Guidelines

Writing your application

The five Community Education Grant program categories are based on District strategic initiatives. The categories are flood protection, natural systems, water conservation, water quality and watersheds. Projects should (1) fall under one or more of the categories, (2) be adult-oriented (rather than youth) projects that offer hands-on opportunities to learn more about the water resources and turn understanding into action, and (3) support the District’s vision of a stable, ample supply of clean water for all appropriate users, including the environment.

Grants are limited to one per organization, community group or individual and are not intended to fund organizations’ operational costs.

FY2012 grant funding is subject to District budget approval.

View sample application

Criteria

Projects will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

Focused education goals that include behavior change.
Well-developed plan.
Applicant’s ability to implement and complete the project based on detailed timeline, established partnerships and attainable goals.
Creativity in educating target audiences in cost-effective ways.
Number of people reached by the project.
Project cost for each participant contact hour (see FAQ for details).
Evaluation methods and tools that accurately measure project’s effectiveness.
Past performance of the applicant.
Alignment with the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s mission.
Demonstration of need.

Special consideration is given to projects that:

Document measurable water savings in gallons.
Document behavior change, knowledge increase and attitude change in regard to watershed and water resources.
Help people learn, in an innovative and cost-effective way, about watersheds and their importance — especially projects that could be duplicated in other areas of the District.
Equip people to practice watershed protection.
Provide hands-on educational activities.
Use volunteers to make the project a community effort.
Implement a project based-on research that uses a community-based social marketing approach that identifies barriers to public participation, uses behavior change tools, conducts research or a pilot program and has a method of evaluation (see FAQ for details or go to http://www.cbsm.com for more information on community-based social marketing).

Expectations

The following information is very important to consider when preparing your application.

Grant recipients must view a grant implementation webinar.
Prior to approval, applications may require revisions to the project, its components and proposed expenditures. The District’s program coordinator will work with applicants on revisions.
District funding will be acknowledged through placement of the District’s logo on all printed, visual, audio and Internet materials related to the project, and recognition will be subject to District approval.
All materials related to the project must be reviewed and approved by the District program coordinator prior to public viewing/access.
Grant recipients will be required to complete a final report by August 31, 2013. The report must include evaluation forms and documentation of the project, including sample materials, photos and/or video.
The District, as funding source, reserves the right to share all projects, concepts, artwork, photos, videos and products of these grants with individuals who desire to create projects in their own communities or to benefit the water resources.
All funded projects must be completed in accordance with District and state rules, regulations and procedures.
It is the applicant’s responsibility to obtain all permits, local government approvals and all real property rights necessary to complete the project prior to receipt of purchase order and project implementation. The District will have no obligation to reimburse project costs until necessary permits and property rights have been obtained.
If your project involves coordination between multiple organizations, you must submit at time of application a letter of intent from each participating organization. This letter must indicate the organization’s specific commitment(s) to your project.
Permanent signage and/or exhibit projects require a letter of intent at time of application from the agency that owns the land where the signage and/or exhibit will be installed.
All signage must meet with District written approval as to form, content and location, and must in accordance with local sign ordinances prior to print and installation.
The District will conduct Spanish translation for project materials and reserves the right to approve or decline translation requests based on impact, feasibility and costs.
Applications with project activity prior to November 1, 2012, or after July 31, 2013, will not be accepted.

Budget

A line-item budget must be completed on the application. The District may choose to fund a project at less than 100 percent of the proposed budget.

Grant recipients will be required to fund the project and then request reimbursement for approved purchases. All reimbursements will be made in accordance with Florida Statutes upon successful project completion, required invoicing documentation and receipt of final report. The District reserves the right to audit the use of the funds to meet the public purpose.

Note: A federal tax ID number and W-9 form for the organization must be submitted to the District before a purchase order can be opened. If more than one organization is involved in the project, please use the organization that has a federal tax ID number and bank account, etc., when completing the application. If the group or organization does not have a federal tax ID number, the coordinator of the project may use his or her social security number.

The District will not reimburse for any work done or any purchases made before a purchase order is issued.

The District will not reimburse for any printed, visual or Internet material costs related to the project that have not been approved prior to printing or public viewing/access.

The District may pay for the following project-related items:

Field trips and transportation costs for field trips
Freshwater resources education software
Meeting room rentals
One micro-irrigation system per demonstration plot
Online survey programs (not to exceed $20 per month or $100 of budget)
Portable toilet rentals
Postage
Printing
Professional graphic services
Tool rentals
Signage (lead contact on application must be employee of the agency responsible for the property where signage will be installed)
Supplies necessary to implement the project (e.g., trash pickers, loppers, rakes, etc.)

Items we do not pay for include:

Awards/plaques
Brochure creation
Cameras, film and film processing
Computer hardware (e.g., thumb drives, computers)
Computer software not exclusively related to water resources education
Educational materials duplicative of District materials
Food, beverages or any meals
Infrastructure (e.g., boardwalks, permanently installed cisterns, rain catchment gutters, pavers, filtration and aeration systems, construction projects, etc.)
Irrigation piping
Permits
Salaries (e.g., project coordination or administration)
T-shirts
Website development or website providers
Video cameras, audio/visual equipment

Unbudgeted expenses

Purchases for items other than those specified in the line-item budget on the application will require District program coordinator approval before they are incurred. Unapproved expenditures are not reimbursable.