1/20: Promise Zone opportunities

SC Promise Zone

New resources, webinars, funding information for the S.C. Lowcountry Promise Zone

PromiseZone_logo_80wUSDA DEADLINE EXTENDED:
Grant applications sought to help repair rural housing

Deadline: Extended to March 15, 2016

USDA Rural Development is seeking applications for grants to make housing repairs for low- and very-low-income rural residents, and has extended the deadline to March 15, 2016. The grants are being provided through USDA Rural Development’s Housing Preservation Grant Program.

This program are intended to help rural homeowners and rental housing owners repair and improve their properties. Funds may be used to resolve health or safety issues, make accessibility modifications for people with disabilities, or make energy efficiency improvements to reduce utility costs.

Eligibility: Eligible applicants for Housing Preservation Grants include town or county governments, public agencies, federally recognized Indian Tribes, nonprofits, and faith-based organizations. USDA does not provide funding directly to homeowners under this program. For additional eligibility information, see page 81279 of the December 29, 2015, Federal Register. Funding is limited, and applications will be evaluated on a competitive basis with scoring preference for applications that serve very-low-income households, demonstrate leveraged funding, show the applicant’s capacity to successfully manage a housing repair program, and address other considerations as listed in the Federal Register notice.

Learn more about how to apply | More information.

FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

USDA:
$8.8 Million Available to Support Food and Agricultural Sciences Education at Hispanic-Serving Institutions

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced the availability of more than $8.8 million in competitive funding to support Hispanic-Serving Institutions’ (HSIs) agricultural science education programs. These grants will enhance the ability of these colleges and universities to support underserved students and develop a skilled American workforce.

Christopher Reeve Foundation:
Quality of Life Grants

Deadline: Feb. 15, 2016.

Grants to nonprofit organizations that provide services to individuals with paralysis, with special consideration given to wounded military and their families.

Office for Advancement of Telehealth:
Telehealth Resource Center Grant Program

Deadline: March 4, 2016

Supports the establishment and development of Telehealth Resource Centers (TRCs) which provide technical assistance to health care organizations, health care networks, and health care providers in the implementation of telehealth programs to serve rural and medically underserved areas and populations.

Presbyterian Hunger Program

Letter of Intent (Required): April 30, 2016 | Deadline: June 30, 2016

Provides funding to programs that work to address the root causes of hunger and provide services to those experiencing hunger.

DISTANCE LEARNING AND TELEMEDICINE:
Grant process open

Deadline: Applications due by March 14, 2016

USDA Rural Development is seeking applications for grant funding in its Distance Learning and Telemedicine program to help rural communities use the unique capabilities of telecommunications to connect to each other and the world to overcome the effects of remoteness and low population density. “For example, this program can link teachers and medical service providers in one area to students and patients in another,” according to USDA RD.

Click here to learn on how to apply for grant funding.

USDA:
Organic Transition Program grants

Deadline: April 15, 2016

The overall goal of the Organic Transitions Program (ORG) is to support the development and implementation of research, extension and higher education programs to improve the competitiveness of organic livestock and crop producers, as well as those who are adopting organic practices.

MORE GRANTS: Click here to find recently-announced grant openings

COMING EVENTS

WEBINARS: Learn how to use USDA Rural Development’s new application intake system

Five times: Jan. 27, 2016 to March 23, 2016

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Telecommunications Program will host a series of webinars focused on our new application intake system: RD Apply. This new system allows interested parties to apply electronically for loans and grants administered by the Rural Utilities Service (RUS).

Apply with ease for the latest RUS Farm Bill Broadband Loan Program and Infrastructure Program loans through RD Apply. Eventually, more programs will be added into the system, allowing a wider range of customers to submit applications electronically.

Learn about our new system at one of our WEBINAR training events (time and date subject to change):

  • Jan 27, 2016       2:30 – 4 PM EST
  • Feb 10, 2016       2:30 – 4 PM EST
  • Feb 23, 2016       10 – 11:30 AM EST
  • Mar 8, 2016         10 – 11:30 AM EST
  • Mar 23, 2016       2:30 – 4 PM EST

WEBINARS: Expanding Community Development Financial Institutes coverage in underserved areas

Five webinars: Jan. 26, 2016, to April 5, 2016

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) has released the schedule of the next set of free webinars through the Capacity Building Initiative’s “Expanding CDFI Coverage in Underserved Areas” series. The webinars, provided by Opportunity Finance Network and its partners, will be held between January 2016 and April 2016. The CDFI Fund launched the “Expanding CDFI Coverage in Underserved Areas” series to help fill the gaps in Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) service coverage in underserved communities in the United States and its territories. The free webinars are designed to maximize CDFI industry participation in this important training. The webinars will expand upon training topics developed for in-person training sessions held during the summer of 2015, as well as new topical content on expansion developed by CDFI experts. The five webinars are:

  • Partnerships for Financial Capability (Tuesday, January 26, 2016, 2 p.m. EST)
  • Exploring New Models for CDFI Coverage through Formation of New or Affiliated CDFIs (Tuesday, February 9, 2016, 2 p.m. EST)
  • Capitalization Strategies: Raising Debt and Equity for CDFIs (Tuesday, February 23, 2016, 2 p.m. EST)
  • Customer Acquisition (Tuesday, March 22, 2016, 2 p.m. EDT
  • Fundraising Strategies for your CDFI (Tuesday, April 5, 2016, 2 p.m. EDT
  • Future webinar opportunities will be posted as they are confirmed to the “Expanding CDFI Coverage in Underserved Areas” webpage. Webinars will be recorded and made available on the CDFI Fund’s Resource Bank later in 2016.

NEW RESOURCES

HUD:
New resources for the AFFH Rule published

HUD has published the following new resources related to the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) rule:

 In Rural Wyoming, Cops Learn New Skills To Deal With Mental Health Crises

Describes the Crisis Intervention Training being used in Wyoming and how it is preparing law enforcement officials for mental health crises since they are often the first emergency personnel to a scene of such a crisis, especially in rural areas.

Foundation Funding To Improve Rural Health Care

Provides a sampling of foundation funding that is supporting innovation in healthcare delivery in rural settings. 

Thrive 2015: Office of Rural Health Annual Report

Provides an overview of the VA Office of Rural Health’s programs and accomplishments in 2015 aimed to improve healthcare access for rural veterans. Includes statistics and data on rural veterans.
Sponsoring organization: Veterans Health Administration’s Office of Rural Health

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