OVERVIEW & GUIDELINES ROUND 5 FALL 2008 THE UNITED STATES CONFERENCE OF MAYORS COUNCIL FOR THE NEW AMERICAN CITY founding sponsor
THE 2009 DOLLAR WI$E Capacity Grants Program Detroit, Michigan $25,000 Pleasanton, California $25,000 Avondale, Arizona Quad Cities, Illinois-Iowa Quincy, Illinois Santa Fe, New Mexico Jackson, Mississippi Louisville, Kentucky $25,000 Bowling Green, Kentucky Savannah, Georgia Caguas, Puerto Rico PAST RECIPIENTS Miami, Florida $20,000 Why should your city apply? Three cities will receive grants to expand their ongoing financial literacy campaigns. One city will receive $25,000. Two cities will receive each. Recipients will be featured in an awards ceremony at the 2009 winter meeting of The United States Conference of Mayors in Washington, D.C. Recipient cities will also be featured in U.S. Mayor, the Conference of Mayors newspaper; on usmayors.org, the Conference of Mayors awardwinning Web site; and in other promotional literature. Dollar Wi$e Capacity Grant recipients are model programs for other cities to follow. CONTACT US Please don t hesitate to contact us with questions on the 2009 Capacity Grants Program, the application process, or the Dollar Wi$e Campaign. M A I L I N G A D D R E S S Mayors National Dollar Wi$e Campaign The United States Conference of Mayors 1620 I Street NW Washington, DC 20006 T E L E P H O N E 202.861.6759 F A C S I M I L E 202.429.0422 E - M A I L dollarwise@usmayors.org W E B S I T E www.dollarwiseonline.org
INTRODUCTION Through the 2009 Dollar Wi$e Capacity Grants Program, three cities across America will receive grants to support ongoing local financial literacy efforts. The Mayors National Dollar Wi$e Campaign, created by The United States Conference of Mayors and underwritten by Bank of America and the members of the Council for the New American City, seeks to offer grants to financial education programs that are both innovative and effective. Past grant recipients offer exemplary programs that provide a model for other cities to follow. These programs demonstrated their ability to build longterm capacity through the assistance of a Dollar Wi$e grant. INSIGHT FOTO, INC. THE UNITED STATES CONFERENCE OF MAYORS COUNCIL FOR THE NEW AMERICAN CITY
APPLICATION The 2009 Dollar Wi$e Capacity Grants Program application consists of questions on your city s financial education campaign. Only a city may apply for a Capacity Grant, but the city can choose to have the award money given to a nonprofit, community-based organization (CBO), or other local partner. The city must specify this intent in its application. For your convenience, all applications should be submitted via the online application at www.dollarwiseonline. org. A guide to the online application, including all the questions to which an applicant city should respond, is on the back page of this guide. This year, applicant cities will be permitted to submit one attachment, such as a brochure, video, or other multimedia piece, with their application. If you intend to submit an attachment, please so indicate in the space provided on the application. Attachments should be e- mailed, if possible, or mailed to Dollar Wi$e at the addresses to the left. Large computer files those larger than about 7 MB but smaller than 100 MB can be sent electronically for free via the Internet at YouSendIt. Please visit www.yousendit. com for more information. Attachments must be received by 5:00pm EST, December 5, 2008, or they will not be included with your city s application. Cities should note that no additional information beyond that requested on the application is required and they should feel no obligation to submit an attachment. This opportunity is offered to those cities that feel an attachment can enhance their description of their existing financial education program or future plans. THE UNITED STATES CONFERENCE OF MAYORS GRANT OBLIGATIONS Letter of intent Once notified of award, recipient cities should submit a brief letter on city letterhead generally stating what the funds will be used for and what community organization/nonprofit, if any, will receive and administer the funds. Mayor s attendance at winter meeting Mayors of recipient cities should attend The United States Conference of Mayors winter meeting, January 17 19, 2009, in Washington, D.C., or send a representative to accept their city s award. Check presentation ceremony Recipient cities should coordinate a check presentation ceremony in their community attended by representatives of Dollar Wi$e and Bank of America. Use of Dollar Wi$e logo Recipient cities should use the Dollar Wi$e logo on promotional, advertising/marketing, and curriculum materials produced by their local financial literacy campaign for one year from the date of the award. The logo will be made available online at the Dollar Wi$e Campaign s Web site. File brief reports online Six months and one year after receipt of the award, recipient cities should file a brief report back to the Dollar Wi$e Campaign on the progress of their local financial literacy efforts. A reminder and instructions on how to file this report online will be sent via e-mail to the contact person noted in the Capacity Grant application. JORGE PEREZ/CITY OF MIAMI L E F T Miami Mayor Manuel A. Diaz, President of The U.S. Conference of Mayors, and his city received a Dollar Wi$e Capacity Grant in 2005. A B O V E L E F T Bowling Green, Kentucky, Mayor Elaine Walker accepts her city s Dollar Wi$e Capacity Grant at The U.S. Conference of Mayors annual meeting, June 2006. A B O V Santa Fe for his city presented benefited APPLICATION TIMELINE 2008 2009 NOVEMBER 1 DECEMBER 5 DECEMBER 20 JANUARY 1 Applications for 2009 Capacity Grants available Application must be received by Dollar Wi$e Recipient cities notified WASHINGTON The United Mayors win Grants rece
M A Y O R S N A T I O N A L D O L L A R W I $ E C A M P A I G N QUALIFYING CRITERIA AND JUDGING To apply for a 2009 Capacity Grant, your city must be a registered member of The United States Conference of Mayors and the Mayors National Dollar Wi$e Campaign on or before December 5, 2008. For more information on becoming a member, visit www.usmayors.org/about/membership.asp and www.dollarwiseonline.org. Judging will be based on: The quality of your local Dollar Wi$e Campaign. Identifying your target audience and helping its members learn and apply sound financial skills. The reach of your local Dollar Wi$e campaign in the community as a whole. Your ability to build partnerships, leverage local human resources, and gain financial support. Innovation and creativity in connecting individuals to new ideas about and techniques for personal and family financial management. Self-evaluation methods. Future goals and plans. The impact a Capacity Grant would have on expanding your local Dollar Wi$e campaign. Applications will be judged by an independent panel chosen by the Dollar Wi$e Advisory Board. FREQUENTLY-ASKED QUESTIONS Can more than one agency in the same city apply? Yes. However, only one agency within the same city will receive a grant. It is advisable for applicant agencies to combine their submissions into a single, joint application. Can my city apply for another Capacity Grant if we ve already received one? No. At the present time, past recipients are not eligible to apply for another Capacity Grant. However, as the program grows and the grants increase in both number and size, that may change, so continue to check back. Is it worth applying? Absolutely. Your city has the opportunity to receive funds to support its financial education efforts. And some past recipients have applied for two or three rounds before being selected to receive a grant. So, our advice is, as the saying goes, if at first you don t succeed, try, try again. CITY OF QUINCY INSIGHT FOTO, INC. When will the next round of grants be held? It is expected that the next round of Dollar Wi$e Capacity Grants will be held in fall 2009, in approximately the same timeframe as this round. To be sure that you ll receive notification when the next round opens, please register your city in the Dollar Wi$e Campaign if it is not already or e-mail dollarwise@usmayors.org to make sure you are on the mailing list for the Dollar Wi$e Campaign s listserv. E Mayor David Coss stands with a ceremonial check s Dollar Wi$e Capacity Grant. The check was in spring 2008 at the home of a couple who had from the city s financial education program. 7 19 SPRING, D.C. States Conference of ter meeting; Capacity ipients announced A B O V E R I G H T Quincy, Illinois, Mayor John A. Spring works with a student in the city s First Paycheck program, which received a Dollar Wi$e Capacity Grant in 2006. Local check presentations in recipient cities Is my city automatically registered in Dollar Wi$e if it is a member of the Conference of Mayors? What does it cost? What is expected of cities registered in Dollar Wi$e? No. Membership in the Conference of Mayors does not mean automatic registration in the Dollar Wi$e Campaign. A separate registration form can be submitted at www. dollarwiseonline.org. Registration in the Dollar Wi$e is: Under the direction of the mayor or an authorized representative. Open to any city in the United States and its territories. Free of charge. Cities that register in the Dollar Wi$e Campaign designate a staff person in the mayor s office or elsewhere in city hall to be the contact person, to whom Campaign communications are directed. For more on the Campaign and its benefits, please view our publication The Guide or visit our Web site.
PLEASE RECYCLE APPLICATION QUESTIONS This list of questions is provided for your reference. Please complete your city s application online at www.dollarwiseonline.org. Contact information City State/territory Mayor s name Person completing this application. We will direct communications concerning the grant process to this person Contact s title Contact s agency Contact s mailing address Contact s phone Contact s fax Contact s e-mail Your city s financial education program 1 Overview Provide an overview or summary of your city s financial education program. Consider such issues as: Effectively reaching your campaign s target audience(s). The financial literacy needs of residents in your community and how your campaign addresses those needs. Program activities and dates. Curricula and materials used in your local campaign, including a brief summary of each. Notable achievements or recognition received. Your reach in the community. 3,000 characters or fewer 2 Target audience(s) Who is/are your target audience(s)? How did/do you identify them? How do you reach out to them? 3 Partners List and describe the local partners, such as nonprofits, communitybased organizations, and financial institutions, that work with you on your city s financial education effort. How have you worked with them to build a coalition and enhance your local campaign? 4 Innovation & creativity How do you feel your campaign is innovative and creative in its approach to increasing financial literacy among residents of your community? Please cite specific examples of creative approaches used by your campaign. 5 Self-evaluation How do you evaluate the effectiveness and success of your local campaign? Consider how you measure success in the following areas: Effectively reaching your campaign s target audience(s). Helping participants learn sound financial skills and incorporating these into their everyday spending and savings habits. Increasing the reach and capacity of your ongoing local Dollar Wi$e campaign. 6 Mayoral involvement What are the city and the mayor specifically contributing the local financial education efforts in your community? Please show some examples of the city s and the mayor s involvement. Plans for a Capacity Grant 7 Capacity Grant How would your local financial literacy campaign use a Dollar Wi$e Capacity Grant? What are your campaign s specific goals and plans? How will you achieve them? What more will you be able to accomplish with funding through a Capacity Grant? How will your local campaign build its long-term capacity over the next 2 3 years? How will you measure the effectiveness and success of your expanded campaign? 4,500 characters or fewer 8 CBO If your city receives a Capacity Grant, will the money be allocated to a community-based organization (CBO)? If yes, provide the requested information about the CBO: Intent to allocate grant to CBO (yes or no) CBO s name CBO s contact person (if other than the person completing the application) CBO s address CBO s phone number CBO s fax number CBO s e-mail CBO s federal ID number (EIN) Describe the CBO and its involvement in your local Dollar Wi$e campaign. (.) 9 Attachments Will you be submitting any attachments with your application? yes or no 10 Grant obligations My city is willing and able to fulfill the grant obligations. (Please review the grant obligations listed inside this document.) check box for acknowledgement Characters include letters, numerals, punctuation, and spaces. 4,500 characters = about 750 words 3,000 characters = about 500 words 1,500 characters = about 250 words