NEW AND RECOMPETING APPLICANTS JANUARY 31, 2013 OFFICE ON VOLUNTEERISM AND COMMUNITY SERVICE AmeriCorps State Pre-Proposal Conference

Agenda

Welcome and Introductions Robert Earley, VDSS Office of General Services OVCS Staff  Amanda Healy, Program Manager  Tanisha Dorsey, Program Officer  Kim Brown, Program Officer  Jim Davidson, Fiscal Officer  Matt Fitzgerald, Program Officer

AmeriCorps at National Level Administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) AmeriCorps includes VISTA, State/National, and National Civilian Community Corps (NtripleC)

AmeriCorps State in Virginia Office on Volunteerism and Community Service Within Virginia Department of Social Services OVCS administers Virginia’s AmeriCorps*State funds, and is the ‘base’ of the Governor-appointed State Service Commission Last year approximately $2.9 million was distributed to 23 Programs

Overview of RFP The entire document is available at Page 1  Proposal deadline is March 7, 2013 at 3 p.m.  Mandatory e-Grants training February 7, 2013 at 10 a.m. (to be discussed in Sections 4.1 and 4.2)

Page 3, Section 1.1--Purpose To solicit proposals to establish Formula full-time Operational AmeriCorps*State Programs in Virginia  12-month initial contract  Possible renewal for up to 2 years  New proposal after 3 years

Virginia priorities (Section 2.1.2, pages 3 and 4) Virginia priorities  Strengthening Families (use VDSS Practice Model and Protective Factors)VDSS Practice Model Protective Factors  must be first item in Rationale and Approach narrative  Volunteer Recruitment (# and hours of volunteers)  second item in R & A narrative

CNCS priorities (Section 2.1.2, Page 4) CNCS priorities (Main focus of remainder of R & A narrative)  Economic Opportunity  Education  Disaster Services  Veterans and Military Families  Healthy Futures  Environmental Stewardship

CNCS Performance Measures CNCS National Performance Measures  Tool to show success/outcomes in priority areas  All applications must include a Tier 1 or Tier 2 Measure  Two online resources:  Performance measurements in broader CNCS context Performance measurements in broader CNCS context  AmeriCorps specific performance measurement information AmeriCorps specific performance measurement information

Types of Operating Grants Cost reimbursement  Open to new and re-competing applicants  Requires match  Flexible member slots (less than full-time)  Full documentation of all program costs  $13,300 per MSY maximum

Pilot Project Operating Grant Fixed amount grant  Only for re-competing applicants  No specific match requirement  Full-time members only  $13,000 per MSY maximum  Only for member support costs  Must notify OVCS by 5:00 p.m. February 1, 2013 by at

Minimum MSY request MSY is Member Service Year Full-time member is 1700 service hours Programs must request at least 5 MSY See Table 4 on Page 25 for more info on MSY

Mandatory e-Grants and budget planning training Participation in the February 7 training is MANDATORY Submit a Notice of Intent to Apply, as per section 4.2, page 8 Proposals can only be submitted in e-Grants  February 7 th training will include budget planning, and instructions for completing e-Grants application

DUNS and SAM (Page 9, Section 5.2.1) Applications must include a DUNS number and register with SAM  Apply for DUNS number Apply for DUNS number  Register for SAM Register for SAM

e-Grants (Page 9, Section 5.2.2) This will be an overview only of this section  More in-depth discussion during the e-Grants training on 2/7/13

Narratives Read the Narrative recommendations (III, page 11) very carefully  Convince the reviewers  Can’t exceed 26 pages  Includes:  Executive Summary  Rationale and Approach (Program Design)  Organizational Capability  Cost Effectiveness and Budget Adequacy  Evaluation Plan

Executive Summary Who, what, where, when, why in ½ page or less  See RFP template language, top of page 12

Rational and Approach (Program Design) Virginia priorities first  Strengthening Families  Volunteer Recruitment and Utilization CNCS priorities next  Tier 1 or Tier 2 measures you will meet in your priority area

Rationale and Approach continued Why are AmeriCorps members the answer to your community needs?  Each subheading has leading questions that should guide your responses  Remember the Narrative Recommendations  Key elements  Who would you serve and why? Need is severe?  Evidence-based and Measurable Impact  Well-developed (thought out) plans for recruitment, training, supervision, development

Organizational Capability (page 14) Convince reviewers that you have everything you need to achieve the outcomes you are promising  Staff  Experience  Resources (money, partnerships) Can you keep the program compliant?

Organizational Capability continued Multiple sites  Prove a strong relationship or reason to expect success  First-time applicants can’t have more than 5 sites

Cost Effectiveness and Budget Adequacy (pages 16,17) Did you budget CNCS funds of no more than $13,300 per MSY? Did you budget enough to adequately carry out the program? Is the budget clear and reasonable?

Evaluation Summary or Plan N/A for new applicants Re-competes must include an evaluation summary in this section  And submit an evaluation report

Performance Measures Revisited Must select a Tier 1 or Tier 2 measure Can include Tier 3 as well There will be time to fine-tune after the application review process

Documents to include that are listed in e-Grants Evaluation (re-competes only) Labor Union Concurrence (if applicable) Federally Approved Indirect Cost Agreement (if applicable) These are listed on Page 19, 20, but we will discuss in “complete proposal” discussion of section 5.2.3, page 30

Budget Instructions (begins page 20) Match requirements  Starts at 24% for new applicants, increasing gradually  However, you are held to the match amount you submit (if you say you’ll provide 42%, that becomes the requirement)  Make sure its an acceptable source of match (federal funds must be approved by federal agency)  In-kind and cash (prove availability)

Detailed Budget Instructions (pg. 23) Provides the categories and line items that can be included in a proposed budget  Use the budget instructions for in-depth budgeting assistance  We will only briefly discuss highlights  Write down questions to ask for items that aren’t covered!

Program Operating Costs (section I) Personnel Travel Supplies Training Evaluation Other Program Operating Costs

Member Costs (section II) Member Living Allowance (see chart page 25)  Minimum full-time is $12,100, no minimum for less than full Member support  FICA  Worker’s Compensation (must include $50 per member)  Health Care

Administrative/Indirect Costs In-depth discussion will be during February 7 th training Have your fiscal officer sit in, the budgeting section of the training will be at the beginning of the 10 a.m. training

“Complete” Proposal Components (page 30, section 5.2.3) A complete proposal includes:  e-Grants submission  3 signed originals of application mailed/delivered to 801 E. Main Street, 15 th Floor, Richmond VA  Documents scanned and ed to  3 executed certifications (attachments 1,2,3 to RFP)  Executed MOU’s, MOA’s, letters of agreement with partners  Executed Proposal Cover SheetProposal Cover Sheet  Executed Budget Analysis ChecklistBudget Analysis Checklist  Executed W-9 Request for Taxpayer ID numberW-9 Request for Taxpayer ID number  Draft member service positions  Additional documents if applicable (see page 19, V.) Program Evaluation Labor Union Concurrence Federally Approved Indirect Cost Agreement All Proposal Elements Due by 3:00 p.m. March 7, 2013

Evaluation and Award Criteria Program Design---50% Organizational Capability---25% Cost-Effectiveness and Budget Adequacy---25% Additional Considerations  Programs that document success in employment or job creation services----5 points  Distressed Communities----listed on page 31, 5 points  Past performance----poor past performance can lead to up to 10 point deduction

Proposal Review Process Numerical scoring system that awards points specifically corresponding with the items required in the RFP Peer Review panels (include Governor’s Advisory Board members) Staff Review of remaining applications Scores based on average of Peer and Staff Review

Time for Questions General questions (not specific to your application) can also can be submitted to Questions will be posted on alongside the RFP. They will be updated each Friday until March 7.

Make sure you submit Notice of Intent to Apply if you plan to attend the e- Grants/budget training on February 7 THANKS FOR YOUR INTEREST