Youth Employability Program RFP
FO R T HE 20 14- 20 1 5 PRO G R AM Y E AR
APPLICATION COVER SHEET
Organization Name
Address (City, State, Zip Code)
Contact Person
Contact Title
Contact Phone
Contact Email
Application Eligibility Requirements
(Please check to acknowledge you have confirmed the status of these criteria):
If a member of HandsOn Network, is a member in good standing (current on dues and associated membership standards) at the time of the
application AND can remain a member in good standing for the length of this grant award.
If applicable, is current on fees payable to Points of Light /HandsOn Network
Organization has reviewed and will adhere to the Award Recipient Expectations & Requirements section.
Check one:
Is an independent 501(c)(3); OR
Has a fiscal agent partnership with 501(c)(3) OR
Is a program internal to another 501(c)(3) or local, county, state government or institution of higher education
Is located in an eligible area. Cities include Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, Newark, San Francisco, St. Louis, and
Washington, D.C.
PROJECT REQUEST - number of Full-Time VISTAs you are requesting for the 2014-2015 program year: 5
* The number of member slots is not guaranteed and will be approved after applications are reviewed and are subject to resource
availability and grant award from the Corporation for National and Community Service.
**Please note, failure to meet one or more of the above requirements may automatically disqualify an organization for consideration.
Program Timeline: August 2014 – August 2015
I understand that all VISTA projects must align with the VISTA program goals of poverty alleviation, community capacity
building, community empowerment, and sustainability, and that our proposed VISTA project must utilize the provided
curriculum.
Signature of CEO/Executive Director: ________________Date: _______________
Name of CEO/Executive Director: _______________________________
Complete National Service History (past 3 years)
List your organization’s experience hosting national service (AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, RSVP, NCC, VISTA) members.
Year
Hosted
Program Type
(VISTA,
National
Direct, State,
NCCC)
Position Title and
Focus
Youth Employability Program | RFP 2014-2015
Number of
Members
Sponsoring
Organization (HON,
CNCS, Other (provide
name))
Recruitment
and Retention
Rates
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SECTION A: Rationale and Approach
I.
ORGANIZATION OVERVIEW
A. Provide a brief history of your organization, including at least three specific
examples of your organization’s prior accomplishments and outcomes in the field of
service and volunteerism. For example, please describe how your organization uses
volunteers to serve the community, any recognition or awards received for service
and volunteering from national associations, or documented growth or outcomes of
volunteering programs.
II.
ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY AND YOUTH SERVICE PROGRAM HISTORY
B. Describe the workforce development/job readiness programs your organization has
managed or currently manages, and provide a brief summary of accomplishments.
(Copy and paste table as necessary)
Program name:
Years in operation:
Target audience:
Number of people engaged annually:
Purpose:
How has this program grown over
time?
What outcomes have been
documented in program
participants?
C. Describe your organization’s experience with youth service or service learning for
young adults, ages 16-24. For this age group:
Number engaged annually:
Experience with youth service:
Experience with service learning:
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Experience with training:
Describe how any of the programs
above have grown over time.
What outcomes have been
documented in program
participants?
III.
STRATEGIC APPROACH
D. Describe how the youth employability AmeriCorps program aligns with your
organization’s mission and strategic plan and how this program will help move the
needle on your organization’s strategic goals.
IV.
COMMUNITY NEED
E. Describe the specific, local community your VISTA project(s) will impact and the
community need you plan to address through the engagement of VISTA members.
i. What is your target population/community. Please be more specific than
youth ages 16-24 to illuminate why this program is a good match for this
group. For example, low- to moderate-income youth in West Humboldt Park,
Chicago.
ii. Why have your chosen this target population? Include citations that
demonstrate why this program may impact this population.
iii. What is the poverty level in your targeted community? Include citations and
address access to opportunities.
F. How will you ensure that 75% or more of the young adults you recruit for this
program will be low- and moderate-income (defined as 80% or less of median area
income)?
G. Describe how you will recruit youth to participate in this program.
V.
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT AND SUSTAINABILITY
H. Describe how you will engage community residents from the identified low income
community in planning, development and implementation of community based
projects and programs.
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a. Please describe ways your organization has engaged community residents from
the identified low income community in the past.
b. Please describe how engaging community residents from the identified low- to
moderate-income community will enhance your program and lead to
sustainability.
c. Please describe strategies to be used to recruit and engage (in planning,
development, and implementation) community residents from the identified
low- to moderate-income community.
I. Describe how this program will utilize community residents typically engaged as
beneficiaries of services as volunteers and volunteer leaders. Please detail
strategies that will be employed.
VI.
TRADITIONAL VOLUNTEERISM
J. Describe how you plan to engage youth in service projects.
K. Describe how you will engage Citi employees, community volunteers, and skillsbased volunteers.
VII.
PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION
L. Describe how you will orient, train, and support VISTA members to implement the
program.
M. Describe your organization’s history implementing a structured curriculum-based
and/or module-based program(s) with guidelines provided by another organization.
Provide details on how your organization applied the curriculum and any
modifications that became necessary. If your organization doesn’t have previous
experience implementing a structured curriculum or program model, please
describe what safeguards you will put in place to adequately ensure that the
curriculum is implemented as prescribed.
N. If your organization does not currently manage youth service or workforce
development programming, please describe how you will ensure that VISTAs have
access to relevant support and expertise in your community by engaging thought
leaders and relevant partners.
O. If you currently manage or partner with a workforce development or youth service
organization, describe how you will integrate this program into existing services.
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VIII.
PARTNERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
P. Describe how you will engage other community partners in your efforts, including
nonprofit organizations, businesses, city or other public agencies, and other entities.
Discuss significant partners already identified.
IX.
SUPERVISION AND SUPPORT
Q. Describe your organization’s management and staff structure and identify the staff
member(s) that will be directly responsible for managing the AmeriCorps VISTA
members.
R. Describe your organization’s capacity to manage 5 AmeriCorps VISTA members. Be
sure to address office space.
SECTION B: Program Evaluation
X.
ALL APPLICANTS - PROGRAM EVALUATION
Points of Light requires the administration of our standardized survey instruments using
a prescribed administration schedule. We also require the tracking and reporting of the
performance measures and targets and outcome measures listed below. The targets
below are per host site.
Required Performance Measures
Targets Per
Host Site
Number of young adults engaged in training and service
300
Number of young adults engaged in service only
100
Number of volunteers engaged in service and providing training
50
Required Outcome Measures
Percentage of young adults with improved leadership skills
80%
Percentage of young adults with increased professional networks
90%
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Percentage of young adults with improved project management skills
80%
Percentage of young adults with improved attitudes toward
employment or education
80%
Points of Light will provide all sites with a standard data tracking, analysis and reporting system.
Final reporting tools will be available prior to program start.
Reporting Requirements Include:




Sharing of data tracking systems
Monthly Great Stories
Monthly Output Reporting
Quarterly Outcome Reporting
SECTION C: VISTA Position Description
XI.
ALL APPLICANTS – VISTA POSITION DESCRIPTION
Each VISTA will utilize this standard Youth Employability Corps Position Description. Please complete
only the host site information section.
Host Site Information
Organization
Host Site
Contact Name
Contact Number
Contact Address
City, State, Zip
Contact Email
See Next Page for Required Member Activities.
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Points of Light Youth Employability VISTA
Education Level
Bachelor’s Degree or commensurate experience preferred.
Languages
Age Requirement 18
 Public Speaking and presentation skills, leadership, comfort working with
Specific Skills Needed young adults age 16-24
VISTA will develop a youth service and employability training program to
provide professional development, networking, and project management skills,
ultimately increasing employability for young adults (16-24 year-olds)
participating in the program. VISTAs will engage volunteers to support training
Project Goal provision, mentorship and long-term program sustainability.
Member Activities Participation in Training

Participation in orientation – local and national webinar based

Participation in Train-the-Trainer program.

Participation in Points of Light and CNCS training and communications.
(Including an in person training opportunity requiring travel).
Development

Development of local youth service program using provided curriculum.

Development of once yearly employment resource fair.

o
Partnership development
o
Marketing/outreach
Integration of efforts with local workforce development and leadership
development programs.
Recruitment

Recruitment of volunteers and volunteer leaders

Recruitment of young adults to participate in the program

Outreach to the local community partners to coordinate services and track
progress among young adults
Training Volunteers

Training of volunteers and volunteer leaders to provide training and
workshops to young adults
Sustainability

Provision of ongoing support to young adults, particularly on service
projects
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
Finalization of processes and systems to ensure long-term sustainability

Equip local volunteers and staff to lead program beyond duration of VISTA
placement
Establish or work with an existing advisory council consisting of service
beneficiaries to guide the program’s approach, outreach efforts, and
supplemental programs

Performance Measurement and Evaluation

Assessment and tracking of relevant data – outputs and outcomes

Monthly output report submission to Points of Light

Monthly great story submission to Points of Light

Quarterly report submission to Points of Light
National Service Identity

Engagement in National Days of Service including MLK Day of Service and
National AmeriCorps Week, and September 11 National Day of Service and
Remembrance.

Submission of minimum of one blog post regarding experiences.
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