2015 colorado collaboration award
TRANSCRIPT
Applying for the
2015 Colorado
Collaboration
Award
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
2014 winner: Delores River Restoration PartnershipThe Dolores River Restoration Partnership (DRRP) is a coalition of federal land management agencies, county and state governments, landowners, nonprofits, students, conservation corps, volunteers, and other stakeholders. Their goal: a Dolores River system that is ecologically, socially, and economically sustainable.
Strengths:
Well-documented framework and action plan that is updated every year
Structure that allows each partner the ability to engage at a level that fits their own organization’s capacity and interest
Set goals far beyond the obvious environmental impact to include shared learning and teaching, recreation, economic development, youth stewardship, and community engagement
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.
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
2013.
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 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 2013 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 2013 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 13.
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 2010 or later, for the lead
organization
Written agreement (e.g., MOU or contract) dated
September 2013 or earlier
Current written agreement (e.g., MOU or contract)
Nondiscrimination policy from the lead organization
(including “sexual orientation” and “gender
expression”)
Collaboration’s 2015 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 2010 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 2013 or earlier.
This documentation demonstrates that the collaboration began formal
operations at least 18 months before the 2015 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 13: Application Deadline
March 31: Screening complete
April 17: Deadline for Participant Endorsement Forms
June 15: 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 17: Review round #2 complete
August: Winner selected
Final Selection Panel meets in August to choose the winner
October: Award presented
2015 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?
