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Systems Change Grants will be awarded in the amount of $25,000 each to support projects that target a change in statewide policies and/or practices that result in a measurable, long-term positive impact on the lives of people with developmental disabilities. Project duration must be nine months, beginning on October 1, 2005 and concluding on June 30, 2006.
Small Grants will be awarded in the amount of $10,000 to $20,000 for local innovative projects that result in a positive impact on the lives of a targeted group of people with developmental disabilities. Applicants may propose projects in any one of the following Federal Areas of Emphasis: Education and Early Intervention, Employment, Housing, or Community Supports. Project duration may be nine or twelve months, beginning on October 1, 2005 and concluding on either June 30, 2006 or September 30, 2006.
The deadline for submitting applications was June 21, 2005, at 3:00 P.M.
Selected applicants will not be required to provide a non-federal match, but they are encouraged to do so.
Q: Are there any information sessions for applicants?
A: The MDDC is not providing “information sessions.” As stated on page 4 of the Application Instructions applicants may submit written questions only by electronic email or by fax until the deadline of noon, May 31, 2005.
Q: I noticed the paragraph stating that “Small Grants funds cannot be used for ongoing organizational activities…or to duplicate or replace existing services.” Does this refer to organizational and administrative activities being restricted, or does it mean that current programs run by [organization] are not eligible for Small Grant funds? Does [organization] have to create a new initiative to qualify for the Small Grants funds?
A: Restrictions for funding existing programs are addressed on page 3 of the Application Instructions. Only the administrative expenses associated with a proposed project can be charged to the grant. Most applicants include administrative expenses as indirect costs in the proposed budget. It would be the organization’s decision whether or not to “create a new initiative.” Refer to the parameters for new approaches to direct services on page 3 of the Application Instructions.
Q: Can independent families apply for these grants?
A: Individuals are not eligible to apply for funding under the Systems Change and Small Grants Application. The types of organizations eligible to apply for funding are identified on page 3 of the Application Instructions.
Q: Under project specific Information - Collaborators - where it says to select a network of partners - what does this mean? Do we have to select partners, should we? If we do, are we spending grant funds on them exclusively or partly or not at all?
A: Collaborations are not required. There are no requirements for collaborators to receive project funds. The value of unpaid collaborator and volunteer time can be included as non-federal match.
Q: Under objectives - Applicant staff - where it says personnel to carry out the activity - are we listing outside people that we hire or just the internal people? Do we list them even if they are volunteer - unpaid? If we are hiring a company - do we list the company rather than the individual?
A: “Staff” is defined as internal agency personnel and any non-agency personnel (paid or unpaid) working on the project. Individuals with primary and/or significant responsibility for completing an objective must be identified as “applicant staff” under that objective. In the case of subcontracted services, the “staff” with primary responsibility for managing the subcontract must be identified as “applicant staff” under the objective.
Q: Under performance measures for this objective - are we listing our individual objectives?
Before you download the attachments, we suggest that you read through the 2005 Systems Change Grants and Small Grants Application Instructions.
The application instructions and forms are all in Microsoft Word format. If you do not have Microsoft Word 2000 or later, you will not be able to fill out or view these documents. To obtain the documents in a different format, please contact Adelia Del Trecco at Adelia.deltrecco@state.ma.us
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Developmental Disabilities Council. All rights reserved.