Youth Advisory Committee Improve Your School Mini-Grant Opportunity

Dear Teachers and Administrators,

The Youth Advisory Committee (YAC) of the Petoskey-Harbor Springs Area Community Foundation would like to invite your students to apply for a small grant that will improve their classrooms or schools. The YAC is a group of about 25 young people from around Emmet County who have been given the unique and important responsibility of overseeing a $1 million endowed Youth Fund at the Community Foundation. We identify the needs of youth and families in Emmet County and then award grant dollars from the Youth Fund to the local nonprofit organizations through two responsive cycles per year. The theory behind an advisory committee of young people is that they can best determine which needs and opportunities for young people and families in their communities should be prioritized for financial support.

This year YAC members would like to apply that same theory to area middle schools. We are asking if you would be willing to ask 7th grade students to write a grant application, whether they create one in groups or individually. Understanding that curriculums are tight, and time isn't always plentiful, we might suggest that this be accomplished as a persuasive writing assignment, or if need be it can be presented as optional for students to complete outside of the classroom. We hope to see the three most supported grants from each individual English class, decided by students, to send to us for possible funding. The YAC would love to see any requests, whether functional or creative, that students’ think will benefit their class or school. We are most likely to fund requests around or below $300. We have a preference for typed applications with a maximum length of a page. Applications can be sent to the YAC advisor, Sara Ward (sward@phsacf.org) by January 30, 2015. Teachers will receive word of the grant awards in late February and we would love to have a few YACers visit your classroom to congratulate the grant recipient, share a bit about the YAC, and offer membership applications for those who might be interested in applying to be on the YAC in the future.

Thank you very much for your time and consideration. Feel free to contact any YACer with whom you are acquainted or our advisor, Sara with any questions, concerns, or suggestions.

Sincerely,

YAC members of the Community Foundation

Youth Advisory Committee Improve Your School Mini-Grant Application

Student Name:

School Name:

School Address:

Teacher Name:

Teacher Phone Number and Email:

Favorite Treat:

If you had $300, how would you make your school better for the kids?