Applying for the

2014 Colorado

Collaboration

AwardPresented by Sara Raab, Manager of Special Projects,

Colorado Nonprofit Association

In this webinar…

• About the Award

• Can you apply? Eligibility requirements

• How to apply What you’ll need for the

application

• What happens next? Timeline, selection

process

Goals:

1. To recognize an outstanding collaboration

each year

2. To build awareness about successful

collaborative models

3. To highlight and share proven best practices

About the Award

About the Award

• Steering committee

• Screening and Review committees

• Final Selection Panel

Colorado Nonprofit Association serves as the administrative and fiscal home of the Colorado Collaboration Award

Structure of the Award

Past Winners

You can learn more about these and other

collaborations using the database at

www.ColoradoCollaboration.org

About the Award

Outstanding Collaborations & Successful

Applications

2013 winner: Western Colorado Landscape CollaborativeThe Western Colorado Landscape Collaborative is a partnership of federal and state agencies, including environmental agencies and local utilities, which works to strengthen ecosystems, improve wildlife habitats, and reduce fire danger in Western Colorado’s natural spaces.

Strengths:

Ability to collaborate across various sectors which typically can be wrought with political strife and grid lock.

Established political credibility in its communities, allowing projects and problems to be addressed in a manner that does not undermine each stakeholder’s needs.

Ensures each partner is clear about its roles and responsibilities, which is greatly facilitated by a clear MOUs and well-documented handbooks.

Many processes and procedures are routine and mutually agreed upon, so when change does arise, the group is already committed, experienced, and nimble in how to respond and adapt.

Allows for leadership at the working group level.

Have created a “table of trust” which has been built over the years and serves as the foundation for their successful endeavors.

Outstanding Collaborations & Successful

Applications

2012 winner: Boulder County IMPACTBoulder County IMPACT works to reduce detention, commitment, placement and hospitalization of juveniles ages 10-17.

Highlights: The infrastructure team has 1 full time staff person who ensures that all partner

agencies are receiving the same information and training.

There is a youth advisory board that plays a key role in the development and improvement of all IMPACT programs.

IMPACT is committed to rigorous evaluation of program effectiveness….All programs submit annual operational plans, complete quarterly reports and enter data into a common database.

Results: Boulder IMPACT has maintained the lowest number of committed youth per capita in the state and has saved the State of Colorado an estimated $30 million dollars over the 12 years of the contract. The commitment rate (per 10,000 youth) for Boulder County in 2010-2011 was 6.3, compared to a 19.1 statewide rate.

Questions?

About the Award

Can you apply?

Eligibility FAQ #1: Q. We don’t meet all the requirements. Can we still

apply?

A. No; it is necessary to meet all the eligibility requirements. Applications are screened for eligibility, and only applications that pass the screening stage are advanced for reading and review.

Can you apply?

Basic Requirements1. Be based in and serving Colorado.

2. Involve two or more entities (i.e. nonprofit

organizations, businesses, and/or government

agencies).

3. Include a lead organization (for the purposes of this

application) that is a 501(c)(3).

Can you apply?

4. Have begun operations during or before September

2012.

Why?The Colorado Collaboration Award places a strong emphasis on

evaluation and results. A newer collaboration won’t be able to

demonstrate the level of sustained impact the Award looks for.

Can you apply?

5. Have a collaborative structure, including:

• Shared leadership and decision-making among partners (i.e.,

not a contractor/contractee, fiscal agent, or parent/chapter

relationship).

• Shared goals and planning among partners.

• Shared contribution of resources from partners.

Can you apply?

Why?

Check out www.ColoradoCollaboration.org for the new quiz on The Three C’s:

Cooperation, Coordination and Collaboration?

Shared leadership is considered one of the defining characteristics of a true

collaboration.

6. Have a structure that is evidenced by a formal written

agreement (i.e., memorandum of understanding (MOU),

contract, or merger agreement).

• Have a written agreement (MOU, contract, or merger

agreement) dated September 2012 or earlier.

Can you apply?

Why?

The award steering committee agrees that having a written agreement is

an important best practice; it helps ensure that a collaboration can

survive changes in its environment or key people, and is an important tool

for building long-term stability and success.

An MOU dated September 2012 or earlier is required as documentation

that the collaboration began operations at least 18 months prior to the

Award deadline.

5. Submit the lead organization’s nondiscrimination policy;

this policy must expressly include “sexual orientation” and

“gender expression.”

Can you apply?

Why?

This requirement was proposed and adopted by the award’s founding steering committee, a diverse group of Colorado funders and capacity-builders, who agreed that this requirement is in keeping with the spirit of the Award itself.

Visit www.ColoradoNonprofits.org/gender-expression-policy/ to learn more about this requirement.

What if you don’t have the required policy in place right now?

The lead organization must adopt this wording as part of its nondiscrimination policy – and submit the new policy as part of the application – by the application deadline.

Can you apply?

More

FAQs

Q. Our collaboration includes partners that are government

agencies, businesses, etc. Are we eligible to apply?

A. Yes, as long as at least one partner is a Colorado-based

501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, and that partner serves as the

lead organization for the application.

Q. Our collaboration serves areas outside Colorado. Are we

eligible?

A. Yes, as long as the collaboration’s service area includes

Colorado, and the collaboration itself is based in Colorado.

Can you apply?

Questions?

How to apply

1. Go to ColoradoCollaboration.org and click Apply for the Award.

2. Take the Eligibility Self-Assessment. At the end, it will direct you to the application.

3. Start the online application. (More details on this in a moment.)

4. Finish the online application by March 14.

How to apply

At any point, click Save and Quit to save your work and get an email with your username and login.

Application: Section 1

How to apply

The Application

Section 1

Contact Information

We’ll use this information to

communicate with you about your

application (request additional information,

send status updates, etc.)

Your application username &

password will go to the email

address you provide here.

At any point, click Save and Quit to save your work and get an email with your username and login.

Application: Section 2

How to apply

The Application

Section 2

See the full list

of application

questions at Colorado Collaboration.org

Overview Questions

Basic information about the collaboration (lead organization, mission, list of partners, budgeted revenue & expense, etc.)

None of your responses will be directly considered during evaluation

Large-budget collaborations, larger geographic efforts, or bigger lists of partners don’t make one collaboration “better” than another.

Be accurate! (While this section isn’t specifically scored, the reviewers don’t like discrepancies between your responses here and in other sections.)

At any point, click Save and Quit to save your work and get an email with your username and login.

Application: Section 3

How to apply

The Application

Section 3

See the full list

of application

questions at Colorado Collaboration.org

Narrative Questions Formation (5 points)

Structure (15 points)

Purpose and Goals (25 points)

Results to date (40 points)

Planning (5 points)

Anticipated Challenges and Opportunities (5

points)

Budget (5 points)

How to apply

The Application

Section 4

See the full list

of application

questions at Colorado

Collaboration.org

Attachments 501(c)(3) letter, dated 2008 or later, for the lead

organization

Written agreement (e.g., MOU or contract) dated

September 2012 or earlier

Current written agreement (e.g., MOU or contract)

Nondiscrimination policy from the lead organization

(including “sexual orientation” and “gender

expression”)

Collaboration’s 2014 budget (if applicable)

Executive summary

Additional attachments (if needed; please don’t

upload any materials not requested above)

Application: Section 4

How to apply

Application Attachments 501(c)(3) letter, dated 2008 or later, for the lead organization

Need an updated IRS letter? Instructions are available at

ColoradoCollaboration.org under Apply for the Award > Application >

IRS Determination vs. Affirmation Letters.

How to apply

Application Attachments Original documentation of the collaboration structure

(memorandum of understanding/MOU, contract, or merger

agreement), dated September 2012 or earlier.

This documentation demonstrates that the collaboration began formal

operations at least 18 months before the 2014 Award deadline.

Current documentation of the collaboration structure

(memorandum of understanding (MOU), contract, or merger

agreement).

This documentation shows the current structure of the collaboration, as

well as the roles and responsibilities of each partner.

How to apply

Application Attachments: What Is an MOU?

To qualify, all documentation/agreements submitted must:

Be signed and dated by all partners.

Reference all partners.

Outline the collaboration’s structure.

Describe the partners’ roles and responsibilities.

For more details, visit www.ColoradoCollaboration.org and go

to Apply for the Award > Eligibility Requirements > What is an

MOU?

How to apply

Application Attachments: What Is an MOU?

Documentation that will not be accepted:

Grant applications or reports

Lease agreements

Contracts or agreements with third parties (organizations/entities

which are not partners in the collaboration)

Samples, templates, or blank forms of agreements

How to apply

Application Attachments

Executive Summary of the collaboration (ONE page only):

Highlight what makes your collaboration unique, innovative, and

a model for other collaborations to follow.

You can be more creative and focus on things the narrative

questions might not have asked about.

Don’t repeat a significant amount of information covered

elsewhere in the application.

The information above has been quoted and/or adapted from the Colorado Common

Grant Application User’s Guide.

Application Tips

Find this list at www.ColoradoCollaboration.org > Application > Application Tips

How to apply

Questions?

What happens next?

What happens next?

Eligible applications advanced to next round

Collaborations asked to provide Participant Endorsement Forms (1 per

partner)

March 14: Application Deadline

March 31: Screening complete

April 18: Deadline for Participant Endorsement Forms

June 30: Review round #1 complete

Review committee finishes reading and scoring applications

Semi-finalists selected

Review committee schedules site visits with semi-finalists

Collaborations are evaluated and scored based on: • Depth of collaboration

• Demonstration of significant impact

• Innovation in addressing a specific challenge or opportunity

• Relevance as a model other nonprofit collaborations can replicate

• Effectiveness of community engagement

• Operation in accordance with nonprofit and collaborative best practices

Application Review

What happens next?

Site visits complete

Finalists selected

July 25: Review round #2 complete

August: Winner selected

Final Selection Panel meets in August to choose the winner

October: Award presented

2014 Colorado Collaboration Award presented at Colorado Nonprofit

Association’s Fall Conference & Exhibition

Winner invited to present a session at the Fall Conference

The End!

Questions?

Thank you!

www.ColoradoCollaboration.org

collaboration@ColoradoNonprofits.org