2009 NCLR/AECF Family Strengthening Awards - Peer-to-Peer Training Sessions Application

National Council of La Raza (NCLR)/Annie E. Casey Foundation 2009 Family Strengthening Awards Program

Peer-to-Peer Training Sessions Application Overview Please review all of the following information before completing the application.

FAMILY STRENGTHENING AWARDS PROGRAM OVERVIEW The National Council of La Raza (NCLR) and the Annie E. Casey Foundation (AECF) believe that in order for children to have the opportunities necessary to achieve and grow up in a healthy environment, their families must have access to services and social networks that strengthen their ability to provide for and nurture them. The factors necessary to strengthen families include opportunities to work, earn a decent living, and build assets; social networks that help isolated families link with friends and neighbors as well as social, civic, and religious institutions; and accessible and responsive public services, such as good health care, decent schools, and fair and effective law enforcement. NCLR s network of Affiliate organizations plays a key role in providing Latino families with the tools and resources they need to take advantage of the opportunities that this nation has to offer them. To recognize these efforts, NCLR and AECF have partnered to reward those community-based organizations that help improve outcomes for families by connecting them to the trustworthy and responsive resources they need to succeed.

Through its Family Strengthening Awards Program, NCLR has selected three Affiliates which have demonstrated how their holistic programs make an impact on Latino families in their communities. The award-winning Affiliates will work with NCLR to document and disseminate their best practices and, to this end, offer NCLR Affiliates the opportunity to participate in onsite training sessions as well as access to a one-time opportunity award to further their learning about family strengthening and/or initiate the replication of the family strengthening program for which they attended the training session.

PEER-TO-PEER TRAINING SESSIONS NCLR will arrange for a total of 35 to 45 representatives of NCLR Affiliates to attend on-site training sessions with selected 2009 Family Strengthening Award winners. The sessions will include a site visit and meetings with the winning program s clients and key program staff, who will lead discussions on funding and best practices. The award-winning Affiliates will outline the best practices they have used to strengthen Hispanic families in their communities, and will 1

provide an open dialogue for the participating Affiliates to share and develop potential solutions to the challenges they face in running their own programs. Each session will involve at least one representative from the winning program and ten to 15 participants from selected NCLR Affiliates. Selected Affiliates will participate in at least one conference call prior to the training session to clearly identify their goals, objectives, and desired outcomes from attending the session.

NCLR will pay for up to $500 for airfare and two nights in a hotel near the winning program s facilities for one representative from each chosen Affiliate organization. NCLR Affiliates will assume any additional costs, such as taxi fare and meals.

Those Affiliates selected to participate in the training sessions must coordinate their visit with the Affiliate Programs Coordinator at NCLR. Each selected Affiliate may send one representative to the session. Failure to participate in mandatory conference calls or respond to communications from NCLR will result in the NCLR Affiliate losing its place at the training session. All training sessions will take place during fall 2009.

Application Process NCLR considers the following criteria in choosing Affiliates to participate in the peer-to-peer training sessions: The Affiliate is in good standing at NCLR and is up-to-date on its dues payments and recertification documents (most recent board of directors list, audited financial statements, and a signed Memorandum of Understanding).

The Affiliate is operating or has concrete plans to begin operating a program similar to the winning program from which it wants to receive training.

The Affiliate has a clear understanding of the goals it wishes to achieve through attending the training session.

The Affiliate has demonstrated a dedication to strengthening Hispanic families in its own programs.

To be considered for the peer-to-peer training sessions, the Affiliate must address the questions below. Please write brief answers to the following questions. Please write your answer in the box provided. Your answers and comments will help us tailor the training agenda to your program s needs.

1. Provide a description of your organization and the family strengthening program it operates or plans to operate. A maximum of 15 points will be awarded for this portion of the application. ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________

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2. Explain how the program is similar to the winning FSA program that you have chosen to participate in. If you are not yet operating this program, please describe at what point in the planning stages you are in and what, if any, funding has been secured. A maximum of 40 points will be awarded for this portion of the application. ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ 3. What are the current challenges that your program is experiencing? A maximum of 40 points will be awarded for this portion of the application. ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ 4. What are your top goals for attending a technical training session? Select three. A maximum of 5 points will be awarded this portion of the application.

Increasing funding and revenue streams for our program Providing capacity-building for staff members Learning about creative and innovative ways to enhance our program Fostering community and national networks to strengthen our services Incorporating new program needs assessments and/or evaluation methods to improve our program Creating more peer contacts and increasing collaborative opportunities If you have other goals, please list them: __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________

In an effort to reduce environmental impact, all applications must be submitted via email only.

Please email all your application materials to Mauricio Hernandez at mhernandez@nclr.org

by August 21, 2009. Faxed, mailed, or hand-delivered applications will not be accepted.

Questions or concerns should be directed to Mauricio Hernandez at mhernandez@nclr.org or (202) 776-1716. Affiliates selected to participate in the peer-to-peer training sessions will be notified by August 28, 2009.

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National Council of La Raza (NCLR)/Annie E. Casey Foundation 2009 Family Strengthening Awards Program

Peer-to-Peer Training Session Application Form DEADLINE: August 21, 2009 Affiliate Organization: __________________________________________________________ Contact Name: ________________________________________________________________ Address: _____________________________________________________________________ Phone Number: ________________________________________________________________ Email: _______________________________________________________________________

Please choose ONE of the winning programs for the peer-to-peer training session. A full description of the winning programs is included on pages 5 6 of this form.

The Resurrection Project s Financial Services Initiative The Resurrection Project, Chicago, IL Date: September 17-18 Economic Advancement Services CLUES - Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio, St. Paul, MN Date: October 26 27 Alternativas para Latinas en Autosuficiencia (ALAS) Women s Initiative for Self Employment, San Francisco, CA Date: November 10 11

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National Council of La Raza (NCLR)/Annie E. Casey Foundation 2009 Family Strengthening Awards Program

Winner Profiles Affiliate Organization: CLUES - Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio Winning Program: Economic Advancement Services CLUES - Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio, a leading provider of innovative, linguistically and culturally appropriate behavioral health and human services for the Latino community in Minnesota, offers an array of competent services rendering hope, inspiration, empowerment, and connectedness for the people in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area. Providing direct services in the areas of Mental Health Services, Chemical Health Services, Aging Well Services, Economic Advancement Services, Family Protection Services, and Community Health Worker Services, CLUES is poised to help individuals and families resolve some of life s toughest challenges.

CLUES s Economic Advancement Services employs a linguistically appropriate and culturally proficient family-centric model to assist Latino individuals and families in overcoming barriers to family stability and economic advancement. Programs are coordinated to further clients along the self-sufficiency continuum as they increase English language proficiency and education levels, attain and retain better jobs, learn to save and accumulate assets, and learn how to support their children to succeed in school and life.

Affiliate Organization: The Resurrection Project (TRP) Winning Program: The Resurrection Project's Financial Services Initiative The Resurrection Project founded with a mission to build relationships, challenge people to act on their faith and values, and create healthy communities through organizing, education, and community development has been working for over 19 years in community reinvestment in the neighborhoods of Pilsen, Little Village, and Back of the Yards in southwest Chicago. TRP works alongside residents to create healthy communities through vehicles such as affordable housing, financial literacy, and promoting access to education and health care.

Since 1990, TRP s Financial Services Initiative has provided a diverse array of services to current and potential homebuyers through a multipronged Financial Services effort, including One-on-One Homeownership and Delinquency Counseling, Homeownership and Financial Literacy Workshops, and Community Partnering. By providing families with the education and

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training necessary to make wise financial decisions for their future, the Financial Services Initiative continues to holistically strengthening low-income Hispanic families in Chicago.

Affiliate Organization: Women s Initiative for Self Employment Winning Program: Alternativas para Latinas Autosuficiencia (ALAS) Women s Initiative for Self-Employment is the largest microenterprise training organization in the United States. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Women s Initiative propels low-income women to business success through business management training, microloans, and ongoing support services. Founded in 1988, Women s Initiative builds the entrepreneurial capacity of women to overcome economic and social barriers and achieve self-sufficiency by providing English and Spanish speaking women with the skills they need to start a business, increase their income, and build assets. Women s Initiative provides services in six Bay Area counties at eight public transportation- and handicap-accessible locations.

ALAS is the umbrella program for all Women s Initiative s trainings and services in Spanish.

As the first program of its kind in Northern California, it helps low-income Latinas overcome barriers to economic self-sufficiency by helping its clients build self-confidence and learn business management skills in a supportive environment. Through its three main services an entrepreneurial training workshop titled Mi Plan de Acci贸n, a 25-session business management course titled Paso a Paso: Construyendo Tu Negocio, and Avance, and a membership-based program that provides continuing financial and technical support for graduates building their businesses the ALAS program propels low-income women to business success through business management and training.

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