investing in WNC After 3pm

Request for Proposals

Dogwood Health Trust is requesting proposals from nonprofit organizations, government agencies, education institutions, and others who serve the Qualla Boundary and our 18-county service region in Western North Carolina that are looking to expand out-of-school-time programming within our footprint, making it more accessible and meeting the needs of the youth and families in our communities.

Grants will range from $50,000 to $500,000. This investment will focus on providing multi-year funding to organizations and institutions that provide high-quality, evidence-based out-of-school-time programming and supports for all populations, with priority on Black students, English language learners, students learning with disabilities and students experiencing elevated levels of poverty.

How to Apply

Online application will be available on June 5, 2023.

Timeline

Applications open June 5, 2023, and will be accepted until 5 p.m. on July 24, 2023.

Award notifications will be made in November 2023 and funds will be distributed in December 2023.

Learn More

Contact Victoria Brownlee, Education Officer at (828) 378-0402 or [email protected]

At-a-glance

Purpose

Provide high-quality afterschool and expanded learning programs accessible to all children in the Dogwood landscape, giving them an opportunity to succeed in and out of school. Our goal is to expand learning programs through advocacy, professional development, research and evaluation which will lead to quality.

Priority

Priority will be given to proposals that equitably attend to at least one of the following:

Staff recruitment and retention to maintain stability and consistency for program participants
Out-of-school-time professionals’ mental health and wellness
Program participants’ mental health and wellness through life skills and/or trauma-informed practices
Program capacity to increase accessibility, availability, and affordability of high-quality afterschool programs in Western NC

Funding available

Size of grants will depend on the organization’s capacity, geographic scope, and strength of proposal; however, they will generally range from $50,000-$500,000.

Strong proposals will:

Take a multi-year approach
Align outcomes to recommendations in Landscape Analysis of Out-of-School Time Report. This report also includes an interactive map of findings.
Address the data shared in the Landscape Analysis of K-12 Education Outcomes report
Address the key findings or conclusions from one of the following reports: America After 3pm Rural Communities Report or The Value of Out-of-School Time Programs Report

All grant recipients will engage in the WNC After 3pm Academy.

This Out-of-School-Time (OST) Collaborative will focus on network-building, peer-learning, collaborative resource development and sharing, and local/regional strategy and planning.

The Academy will be led by Elizabeth Anderson, Director of North Carolina Center for Afterschool Programs (NC CAP) at the Public School Forum of North Carolina. NC CAP is a comprehensive statewide afterschool and out-of-school-time network.