit from capacity building support.

The Foundation for Newark’s Future (FNF) is committed to partnering with the Newark community to improve the educational experiences and life outcomes of youth. To date, the foundation has committed nearly $90 million of funding in the areas of K-12 education, early childhood education, and community engagement. We understand that sustainable change comes from harnessing the talent and passion of the long-term organizations and residents in the community we serve. Our recent grants to the City of Newark to expand the Summer Youth Employment Program and to Rutgers – Newark to seed the Newark City of Learning Collaborative’s commitment to increase the percentage of Newark residents with a post-secondary degree or credential to 25% by 2025 are indicative of this commitment. We are expanding upon our commitment further by making resources available to community serving organizations to receive support in self-identified areas of need.

The Foundation for Newark’s Future’s partners in this work have a long history in the field, and have worked with Newark-based organizations for years.

Since 1986 the Support Center | Partnership in Philanthropy has worked to improve our society by increasing the effectiveness of nonprofit leaders and their organizations so that they can better serve their clients and communities. The Support Center works with organizations of all sizes, including small and mid-sized organizations, and focuses on building the capacity of nonprofits in critical areas such as strategy, governance, human resources, marketing, communications and governance. Often successful initiatives result in improved operations, more effective communications or greater clarity around the roles and responsibilities of staff and board members for example.

Program Details

The Newark Community Organization Capacity Building Program will be a 10-month experience. The free consulting, technical assistance, and learning opportunities for your organization amount to approximately $20,000 of support.

Benefits of the program include:

An organizational assessment that helps to answer questions such as: what are our greatest strengths; where can we improve as an organization; and where and how do we start? Follow-up one-on-one meetings will identify the greatest capacity needs of your organization and give you a sense of how you can prioritize those needs.

Creation of a roadmap for organizational growth or organizational improvement that is informed by careful consultation with the organization’s leadership and staff

Targeted training through a workshop series for staff and board members to strengthen knowledge and skills in such areas as fundraising/proposal writing, financial management, outcomes measurement, marketing and communications, HR and supervision

Regular peer-to-peer learning opportunities (up to 4) for executive staff and board members on topics related to organizational growth and sustainability including strategic planning, succession planning, board governance and organizational restructuring

7-10 days of hands-on coaching and consulting to address organizational priorities (customized projects will be driven by your organization’s needs and can focus on strategy, operations, governance, marketing, or finance)

Anticipated outcomes for organizations include:

Firm understanding of the steps necessary for long-term organizational sustainability;

Improved skills and knowledge in core areas of nonprofit management and operations including financial management, supervision, fundraising, and performance measurement;

Creation of a long-term capacity building plan for improving organizational management and governance, programmatic (organizational level and organization’s clients) improvements and heightened community impact;

Membership in a selective and prestigious program that can be leveraged with the local funding community and others for the participants’ long-term sustainability.

Organizations of all budget and staff sizes are encouraged to apply, including emerging organizations. Start-ups will not be considered. This is a competitive opportunity limited to 15 organizations.

To be considered for funding, organizations must:

Have 501(c)(3) non-profit status

Operate and serve youth in Newark, NJ

Be in operation for a minimum of 2 years

Serve a minimum of 50 children and young adults (0-18) annually

Have a clearly defined mission

Have a vision for growth

Be able to demonstrate how capacity building support is needed to take the organization to “the next level” by leveraging existing strengths and addressing organizational and leadership needs

Be willing to commit a meaningful level of time and engagement to the discovery, learning and coaching/consulting process to help maximize the benefits to your organization

Deadline

Monday, August 17, 2015 at 5:00 PM

Selections made by August 25, 2015

Project Timeline

September 2015 – June 2016

To Apply:

Submit a brief proposal (no more than three pages) that includes the following:

Cover sheet with name, contact information and signature of Executive Director/CEO

Organization history and mission

Description of programs/services, including population and numbers served

Top three organizational/leadership challenges you hope to address through capacity building support

A description of prior steps taken as an organization, if any, to improve effectiveness and long term sustainability, including strategic planning, collaboration or exploration/implementation of organizational restructuring (e.g., alliances, joint ventures, mergers).

Unique opportunities or developments that make capacity-building support especially important at this time

Demonstration of current support for your organization. This could include:

• Grant funding
• Local, State, or Federal funding
• A facility obtained with support of local officials
• Designation as a partner organization for a City or State initiative (e.g. Center of Hope, NCLC, QRIS pilot, etc)
• Statement of commitment signed by the Executive Director/CEO

Additional materials

Please include the following materials with your application:

List of staff/titles and board members/affiliations (if applicable)

IRS letter confirming status as a 501(c)(3) organization

Organizational budget

Most recent 990 or audited financials (2013 or 2014)

List of funders for most recent fiscal year

Most recent annual report (if available)

Submit applications via email by 5:00PM Monday, August 17 to:

Kim Mitchell, Senior Fellow, Support Center at [email protected]

Please direct questions to Kim Mitchell at [email protected]