LOI Process and Instructions

2010 Investment Process Letter of Intent Process and Instructions

United Way of Central Ohio Letter of Intent (LOI) Process and Instructions

Table of Contents A. Letter of Intent Process 1.

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Background Eligibility PowerPhilanthropy Portrait UWCO Funding Priorities Amount of Funding Available Funding Ranges for Letters of Intent LOI Review Process and Review Criteria Process and Timelines Information and Assistance

B. Instructions and Online Application Questions 1. Instructions for the Completion of the LOI A. Organization Information B. Program Information C. Program Budget Information D. Program Budget Narrative 2. Online Application Questions

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A. LETTER OF INTENT PROCESS

1. Background The letter of intent (LOI) is the first step through which UWCO will identify programs that offer the most promise for helping to achieve community impact around nine specific community results. In the LOI process, non-profit organizations have the opportunity to submit their strongest ideas for producing measurable results around UWCO’s funding priorities.

All non-profit organizations or collaborations seeking UWCO program funding must submit a letter of intent. There is no limit to the number of letters of intent that an agency may submit. LOIs may be submitted for currently operating programs that either receive or do not receive UWCO funding or for concepts for new programs that have not yet been implemented.

All LOIs must align with UWCO’s community results, related strategies, and performance measures.

The fall 2008 LOI is part of the program investment process that will result in funding for the three year period that begins January 1, 2010 and ends December 31, 2012.

2. Eligibility UWCO has developed specific eligibility requirements for its program investment process, including the letter of intent phase.

The process is open to non-profit organizations which meet the following requirements: • • • • • • • • •

Supports UWCO’s mission, values and strategic direction; Offers programs that support and respond directly to UWCO community results, strategies and performance measures; Has a current, complete PowerPhilanthropy portrait established with the Columbus Foundation; Qualifies as an exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code; Can verify three years of organizational history through written documentation of 501(c)(3) status for a minimum of three years; Has proof of liability insurance; Has current certification of compliance with all applicable licensing, accreditation and other applicable legal requirements; Has current certification of Patriot Act compliance and completion of verification form; and Completes the UWCO Statement of Non-Discrimination for each program for which funding is requested.

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All letters of intent must focus on services or program activities that take place in Franklin County.

Each LOI must identify one community result to which it will contribute. Organizations may submit more than one LOI related to a specific community result and/or may submit LOIs related to different community results. There is no limit on the number of LOIs that an organization may submit.

UWCO values and supports collaborative efforts that achieve measurable community results.

United Way’s program investment process is designed to provide financial support for the operating expenses of ongoing programs, rather than time-limited projects or capital expenses.

Funding agreements resulting from UWCO’s program investment process are expected to be for a period of three years, based on the availability of adequate UWCO resources and the fulfillment of UWCO’s service delivery, performance measure, financial, management, and membership expectations and requirements by the agency and program.

As a condition of funding, agencies must agree to comply with UWCO reporting and accountability requirements and eligibility criteria specified in UWCO Agency Membership and Program Funding Requirements and Benefits.

3. PowerPhilanthropy Portrait Each organization that submits a letter of intent must have a current, complete PowerPhilanthropy portrait established with the Columbus Foundation.

PowerPhilanthropy is an online resource which provides consistent information about local nonprofit organizations in Central Ohio to donors in order to inform their charitable giving.

For information about PowerPhilanthropy, agencies should contact Joyce Ray at the Columbus Foundation by email at p2@columbusfoundation.org or by phone at (614) 251-4000. The Columbus Foundation offers orientation sessions about creating a PowerPhilanthropy portrait and provides technical assistance as needed. Organizations that do not have existing portraits should contact the Columbus Foundation immediately to register for an orientation session and begin the portrait process.

Organizations that have not previously created portraits must begin their portrait by November 3, 2008 and complete the portrait by November 17, 2008. Organizations that have previously created portraits must update them by November 17, 2008.

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Letters of intent submitted by organizations without a current, complete PowerPhilanthropy portrait will not be reviewed.

The Columbus Foundation and UWCO have developed a partnership in which PowerPhilanthropy portrait information for all organizations submitting LOIs will be shared with UWCO. Information from the portraits will be reviewed in the assessment of all LOIs.

4. UWCO Funding Priorities UWCO’s strategic framework includes a vision statement, four impact areas and nine specific community results that are the foundation for the program investment process.

Seven key principles support this framework for creating community impact. The strategic framework and key principles are posted on the UWCO website. Applicants should review the framework carefully in order to identify potential linkages with UWCO community results.

UWCO recently completed the development of a set of strategies and performance measures that relate to each of the nine community results. The strategies and performance measures will be key components in the program investment process.

Applicants must demonstrate that the program described in the LOI implements a UWCO-identified strategy, will track progress around the performance measure, and contributes to the achievement of a specific community result. The list of approved strategies and performance measures for each community result are posted on the UWCO website. Applicants should review these materials closely before and during the preparation of the LOI. Measurement tools related to each performance measure are in final development now and will be shared with funding applicants in early 2009. Each program that is approved for UWCO program investment must agree to track progress around the performance measure using a UWCO-identified measurement method and tool.

A final key element in UWCO’s program investment process are “priority considerations” which describe a target population, geography or characteristic that staff and volunteers will value and look for in reviewing LOIs. The “priority considerations” have been developed by volunteers around specific community results. All “priority considerations” have been posted on the website. Applicants should carefully review the “priority considerations” for the community result to which the program in their LOI relates.

Taken together, the community results, strategies, performance measures, and priority considerations comprise UWCO’s funding priorities for the program investment process.

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5. Amount of Funding Available UWCO program investment for the 2008-09 funding year is $24.2 million. Future levels of program investment will be dependent on the success of UWCO campaigns and subject to priorities identified by the UWCO Board of Trustees.

The amount of funds available for program investment for the period January 1, 2010 through December 31, 2010 (the first year of the new three year funding cycle) will be based on UWCO resource projections and volunteer committee decisions in December, 2008 and January, 2009. UWCO may choose to increase its investment (from current funding levels) in some community results and decrease its investment in other community results.

A specific amount of program investment for the 2010 calendar year will be determined for each of UWCO’s nine community results. However, those amounts will not be known before the December 1, 2008 submission deadline for Letters of Intent.

The program investment process is expected to be highly competitive with funding requests exceeding the amount of dollars available. It is expected that many high quality programs that submit LOIs and full proposals will not be funded or will not be funded at the level requested.

6. Funding Ranges for Letters of Intent There is no minimum or maximum amount of funding that an organization or collaborative group may request in a Letter of Intent. However, in considering the amount to request from UWCO, applicants are encouraged to consider the following factors: • • • •

In the past, United Way has generally not been the sole funder of a program; United Way values opportunities to use its investment to leverage other sources of support; United Way values programs which are successful in securing other sources of support; and United Way values programs which have stable and sustainable sources of support.

In light of UWCO’s reporting requirements and expectations for member agencies, LOIs requesting less than $35,000 are discouraged.

For LOIs that move forward to the full proposal phase, UWCO will specify a range of funding (e.g., $50,000 - $70,000) that the applicant may request in the full proposal. In some cases, this funding range may be very close to the funding amount requested in the LOI. In other cases, the funding range may be either higher or lower than the amount included in the LOI.

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7. LOI Review Process and Review Criteria LOIs will be reviewed by UWCO staff teams using a set of consistent criteria which represent the characteristics that UWCO values in funded programs. The assessments and recommendations of the staff teams will be shared with UWCO volunteer committees for input and final decisions.

LOI review criteria have been organized into the following five categories: Contribution to Community Result (Up to 25 points) • The program directly contributes to the community result through the implementation of a specific strategy.

• The program addresses a strong and compelling community need or condition or builds on a community asset.

• The LOI clearly documents the community condition which the program addresses.

• The program targets a high need or underserved population or geography.

• The program addresses an identified “priority consideration”.

Program Strength (Up to 20 points) • The LOI demonstrates a strong program design with services that are directly responsive to the identified community condition and sufficiently comprehensive to achieve the performance measure.

• The program has the financial and non-financial resources to fully implement the proposed services.

• Program provides a realistic budget with adequate resources and reasonable costs for providing services.

• The program provides clear evidence of the achievement of previously identified outcomes and/or demonstrates the capacity to collect and track performance measure data.

Organizational Capacity (Up to 15 points) • The program is aligned with the mission and vision of the organization.

• The organization demonstrates sound management and governance practices.

• The organization has the capacity to leverage other resources (financial, other) for the program.

Collaboration/Integration (Up to 10 points) • The program is engaged in ongoing collaborative efforts that directly contribute to program results.

• The program coordinates with appropriate service providers, organizations and systems to maximize the delivery of effective services.

Current UWCO-funded program (0 points or 5 points) • Program is currently funded by UWCO through a member or community partner agency.

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For each criterion listed under the first four category headings, reviewers will assign point values from 0 to 5 with the maximum point values for each category noted above.

For the fifth category, programs that currently receive UWCO program investment as a UWCO member or partner agency will receive an additional 5 points.

UWCO will not create a minimum score or cut-off point for the review of LOIs (e.g., proposals that receive a score of 60 or more will move forward to the full proposal phase.) The review score will be used to evaluate proposals against UWCO’s expectations and as a base for comparison among proposals linked to the same community result.

After the LOI review, UWCO will ask agencies whose programs are determined to have maximum potential impact on the community results to submit full proposals.

An applicant may move forward to the full proposal phase based on staff and volunteer consideration of several factors, including, the ratings of LOIs using UWCO criteria, the combination of programs that best meet UWCO’s vision and achieve UWCO’s community results, the amount of funds available, and other relevant considerations.

UWCO may choose not to advance any programs with known management, fiscal, reporting, programmatic or other problems that make it unlikely they would be able to deliver effective services.

All LOI decisions will be made at the discretion of UWCO’s Impact Councils. There is no appeals process.

Qualification under the LOI eligibility requirements does not entitle an organization or program to receive funding UWCO reserves the right to reject any and all proposals, in part or in whole, to negotiate with applicant(s), and to award funding to those deemed most likely to contribute to the achievement of a community result.

All applicants will receive written notification of the results of the LOI process. Numeric ratings from the review process and written feedback about the LOI decision will not be shared with applicants.

8.

Process and Timelines

A LOI must be submitted by any organization (or collaborative group) seeking consideration for program funding for the multi-year funding cycle that begins January 1, 2010.

A letter of intent will include the following: A. Organization Information B. Program Information – 5 sections C. Program Budget Information D. Program Budget Narrative

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Note: A complete, current PowerPhilanthropy portrait is also required for organizations that submit letters of intent.

The letter of intent is available on the UWCO website and must be submitted online.

The deadline for completing and submitting a LOI is 5:00 PM on Monday, December 1, 2008.

LOIs that are submitted after the deadline will not be accepted.

The deadline for completing new PowerPhilanthropy portraits and updating current portraits is November 17, 2008.

LOIs will be reviewed by staff teams and volunteer committees from December, 2008 to March, 2009. UWCO’s volunteer Impact Councils will make final decisions about which LOIs to move forward to the full proposal phase of the program investment process by mid-March, 2009.

All organizations submitting LOIs will be notified in writing about the Impact Council decisions in mid-March 2009. Organizations that are asked to submit full proposals will be invited to attend orientation sessions about the completion of the full proposal in March 2009.

The full proposal will build upon the LOI, providing greater detail about the program and how it will contribute to the achievement of the community result. UWCO will develop forms for the submission of full proposals and will develop criteria to review full proposals that will build on the LOI criteria. Detailed information about the full proposal phase will be provided to applicants on the UWCO website and during the orientation sessions. The deadline for submitting full proposals is May 1, 2009.

9. Information and Assistance UWCO staff members are available to provide information and assistance to applicants in the following ways: LOI Orientation Sessions Several sessions with details about the preparation and submission of a LOI will be conducted from October 20 through October 31, 2008. All sessions will be held at United Way. The dates and times of the sessions will be posted on the UWCO website.

Interested persons should register for an orientation session through the UWCO website.

Participation in an orientation session is required for at least one representative from each organization that submits a LOI.

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Community Results Meetings UWCO staff members who work closely with each community result will host one meeting in November 2008 to talk informally with LOI applicants about a specific community result. The discussion will focus on the strategies and performance measures related that that community result as well as the “priority considerations” that have been identified for that particular community result.

Participation in these community results meetings is not required, but is strongly encouraged. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions about the strategies and performance measures and to learn more about UWCO’s current work and priorities for future work around each community result. In addition, participants can talk with other prospective LOI applicants about potential collaboration and integration of efforts.

The dates and time of these meetings will be posted on the UWCO website. Interested persons should register for a community results meeting through the UWCO website.

Call-In Hours Persons preparing LOIs who have questions or need individual consultation may contact a UWCO staff member by phone during scheduled call-in hours during the weeks of October 20 through November 21.

United Way staff members have developed a call-in schedule organized by community result. For each community result, four hours of call-in time per week have been designated over a period of five weeks. The call-in hour schedule is posted on the UWCO website.

Calls should be directed to the phone number for the specific community result to which the caller’s LOI is linked.

During the call-in hours, UWCO staff will be available to answer general questions about the program investment process and provide specific assistance around LOI preparation for individual programs.

Callers who reach a voice mail message during call-in hours may leave a message (including name, agency, and phone number) and the UWCO staff member will return the call.

UWCO staff will be available to answer questions or provide individual consultation only during the designated call-in hours. Applicants are advised to place calls only during those times.

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) A list of frequently asked questions and responses to those questions has been posted on the UWCO website. Applicants are encouraged to review the FAQs before calling UWCO staff.

During fall 2008, the FAQs will be updated regularly and expanded as additional questions of general interest to LOI applicants are posed.

Website Updates The UWCO website will be a key method of communication with organizations interested in submitting LOIs. New and clarifying information will be posted on the website during fall 2008. Applicants are encouraged to check the UWCO website on a regular basis to obtain updated information.

Email a Question Applicants may submit questions via email on the UWCO website link. UWCO staff will respond to each question within two business days. Questions submitted via email that may be of interest to all applicants may be added to the FAQ list.

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B. INSTRUCTIONS 1. Instructions for the completion of the Letter of Intent The Letter of Intent includes the following: A. B. C. D.

Organization Information Program Information – 5 sections Program Budget Information Program Budget Narrative

Note: A complete current PowerPhilanthropy portrait is required for all organizations submitting LOIs. Information about the PowerPhilanthropy portrait is included in Section A.3. of this document.

General Instructions In the following sections you will find useful information that will guide you through responding to the letter of intent. Important definitions and instructions are included and have been organized parallel to the online application. In addition, at the end of this guide we have included all of the questions that are part of the online application. You may find it easier to use this document as you prepare for the online submission.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Only online submissions will be accepted, no emailed files or hard copy applications will be reviewed. The ability to submit a letter of intent will close promptly at 5PM, December 1, 2008.

How to Apply You can find a link to the online submission on United Way of Central Ohio’s home page at www.LiveUnitedCentralOhio.org. The link will be labeled 2010 Program Investment Process.

Once the Letter of Intent application is launched you will immediately be able to begin.

There are a total of 8 pages to respond to (see Online Application Questions) with sections for Organization Information, Program Information, Program Budget Information, and Program Budget Narrative. You will notice some fields are marked with a red “*” – these are required fields that must be completed.

Multiple Letters of Intent and Saving Work In Progress You will be permitted to submit multiple letters of intent as well as to edit each letter in multiple online sessions. To save the letter of intent that you are working on, select the “Save my progress and resume later” button. You will enter your email address (we recommend using the email address of the primary contact and a password so that you are able to access that application again in the future. To access a previously edited letter of intent select “Resume a previously saved form” and enter email and password information for the letter of intent you plan to edit.

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VERY IMPORTANT: If you plan on submitting more than one letter of intent you must use a unique password for each letter of intent. For example, passwords could be program1, program2, etc. Please do not use spaces in your password.

Please write this password down as we cannot access password information and losing the password will require that you begin the application again. With the email address of the primary contact and the password, multiple staff will be able to log in and contribute to the letter of intent. To avoid technical difficulties, please only have one staff person logged into a particular letter of intent at one time.

To complete the online letter of intent there are eight separate pages that you must navigate using the “Next Page” and “Previous Page” buttons. If you would like to go on to a later section, such as the Budget, you must put a place holder in each required field to move to the next page. For items that require a text response you will want to type an alpha character or word (such as “abc”) and for items that require a numeric response such as a telephone number, you will need to type numbers (such as 999999-9999). Once you have filled in all required fields with a simple placeholder, you will be able to navigate throughout the entire letter of intent. If you choose to do this, please carefully check to ensure all questions are fully answered before confirming the submission of the letter of intent.

The online system is designed to allow editing, saving, and editing again prior to formal submission, however, we do suggest that you log in to the system with your answers already prepared as network traffic, server limitations and your own computer/network all impact the speed at which you are able to interact with the online system. We have tested the system and have found it to be very robust; however, patience is certainly required when logging back in to a saved letter of intent and saving the letter of intent.

Our best advice is to please be patient and allow ample time to complete your letter of intent. It will take several seconds for the system to call up a previously saved letter of intent. Please refrain from clicking multiple times and allow at least 10 seconds for the screen to redraw the requested letter of intent. Hitting the “Refresh” button at this time will clear the memory and take you to a blank letter of intent rather than calling up the intended saved letter of intent.

We recommend that you save work regularly as you complete your letter of intent in case your office should experience a loss of power or other network difficulties.

Word Limits Helpful reminders of specific word limits for each section are included in each section as appropriate. It is very important that you do not exceed the word limits requested as some information may be lost when the letter of intent is submitted for review.

Unfortunately, the online application software does not have the ability to report words used or prevent the user from going beyond requested limits. We recommend typing responses in Word or some other package that can provide a word count and then copying and pasting responses into the online system. In Microsoft Word you can find the number of words you have typed by selecting the words (sentences and paragraphs that have been typed), then in the menu select “Tools” and “Word Count.”

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All letters of intent must be submitted for review by or before 5PM, December 1, 2008.

To submit your letter of intent you must first respond to all of the required fields in the online application. Once this is completed, proceed to the “Letter of Intent Confirmation Page” which immediately follows the Budget Narrative. On this page please select “Submit.” On the next page you will have the opportunity to print and review your LOI submission. After selecting “Confirm” the Letter of Intent will be submitted for review and NO CHANGES MAY BE MADE after selecting “Confirm.” As a reminder, in March applicants will be notified whether or not they have been invited to submit a Full Proposal.

Technical Notes Do not use your internet browser’s buttons to try to navigate within the letter of intent – please use the buttons at the bottom of the page.

If you plan on submitting more than one letter of intent you must use a unique password for each letter of intent.

It is very important that you do not exceed the word limits requested as some information may be lost when the letter of intent is submitted for review.

Technical Difficulties If you have technical difficulties please click the “Need assistance with this form?” button at the bottom of the screen or contact Kelly McLennan at kelly.mclennan@uwcentralohio.org.

Specific Definitions and Instructions for Each Section A. ORGANIZATION INFORMATION The first section of the LOI requests identifying information, contact information and general information about the organization submitting the LOI. Applicants should complete each section.

Most sections are self-explanatory, but notes about specific sections of the form are noted below: Program contact: The program contact is the individual whom UWCO staff will contact if there are questions or the need for communication about the LOI. In some cases, the contact person will be the agency executive director/CEO. In other cases, the contact person may be a program director or other agency staff person. Please clearly indicate the name, title, phone number and email address for the contact person.

Organization EIN: The EIN or Employer Identification Number is also known as a Federal Tax Identification Number and is used to identify a business entity. The EIN should be noted in the space provided.

IRS 501(c)(3) determination date: Enter the date on the letter confirming IRS TaxExempt Status in the space provided. One of the eligibility requirements for participation in the program investment process is that the applicant organization can verify three 14

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years of organizational history through written documentation of 501(c)(3) status for a minimum of three years by the date the full proposal is due (May 1, 2009).

Organization mission statement: Some organizations have mission statements that are longer than 50 words. In that case, applicants should summarize or provide highlights of the mission statement in 50 words or less.

B. PROGRAM INFORMATION – 5 parts The Program Information section of the LOI includes 5 parts.

Applicants should complete each section and/or check the appropriate boxes.

Most sections are self-explanatory, but notes about specific sections of the form are noted below: Program name: Applicants should provide the name that the organization or collaborative group uses (for currently operating programs) or plans to use (for proposed programs) for the program.

2010 UWCO funding requested: Applicants should indicate the amount of funding that is requested from United Way for the program for the period January 1, 2010 through December 31, 2010.

2010 total program budget: Applicants should indicate the total program budget (includes both direct and indirect expenses) projected for the 2010 calendar year.

2010 total agency budget: Applicants should indicate the total agency budget (for all programs as well as Management and Administrative Expenses) projected for the 2010 calendar year.

UWCO impact area: United Way’s strategic framework includes four impact areas and nine community results. Applicants should indicate the impact area to which the program relates. The impact areas are included in the strategic framework document in the Resource Documents section of the UWCO website.

Primary community result addressed by the program: Each program for which a LOI is submitted must relate to one UWCO community result. In this section, check only one box representing the community result to which the program directly links. UWCO’s community results are included in the strategic framework document in the Resource Documents section of the UWCO website.

Collaborative partners, roles and resources: Applicants should list the names of the organizations, groups or systems that are collaborative partners for the program. The specific role that each collaborative partner will have with the program and the resources (financial, staff, facility, other) that the partner will commit to the program should be noted.

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Program summary: The summary should clearly and concisely highlight the program’s intent, primary activities, and expected results.

Program intent: The applicant should briefly explain the program’s intent or purpose.

The intent expresses what will be accomplished or the change that will occur in the program’s intervention target (persons or geography). The intent should not describe program activities. The prevention of some event or circumstance that would have occurred in the absence of an intervention also qualifies as an expression of intent.

Contribution to the achievement of the community result: Applicants should explain how the program contributes to the achievement of the community result. This could include assumptions about how the program creates results (the program’s theory of change), evidence-based practice, or the experience of the program provider in delivering the program and achieving results.

Although the LOI does not specifically ask for a graphic logic model, applicants should clearly and logically describe how the program helps to achieve the community result.

Community need or condition: In a few words or a sentence, the applicant should clearly indicate the community need or condition that the program addresses. This need or condition could be a problem/deficit that needs to be reduced or eliminated or an opportunity, aspiration or asset that needs to be strengthened.

Data documenting the need or condition: Data that clearly supports the need or condition indicated in previous section should be noted, along with the data sources.

Because space is limited, applicants should carefully select the strongest data. Local data may be the most powerful in making the case that a critical condition, need or opportunity exists. Phrases or brief data references may be used instead of full sentences and sources may be abbreviated. Broad, general references to poverty, atrisk youth, homelessness, neighborhood problems, families in need of assistance, drug abuse, crime or unemployment will probably not be sufficient to document the need or condition.

UWCO strategy: Each program for which a LOI is submitted must implement a UWCO strategy related to the selected community result. Applicants should indicate that strategy in the space provided – the strategy should be selected from UWCO’s Strategy and Performance Measure document in the Resource Documents section of the UWCO website.

The strategy should be aligned with the program’s intent, community result, need or condition addressed, and intervention target.

Priority Consideration: For each community result, UWCO volunteers have identified “priority considerations” or factors that are important in making program investment decisions. The priority considerations may be a target population, geography, or other characteristic around which UWCO will give additional attention and focus in LOI review process.

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If a program responds to a priority consideration for a specific community result, the applicant should check the “Yes” box and indicate the priority consideration (in a few words) and describe how the program addresses it.

Unless specified for a particular community result, responding to a priority consideration, although desired, is not a requirement for UWCO program funding. If a program does not respond to a stated priority consideration, the applicant should check the “No” box and move on to the next section.

Intervention target: The intervention target represents the people, groups/organizations or geographic area(s) around which the program is focused for a specific change or result. The intervention target that may be individuals (e.g., girls, ages 8-12 or unemployed young adults) or groups of people (e.g., families with schoolage children or employees of XYZ corporation) or geographic areas (e.g., zip code 43215 or the Weinland Park neighborhood).

In the space provided, the applicant should clearly and concisely describe the intervention target.

Characteristics of the intervention target: The intervention target may have specific characteristics that make it particularly in need of services or particularly likely to benefit from the program. These characteristics can be either strengths or limitations. If the intervention target has a higher level of need than others in the community, that need should be clearly noted.

Examples of intervention target characteristics include: children reading below grade level, individuals employed at jobs with no benefits, family has used food pantries three or more times in the past six months, rate of violent crime for a neighborhood exceeds the average for Franklin County, youth who have been suspended or expelled from school, households in which English is not the primary language spoken, etc.

The applicant should provide detailed information about the intervention target, painting a clear and accurate picture of the individuals, groups or geographies that are the focus for program activities and intervention.

Primary program activities: Program activities are the services, interventions, and actions that the program implements to address the condition or need in order to achieve a specific change or result for the intervention target. The activities should directly relate to the stated need or condition and should be consistent with the UWCO strategy which the program will implement.

The applicant should clearly describe the program’s major activities. If the program provides a direct service to individuals or families, indicate how a “typical” client would access the service, participate in the service and complete the service. If program participation is time-limited, indicate the average duration of service.

Program inputs: Program inputs represent the resources that the program will use to deliver the proposed activities. Inputs could include program staff (e.g. 2 FTE social 17

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workers, .5 FTE van driver, 1 FTE dietitian), major program supplies (10 computers and XYZ Software package; 2 tons of packaged food; daily arts and crafts supplies for 30 children), facilities (meeting space 5 days a week for 4 hours per day), volunteers (20 trained volunteer tutors working with students 2 hours/week for 30 weeks) or other inputs.

The list of inputs should illustrate the resources that support the implementation of the program and should help the reader understand who provides the services and how the activities are provided. The list should not be exhaustive. Applicants should select and indicate only the major program inputs, particularly the staff who deliver the program. In noting the staff inputs, applicants should describe the staffing plan in full-time equivalents (FTEs) rather than the number of staff persons.

Performance measure: Each UWCO strategy has a designated performance measure or measures. As a condition of UWCO funding, programs must agree to track data related to the performance measure using a specified measurement method and/or tool.

In the space provided, the applicant should indicate the performance measure that the program will track. The performance measure should be selected from the Strategies and Performance Measures document in the Resource Documents section of the UWCO website.

Program unit of service: A unit of service describes a measure of program activity that can be counted over time. Examples of units of services are: one hour of counseling, one day of early childhood care and education, and one hour of job training.

In the space provided, applicants should indicate one unit of service that the program will track. Although some programs may track more than one unit of service, for the UWCO program investment process, applicants should identify only one unit of service that is a clear indication of program activity.

Service delivery projections: In the spaces provided, applicants should indicate the projected number of units of service for 2009 and 2010 as well as the number of persons or intervention targets projected to be served in 2009 and 2010. The projections for units of service and number of intervention targets should be consistent with the program activities and program budget.

If the LOI is for a new program that will not be implemented until 2010, the applicant should indicate projected units of service and intervention targets for 2010, but insert 0 in the spaces for 2009.

Past results: If the program is currently operating and has tracked and measured results in previous years, a clear and concise description of past results should be provided. Information about past results should be included for all currently operating programs whether funded by UWCO or not. Applicants should also include a brief explanation about how those results were tracked and measured. If the program director and program staff have used outcome evaluation data to strengthen the program, an example of how results have been used for program improvement should be described briefly.

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Collaboration/integration: Applicants should provide specific information about the ways in which the program is connected and integrated with the broad array of human services in our community. This may include formal collaboration (shared decisionmaking, shared resources, and shared accountability) with other providers, organizations or systems or more informal integration and coordination of efforts.

Integration/coordination could include referral agreements, shared resources (staff, facilities), joint development of service/treatment plans for clients, networking with other providers, participation in joint training/professional development, regular contacts with key systems/funders around shared goals and service delivery, participation in neighborhood and community events, participation in joint planning and/or evaluation efforts, or participation in public policy and advocacy efforts.

Information provided in this section should clearly indicate how the collaborative efforts and coordination and integration activities contribute to the achievement of program results.

Organization’s capacity: Each applicant organization has resources and/or characteristics that affect its capacity to deliver and evaluate the program for which UWCO funds are requested. The applicant should clearly describe the organization’s staff expertise, financial resources, volunteers, board strength and support, linkages with local organizations or a national organization, or other factors that increase the agency’s capacity to deliver the program effectively and efficiently and to track the selected performance measure.

Other: Relevant facts or factors about the program that do not fit into other sections may be included in this space. Applicants may share information in this space if they choose or write NA (Not Applicable) in the space provided.

C. PROGRAM BUDGET INFORMATION Program budget information includes projected revenue and expenses for two calendar years – 2009 and 2010. The 2010 budget should include the requested amount of United Way funding for the program described in the LOI. That figure should match the amount in the 2010 UWCO Funding Requested space in the Program Information section of the LOI. The 2010 Total Program Expenses should match the amount in the 2010 Total Program Budget space in the Program Information section of the LOI. 2009 program budget information should be completed by applicants whose LOI submission is for a currently operating program (whether funded by UWCO or not). The projected revenue and expenses for currently operating programs in 2009 will give reviewers the opportunity to understand the projected changes in revenue and expenses from 2009 to 2010. Applicants whose LOI submission is for a new program that will not be implemented until 2010 should put “0” (which will signify that there will not be 2009 budget) in the 2009 Budget spaces.

In providing budget information, please round all numbers to the nearest dollar.

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UWCO recognizes that some amount of indirect (management) expenses are reasonable agency expenses which may be spread across all agency programs and included in the total program budgets. Indirect expenses include all costs which cannot be attributed to the direct operation of a particular program (e.g., the executive director’s salary, bookkeeping and accounting expenses, fundraising costs for the organization, and general office administrative expenses.)

The program budget includes a space for noting indirect expenses which have been assigned to the program for which the LOI is submitted.

Specific definitions and explanations for the line items in the program budget are noted below: SUPPORT/REVENUE Contributions: Include all moneys received by the agency for which the donor receives no direct/private benefits.

Foundations/Trusts: Include all moneys received from foundation grants and trusts.

Special Events: Include all moneys derived from any special fund-raising events held by the agency. Examples include dinners, dances, sales and benefits.

Legacies and Bequests: Report all amounts from legacies and bequests, applied to operations for the reporting period.

Federated Fund-Raising Organizations: Include allocations and appropriations and other forms of financial support received or receivable from federated fundraising organizations (other than United Way). Examples include the Jewish Federation and the Catholic Diocese.

Other United Ways: Include total of any allocation(s) from other United Ways.

Fees and Grants from Government Agencies: Report the total of moneys received from federal, state and local government sources. Include here all fees, grants, contracts, third party payments (Medicaid) and purchase of service agreements obtained from any government source. Examples of government fund sources include Social Services Block Grant (Title XX), Franklin County Children's Services (FCCS) Levy, Mental Health Levy, Medicaid reimbursement payments, Rehabilitation Services Commission, etc.

Note: Fees for service from government and local levy sources should be included here and not in Program Service Fees.

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Membership Dues: Include here only funds received by the agency for personal and corporate memberships resulting in access to agency facilities and/or services.

Program Service Fees: Include any fees for services received directly from the client. Examples include adoption fees, child care fees and course fees (or partial fees) paid out of pocket by the client.

Note: Any fees paid by government or local levy services should be reported as part of Fees and Grants from Government Agencies.

Investment Income: Include any funds applied to operations from interest, dividends, and other income from investments. Examples include Certificates of Deposit, Money Market Accounts, Repurchase Agreements, endowments, dividends and stocks.

Miscellaneous: Include all other agency revenue not covered in other revenue line items. Please specify the revenue source or type in the space provided.

Transfer from restricted funds: Include any money applied to operations from a donor restricted fund. Funds restricted for specific purposes by the agency board, and not legally restricted by a donor, are not considered to be restricted for use here.

United Way Program Funding: Report the amount of the UWCO funding projected for 2009 (if the program currently receives a UWCO program allocation) and the amount requested for 2010.

United Way Special Grant/Initiative: Examples include emergency operating grants, initiative funding and other one time or time-limited grants.

Note: Grants from United Way's Emergency Property Maintenance Fund should not be included here.

TOTAL SUPPORT/REVENUE: This represents the sum of all support/revenue for the total program and will be automatically calculated.

EXPENSES Salaries: Include all salaries and wages earned by the program's regular employees (full and part-time) and temporary employees other than consultants engaged on an individual contract basis.

Include all employee retirement expenses.

Include all employee health insurance expenses.

Include all employee life insurance expenses.

Include all other employee benefit expenses.

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Payroll Taxes: Include payroll taxes such as social security and compensation insurance premiums, payable by employers under federal, state or local laws.

Examples include FICA payments (employer's share), unemployment insurance and Workmen's Compensation Insurance.

Professional Fees: Include all fees paid to consultants engaged on an individual contract basis. Examples include fees and charges of professional practitioners, technical consultants, or semi-professional technicians, who are not employees of the agency. Amounts paid to mechanics, artisans, repairmen and others engaged in maintenance and repair services to an agency should not be included here, but in Occupancy.

Supplies: Include the cost of materials, appliances and other supplies used by the program. Examples include office supplies; recreational, vocational and craft supplies; housekeeping supplies, and other program related supplies.

Telephone: Include the cost of all telephone, telegraph, mailgram, teleprocessing, and similar communication expenses.

Postage and Shipping: Include the cost of all postage, parcel post, commercial trucking and other delivery expenses such as shipping and shipping materials, incurred in the operation of the agency.

Occupancy: Enter the total costs arising from the program’s occupancy and use of owned or leased land, buildings and offices, including rental, mortgage, utility and other costs.

Equipment Rental and Maintenance: Include all costs of rental and maintenance of various equipment such as electronic data processing units, typewriters, calculators, dictaphones, etc., used by the program.

Printing and Publication: Include all costs of printing charges of commercial artists and suppliers for plates, artwork, proofs, photographs, and other costs for newsletters, leaflets, films and other informational materials. Also included in this line item are costs of purchased publications, technical journals, books pamphlets and monographs.

Travel: Include all costs of travel and transportation of staff and volunteers related to the program. These include bus and taxicab fares; gas, oil, and repairs for company vehicles; insurance, licenses, permits and leasing costs for company vehicles; hotel, meals, and incidental expenses of program staff and volunteers.

Note: Costs related to transportation of clients from one place to another for any purpose should be included under Specific Assistance to Individuals.

Conferences, Conventions: Include all costs of conducting meetings related to the program’s activities. Examples include: the costs of rents or fees charged for 22

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the use of meeting rooms or equipment; meeting supplies such as programs, notices, lodges, etc.; food and beverage costs for meetings; speakers honoraria and expenses; registration fees incurred by an employee or volunteer of the agency while attending a meeting, seminar, workshop, conference or convention.

Specific Assistance to Individuals: Include all costs of specific items, appliances, materials, services and any other assistance rendered by individuals or agencies other than agency staff, purchased at the expense of the agency, for a particular client or patient. Examples include medical costs; food, shelter, and clothing expenses; transportation expenses; cost of the purchase or repair of prosthetic appliances; cost of program supplies; and cost of other items purchased in whole or in part, for a particular client.

Membership Dues: Include the cost of all expenses for bona fide memberships in other organizations which provided, in turn, benefits such as regular services, publications, materials, etc. Examples include the cost of dues for individual membership of staff members in other organizations relevant to the functions of the program, and organization dues other than support payments to national "parent" or equivalent organizations.

Note: Dues or support to national organizations should be reported in Dues or Support to National.

Miscellaneous: Include all other expenses which are not included in the other costs categories above. Use the space provided to specify the type or nature of the expenses.

Dues or Support to National: Include all costs related to dues or support of the national affiliate of the agency.

Depreciation and Amortization: Include all costs of fixed asset depreciation and software amortization for the fiscal year.

TOTAL DIRECT EXPENSES: The sum of all the direct expenses noted for the categories described above.

INDIRECT EXPENSES: Enter the amount of indirect expenses (management, fundraising and other) which have been assigned to the program.

TOTAL EXPENSES: This line represents the sum of all costs (both direct and indirect) for the program and will be automatically calculated.

SURPLUS/DEFICIT: This is the difference between Total Support/Revenue and Total Expenses which will be automatically calculated. Total Expenses must not exceed Total Support/Revenue for the purposes of this application.

UNITS OF SERVICE: Insert the number of units of service provided in Program Information – Part 4.

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UNIT DESCRIPTION: This is a brief definition of the primary unit of service for the program (one hour of counseling, one day of adult day care). This definition should match the definition provided in Program Information – Part 4.

COST PER UNIT: Please calculate using the formula Total Expenses/Units of Service.

D. PROGRAM BUDGET NARRATIVE The budget narrative provides applicants the opportunity to explain important budget factors and to clarify the assumptions that were made in preparing the budget.

Information should be provided in concise, but detailed phrases or bulleted statements – complete sentences are not required.

In the spaces provided for Revenue Assumptions and Explanations and Expense Assumptions and Explanations, describe the assumptions and projections about revenue/support and expenses for the program budget for 2010 (and 2009, if the program will be operating during this year). Note any significant budget changes and factors (e.g., staff salary and benefit levels, addition or loss of revenue sources).

For line items that are large or change substantially from 2009 to 2010, provide a brief explanation.

Examples of information that could be included in the first sections of the program budget narrative include: • • • • • • • • • •

The increase in the salary line includes the addition of one FTE social worker and .5 FTE program evaluator Staff will receive a 3% salary increase in 2010 Health insurance premiums will not increase more than 10% The addition of one special event is expected to increase revenue to $50,000 in 2010 Government funding is estimated at $250,000, a 10% decrease from current levels Contributions will increase to $15,000 due to a direct mail campaign Occupancy costs are projected to increase due to the expansion of the program into three new classrooms Materials for marketing the program will include brochures and posters Professional fees include 200 hours of consultant time for participant tutoring Foundation revenue will decrease in 2010 due to a one-time grant in 2009 for software and program materials.

The rationale and method of assigning indirect costs to the program should be explained in the last section of the program budget narrative.

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Online Application Questions 2010 Program Investment Process

LETTER OF INTENT ORGANIZATION INFORMATION Organization Legal Name: Organization Mailing Address: (Street or Post Office Box) (City, State & Zip) Organization Phone: (xxx) xxx-xxxx

Organization Fax: (xxx) xxx-xxxx

Organization Website: Executive Director/CEO: (Name) Executive Director/CEO Phone: (xxx) xxx-xxxx Board Chair: (Name) Program Contact: (Name) Program Contact Phone: (xxx) xxx-xxxx Organization EIN:

Executive Director/CEO Email: (Email) Board Chair Affiliation: (Work Place) Program Contact Title: (Position) Program Contact Email: (Email) Date IRS 501(c)(3) status determined: (MM-DD-YYYY)

Organization Mission Statement: (50 words or less) PROGRAM INFORMATION – PART 1 Program Name: 2010 UWCO Funding Requested

2010 Total Program Budget

2010 Total Agency Budget

$

$

$

UWCO Impact Area: Select One: Primary Community Result Addressed by Program: Select One:

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PROGRAM INFORMATION – PART 2 Is this an existing program?

Yes No If yes, how long has the program been in operation? (25 words or less) Is this a collaborative proposal?

Yes No If yes, list collaborative partners, their roles, and resources committed to the program: (250 words or less) Program Summary: (100 words or less) Has organization previously received UWCO funding (check all that apply)?

Ongoing program investment Donor designation Initiative Funding No Other (Describe in 25 words or less) The agency executive and board chair have reviewed the Letter of Intent materials and they affirm that the information provided is accurate and provides full and fair disclosure.

Yes

PROGRAM INFORMATION – PART 3 What is the intent of the program?

(100 words or less) How does the program contribute to the achievement of the community result?

(50 words or less) What community need or condition does the program address?

(50 words or less) What data clearly document the need or condition described above?

(300 words or less) What UWCO strategy does the program use?

(Please select from the list in UWCO’s resource documents). (50 words or less)

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Does the program respond to a UWCO priority consideration for the community result?

Yes

No

If yes, what is the priority consideration? Describe how the program addresses it.

(200 words or less) What is the intervention target for the program?

(50 words or less) What are the specific characteristics of the intervention target?

(200 words or less)

PROGRAM INFORMATION – PART 4 Describe the primary program activities.

(500 words or less) What inputs (staff, supplies, facilities, volunteers, other) will the program use to deliver the proposed activities?

(250 words or less) Which of UWCO’s specified performance measures for this strategy will the program track? (Please select from the list in UWCO’s resource documents).

(100 words or less) What is the unit of service for the program?

(25 words or less) What amount of service will the program deliver in 2009 and 2010?

Units of Service Persons/Intervention Targets Served

Projected - 2009 (enter number) (enter number)

Projected - 2010 (enter number) (enter number)

PROGRAM INFORMATION – PART 5 What results have the program achieved in past? How have those results been tracked and measured? How have results been used to improve the program?

(200 words or less) How does the program collaborate and/or integrate with other services, organizations and systems to achieve results?

(250 words or less)

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Describe the organization’s capacity (staff expertise, financial resources, etc.) to effectively and efficiently deliver the program and achieve and track the stated performance measures.

(250 words or less) Other (250 words or less)

PROGRAM BUDGET 2009 Budget

2010 Budget

SUPPORT/REVENUE Contributions Foundations/Trusts Special Events Legacies and Bequests Federated fund-raising orgs Other United Ways Fees and Grants from Govt Agencies Membership Dues Program Service Fees Investment Income Misc. (Specify)__________________________ Transfer from restricted funds UWCO Program Funding UWCO Special Grant/Initiative TOTAL SUPPORT/REVENUE EXPENSES Salaries Retirement Health Insurance Life Insurance Other Payroll Taxes Professional Fees Supplies Telephone Postage & Shipping Total Occupancy Equipment rental & maintenance Printing & Publication

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EXPENSES (continued) Travel Conferences, conventions Specific Assistance to Individuals Membership dues Misc. (Specify)__________________________ Dues or Support to National Depreciation TOTAL DIRECT EXPENSES INDIRECT EXPENSES TOTAL EXPENSES

2009

2010

TOTALS SURPLUS/DEFICIT Units of Service Unit Description Cost per Unit

2009

2010

PROGRAM BUDGET NARRATIVE Revenue Assumptions and Explanations (250 words or less) Expense Assumptions and Explanations (250 words or less) Indirect Expenses Explanation (250 words or less)

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