Big Boost to Greater Baton Rouge Literacy Coalition

The Greater Baton Rouge Literacy Coalition, a LANO member, is one of forty-two organizations nationwide to receive funding through the 2009 Compassion Capital Fund. GBRLC’s grant award of $300,000 will assist in improving community wide literacy rates by strengthening faith based and community organizations in their efforts to provide adult literacy services.

The Compassion Capital Fund (CCF) Demonstration Program is administered by the Federal Office of Community Services Division of the Administration of Children and Families with the purpose of increasing the effectiveness and enhancing the ability of faith based and community organizations to provide social services by building their organizational capacity.

As part of the project, an anticipated six organizations will receive intensive, customized training and technical assistance (TTA) in the areas of leadership development, organizational development, program development and community engagement. In addition to TTA, three to six organizations will receive subawards to assist them in partnering with business and in developing workforce literacy curriculum and models for service delivery.

Interested faith-based and community organizations must meet eligibility requirements and submit applications to be considered for participation.

Charged with the responsibility of improving literacy in the Baton Rouge area, GBRLC supports literacy providers in outreach, retention and recruitment efforts; marketing; funding and resource development; quality and accountability; training, curriculum and best practices.

The CCF award falls directly in line with the identified goals of Baton Rouge’s community-wide literacy plan. GBRLC is eager to see this project implemented over the next year and anticipates great benefits to the Greater Baton Rouge community.

To find out more information about this funding or to request an application, contact Debbie O’Connor at 225-381-7141 or by email at debbie@brac.org

About the Greater Baton Rouge Literacy Coalition
The mission of the Greater Baton Rouge Literacy Coalition is to promote adult literacy through the creation, maintenance, and sustainability of an integrated, cohesive and well-managed system that supports literacy service providers.

Annual Heart in Hand Awards: Call for Nominations

Manners of the Heart is a nonprofit organization based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, that serves children and adults through professional instruction and application–level learning designed to build character, strengthen morals, and increase respectfulness across the United States and beyond.

Each year, the Heart in Hand Awards honor outstanding individuals or groups who are impacting the hearts of children by demonstrating humility, integrity, and respectfulness in all they do.

Through the Heart in Hand Awards, Manners of the Heart honors those who lead children through the example of their attitudes and behaviors. Heart in Hand Award categories include:

a) individual or group volunteers;
b) classrooms or schools;
c) organizations or businesses; and
d) communities.

This year’s nominations will be reviewed and winners will be chosen by our 2010 committee of previous award winners. Award winners will be honored at the Heart in Hand Award Gala on Wednesday, February 10, 2010. Dinner and awards begin at 7:00 pm at the LSU Rural Life Museum.

For further information on the award criteria, click here.

Encore Awards: New Grant Opportunity for Nonprofits

Encore Louisiana announces the inaugural Encore Awards, a competitive grant program to identify, support and promote best practice models for attracting and accommodating people 50 and above. This grant program is open to any nonprofit that contributes to the quality of life and community livability for persons age 50 and above.

LANO encourages you to explore this new grant opportunity if your clientele and organizational activities fit within the grant design.

Best practice models can span across the following categories:

• Land use and civic planning


• Cultural, recreational and tourism attractions


• Age-targeted, age-restricted or master-planned residential developments


• Volunteerism, employment and lifelong learning programs


• Programs to promote wellness and vitality


• Alternative transportation (including walking and biking)

Application release date is December 15, 2009 and the application deadline is January 15, 2010.

For more information or to download an application, please visit www.EncoreLouisiana.com.

Funding Available to Support Senior Volunteers Program in EBR

The Louisiana State Office of the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) announces the availability of Federal grant funds to support a Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) in East Baton Rouge Parish.

CNCS grants funding to organizations for the dual purpose of engaging persons 55 and older in volunteer service to meet critical community needs and to provide a high quality experience that will enrich the lives of volunteers.

$59,081 per year in federal funds is now available to support 450 volunteers. Applications must be submitted to the Corporation State Office by 5:00 pm on January 20, 2010. The successful applicant shall be awarded the funds and shall start the new program on April 1, 2010.

To determine if this program is consistent with your organization’s interests and capabilities as a potential sponsor, all interested parties are invited to participate in an informational meeting on Friday, December 18, 2009 at 10:00 a.m. To receive meeting logistical information, please contact Pam Olson, Louisiana State Program Director pgolson@cns.gov  by Wednesday, December 16, 2010.

Federal Nonprofit Capacity Building Programs Receives Funding

Louisiana nonprofits achieved a legislative victory last April when President Obama signed the Serve for America Act into law. This momentous bill expanded volunteer programs, including AmericaCorps, to encourage and increase opportunities for people of all ages to engage in community service.

The bill also created a new program to address the capacity needs of nonprofits to handle this volunteer expansion called the National Capacity Building Initiative.

This initiative, administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service, will authorize federal grants to intermediary nonprofit organizations who raise an equal matching grant from private sources. The grants will cover the cost of organizational development assistance to small and midsize nonprofit organizations.

Since passage of the National Capacity Building Initiative, LANO and other nonprofit advocates have been working hard to influence Congress to fund this program. Last week it was announced that a Congressional Conference committee will vote on an omnibus spending bill that will include $1 million for the first year of the National Capacity Building Initiative.

Please stay tuned for more information on how your organization can apply for these federal funds.