All Children Thrive - California

Request for Application 3.0

Request for Applications (RFA)

3.0

REQUEST FOR APPLICATIONS 3.0

The 2023 Readiness Assessment/RFA 3.0 is now closed.

BACKGROUND

All Children Thrive – California (ACT) is a statewide, community-driven program that helps local communities educate about the need to adopt and implement public policies and create systems change to reduce and prevent Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs).  The program currently works with 18 nonprofit organizations and public officials on issues such as:

  • Promoting Healthy Child Development
  • Creating Protective Environments
  • Youth Development and Civic Engagement
  • Strengthening Economic Supports for Children and Families
  • Access to Safe and Stable Housing

Changing public policy is not a quick and easy process. It requires a thorough understanding of local political dynamics, significant knowledge of relevant policies, and the capacity to achieve change.  This is why ACT provides:

  • Financial support – up to $200,000 per project over 3 years
  • Technical assistance for capacity building
  • Ongoing support from trained coaches

Through this Request for Applications (RFA), ACT is accepting applications to support ACT Design Teams in the ACT Transformation Process[CE1] . ACT PROCESS MAP INCLUDED HERE (figure 1). The ACT Process Map describes the policy campaign phases that projects will undertake over the course of three years to succeed in the community’s selected policy strategy.

FUNDING AVAILABILITY

As many as thirteen project proposals will receive up to $200,000 each to support eligible activities and allowable expenditures for up to a three-year participation in ACT.  These funds are a one-time allocation to support ACT activities in 2024 through 2026. Applicants are to remain cognizant that the use of ACT appropriations from the California General Fund and the activities proposed in response to this RFA must be consistent with the authority provided under SB115.  Funding is contingent upon available revenues and appropriations by the Legislature and the California Department of Public Health.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

Applicants must be a 501 (c)(3) not for profit organization or a tribal sovereign nation.

To ensure that funds are equitably distributed to support the state’s geographic diversity, funding will be allocated in the following priority order:

  • Jurisdictions within a Mental Health Region
  • Jurisdictions that increase the geographic diversity of the counties represented by their Mental Health Region
  • Jurisdictions collaborating within a Mental Health Region

The applicant’s ability to engage in policies, systems, and environmental change projects in:

  • Promoting Healthy Child Development
  • Creating Protective Environments
  • Youth Development and Civic Engagement
  • Strengthening Economic Supports for Children and Families
  • Access to Safe and Stable Housing

Projects must demonstrate that the focus area is a priority for their local community; that the community has existing coalitions and/or efforts underway in that focus area, that other entities are already working on the focus area, and that local government or other funders have expressed a commitment to the focus area. Community need is demonstrated by data or other evidence supporting your selected focus area and by evidence that focus area represents a significant need in your community.

APPLICATION DEADLINE and AWARD ANNOUNCEMENT

Applications must be submitted between October 18, 2023, and November 17th, 2023. Grant awards will be announced on November 30, 2023. We will host a mandatory RFA webinar on October 27th from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. via Zoom.  Please register for this required webinar HERE.

ACTIVITY DESCRIPTION & EXAMPLES

            Data Activities

  • Needs Assessment (required)
  • Introduction to research training (required)
  • ArcGIS training and account setup (required)
  • Co-develop data visualizations with ACT data team (required)
  • Primary data collection (optional)
  • Digital Story Maps (optional)
  • City Maps (optional)
  • Data dashboards (optional)

Communications Activities

  • Communications Plan (required)
  • Educational presentation (required)
  • Educational materials/leave-behind packets (required)
  • Consumer testing (required)
  • Newsworthy event (required)
  • Communications trainings (required)
  • Paid media (optional)
  • Logo design (optional)
  • Media Record Review (optional)

Policy Activities 

  • Core and Design Team recruitment and retention (required)
  • Coalition building (required)
  • Policy trainings and evaluation (six modules) (required)
  • Completing a policy scan and policy selection process (required)
  • Educating policymakers during one-on-one educational meetings (required)
  • Presenting to the City Council/Board of Supervisors/Tribal Council Meetings (required)
  • Submit any adopted legislated policies to the ACT (required)
  • Community educational presentations (required)
  • Key informant interviews (optional)
  • Coalition satisfaction survey (optional)

Youth Development Activities

  • Youth Design Team recruitment and retention (required)
  • Youth Leaders Forums (six sessions) (required)
  • Youth Champions (optional)
  • Co-create youth policy curriculum (optional)

Sustainability Activities

  • Sustainability planning training (required)
  • Complete a Sustainability Plan (required)
  • Grant writing workshop (required)
  • Grant writing consultation (optional)

Incentives and Stipends that are used to support grant activities

  • Non-consumable Incentives (optional)
  • Stipends (optional)

Close-out activities

  • Project portfolio (required)
  • Final narrative report (required)
  • Final expenditure report and audit (required)

Other Activities (Include a description of add-on activities):

BUDGET

Provide a budget as an Excel spreadsheet including the following:

  • Funding activities (project activities)
  • Personnel (up to 1.0 FTE of total personnel per year)
  • Supplies
  • Travel
  • Meeting costs (e.g., Zoom, venue)
  • Incentives (e.g., gift cards – commensurate with the activity)
  • Stipends to offset the cost of volunteerism
  • Training costs
  • Rent

INELIGIBLE USE OF FUNDS

Funds may not be used for any of the following:

  • Supplanting or duplicating existing programs
  • Fundraising activities
  • Lobbying or electioneering
  • Reimbursements for costs covered by another contract
  • Maintenance of professional licensure
  • Malpractice insurance
  • Religious activities
  • Delivery of direct health care services

EVALUATION AND REPORTING ACTIVITIES

During the grant period, the ACT staff and evaluator will help awardees to complete surveys, participate in interviews, and document program monitoring using a provided reporting template.

At 12 months and 24 months, awardees will be required to submit a progress report including:

  • A narrative detailing activities and work completed in the reporting period, successes and challenges, key findings, and links to deliverables
  • An expenditure report
  • The grant is on a reimbursement basis. Monthly invoices for reimbursement will be required.

    At the close of the funding period, awardees must submit:

    A final narrative report including the following:
  • A narrative detailing activities and work completed in the last reporting period, successes and challenges, key findings, and links to deliverables
    • An expenditure report
    • A final invoice for payment
    • Participate in a financial site visit (audit) with PHA’s CFO 

GLOSSARY OF TERMS

COMMUNITY ACTION AREA: One of the following five focus areas chosen by a Design Team for improvement of child well-being through their project:

  • Promoting Healthy Child Development
  • Creating Protective Environments
  • Youth Development and Civic Engagement
  • Strengthening Economic Supports for Children and Families
  • Access to Safe and Stable Housing

ACT PROCESS MAP describes the policy campaign phases that projects will undertake over the course of three years to succeed in their selected policy strategy. ACT-funded projects are divided into nine phases to create policy and systems change: (1) Pre-engagement, (2) Develop Teams, (3) Understanding Community Conditions, (4) Planning and Strategy Development, (5) Policy Development, (6) Coalition Building, (7) Policy Adoption (8) Sustainability, and (9) Project Close-out.  See Figure 1: ACT Process Map for details.

ACT COACH Public Health Advocates and University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) staff who are responsible for oversight and coordination of technical assistance activities in ACT-funded projects.

ACT CORE TEAM A team of funded community-based organization (CBO) staff and an ACT coach who together identify and assemble an ACT Design Team.

ACT DESIGN TEAM A team of youth, community members, community partners (e.g. local health departments, schools), and city officials and/or their staff who jointly identify and rally support for programs, policies, and/or other strategies to improve child well-being in their city by making meaningful progress in their chosen Community Action Area. The Design Team also educates their elected officials about the need for resolutions or local ordinances that provide a framework for and commitment toward child wellbeing.

DECISION-MAKERS a person or group responsible for making strategically important decisions based on a number of variables, including time constraints, resources available, information available, and the number of stakeholders involved.

Start Your RFA

RFA EXAMPLE HERE