Everyone Counts

Our nation gets just one chance each decade to count its population. Each person uncounted, leads to an estimated loss of $2,000 per year in federal funding for education, infrastructure, and human service expenditures that are vital to our communities. The most vulnerable in our community such as children, seniors, and immigrant populations are both historically the most undercounted audiences and those who are most impacted by the consequences of an incomplete count.

In Santa Cruz County, it is our responsibility to work together to ensure that every resident is counted. The Community Foundation anticipates having approximately $200,000 in funding available for organizations fulfilling goals and activities in our county's census Strategic Plan.

Eligibility:

The most important requirements for funding eligibility are:

• A successful track record working in the 15 Extremely High / Very High Hard-to-Count (HTC) census tracts as identified in the Strategic Plan;
• Proven ability to implement Strategic Plan activities with HTC populations;
• Participation in Complete Count Committee meetings, outreach activities, trainings, and/or subcommittees;
• The ability to log and track outreach efforts in the Statewide Outreach and Rapid Deployment (SwORD) mapping portal;
• The ability to meet the needs of diverse language as identified in the language access plan; and
• Ability and willingness to leverage funding. For example, organizations may offer to:
  • Waive fees related to grants
  • Provide staff time in-kind
  • Support volunteers
  • Raise additional dollars

Additionally, please note that both public and private non-profit organizations may apply.

Process:

To honor the work of the Santa Cruz County Complete Count Committee, we will work with the Committee’s participants to jointly identify the strategies and resource allocations best able to fulfill the strategic plan in each of the priority census tracts’ Hard-To-Count populations. Through a facilitated meeting of the Complete Count Committee in September, we expect to identify the partners best suited to fulfill implementation goals and activities.

Timeline:

• August 30th, 2019: Due date to notify Community Foundation of intention to apply
• September 18, 2019: Complete Count Committee facilitated meeting for identifying partner organizations
• October 4, 2019: Draft award letters distributed to partner
• October 16, 2019: Additional funding updates at the Complete Count Committee meeting

Selection Process:
A selection committee will be made up of community leaders familiar with the Strategic Plan who represent organizations that do not intend to apply. The selection committee will be appointed after the Foundation’s notification deadline on August 30th.
 
To notify us of your Intention to Apply, please email your responses to these questions to grants@cfscc.org:

1. Organizational Name:

2. Contact Person:

3. Which census tracts are you seeking funding to conduct Strategic Plan activities?

4. Please briefly tell us about your organization’s experience reaching Hard to Count populations in that/those Extremely High / Very High census tracts:

5. Please briefly describe your experience implementing activities highlighted in the Strategic Plan.

6. Please describe your ability to fulfill the language access plan:

7. Please describe your involvement in 2020 Complete Count Committee activities.

• # of Meetings attended:
• Subcommittees involvement:
• Activities and trainings to date:

8. Have you committed to establishing a questionnaire assistance center or kiosk (QAC or QAK)?

9. Please tell us how you plan to leverage limited census funding:

10. The Plan identifies four major upcoming phases, please help us distribute funds when they are needed most by describing when you plan to be active in census activities and in need of support funds:

• Educate / Motivate – Fall 2019
• Activate – January-March 2020
• Census Day – April 2020
• Follow-up – May-July 2020

11. Are you a public organization or private non-profit? Other?

12. How much funding do you anticipate requesting (of the approx. $200K)?