Grants Available for Youth Development

From Justin Carbonella

The Middletown Youth Services Bureau announces two grant opportunities for the Middletown community. The first is the City’s Educational Incentives Challenge Grant. For the fourth year in a row, the 2:1 matching grant, allows for $55,000 to be awarded to local youth development programs. Specifically, the grant is looking to fund program activities for children in Grades K-12 that help support at-risk, under-represented students who traditionally are not involved in programming outside the regular school day. These activities may be of academic, recreational, cultural, physical, psychological, and/or emotional benefit to the child. The funding range per grant is between $2,500 and $10,000 but a 2:1 match (agency to city) must be in place.

In addition to the funding, the grant also focuses on supporting programs implement a youth development framework called the 40 Developmental Assets, endorsed by the YSB and the community at large. The assets are building blocks that help all young people grow into healthy and successful adults and have been proven, both nationally and locally, to also protect against a host of risk factors. A bidders conference for the grant has been scheduled for August 28^th at 10am in the Board of Education’s Conference Room A.

An additional funding opportunity from the department is provided through the Middletown Substance Abuse Prevention Council which the YSB co-chairs along with the Rushford Center. The MSAPC is releasing its mini-grants for the 2009-10 grant cycle. The grants which offer a max funding level of $1,000 may be used to support any substance prevention or youth development program in the community. A priority will be given to applications that specifically address issues of prescription drug and heroin use, as both will be priorities for the council this upcoming year. All successful grantees will be required to have a representative join the council which meets on the third Wednesday of every month in the Middletown High School Media Center at 3pm. All members of the community are welcomed to join.

Information on the Educational Incentives Challenge Grant and the MSAPC mini-grants can be found on the YSB’s website at www.middletownyouthservices.com or by calling Justin Carbonella, Youth Services Coordinator at 860-347-8594 ext 4517.