GREENE COUNTY YOUTH BUREAU FUNDING

2024-2025 REQUEST FOR APPLICATIONS

Release Date: 8/7/24

The Greene County Youth Bureau is a division of the Greene County Department of Human Services that assists in both the development and implementation of programs and services for youth (ages 6 – 17/18 for sports; age 21 for youth development). The major responsibilities of the Youth Bureau include advocacy and the funding of programs aimed at improving & enhancing the welfare of Greene County youth and families. The Greene County Youth Bureau is funded in part by the NYS Office of Children and Family Services, the Greene County Legislature and donations. The Youth Bureau is supported by the Greene County Youth Advisory Board (YAB) with the purpose of developing and recommending policies and procedures that guide the activities of the Youth Bureau in providing opportunities to improve the lives of Greene County youth and families. In addition, the Advisory Board reviews youth program applications and makes funding recommendations based on the guidance provided by NYS Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS). Requests for funding from youth programs serving Greene County youth are open to any 501(c)(3) (Non-profit tax-exempt charitable organization per IRS).

NYS OCFS encourages a wide variety of youth programs including, but not limited to, the following:

• Community, Citizenship and Civic Engagement
• Economic Security and Employment
• Physical, Mental and Emotional Health
• Education (“out-of-school time” programming to support educational engagement like drop-out prevention services, etc.)
• Family

Programs eligible for funding must meet the following criteria:

• Serve youth within a specific age based on funding
• Provide community-level services, opportunities, and supports designed to promote positive youth development.
• Have a non-discrimination policy and not deny youth services based on ethnicity/race, political affiliation, religion, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, physical or other disability, national origin, or any protected characteristic under local, state, and/or federal
• Collect data, including participant demographic information, as required by OCFS in a manner that allows for accurate reporting of anonymized aggregate data.
• Demonstrate competency in the areas of governance, monitoring and evaluation, partnership, and financial stewardship.
• Sports programs eligible for funding must have a child protection policy in place that includes adherence to local city, agency, school district, and state child protection guidelines.

There are 3 distinct avenues of funding: Youth Development Programs, Youth Sports & Education Funding, and Youth Team Sports Allocation Funding.

• Youth Development Programs (YDP) – Greene County will receive $44,657 from NYS for programs and initiatives that enable youth to build on their strengths; provide opportunities for youth to gain important life skills and core competencies, and that allow youth to have meaningful roles in their communities; initiatives that benefit young people in their homes and neighborhoods, in schools, as well as in foster care and residential treatment.

• Youth Sports & Education (YSEF) – Greene County will receive $20,000 from NYS for programs that provide a variety of sports for a broad range of youth; encourages a wide and flexible definition of sports that includes organized activities with movement, including physical fitness activities including but not limited to yoga, hiking, dance, and active outdoors pursuits.
• Youth Team Sports Allocation (YTS) – Greene County will receive $18,989 from NYS to provide awards to support youth team sports programs; intended to provide support to local team sports programs across New York state in communities where such programs may be scarce. Unlike YSEF, YTS has a sole focus on team sports. For the purposes of YTS, a “team sport” is defined as an organized physical activity in which groups of two or more individuals are in competition with two or more opposing individuals. Sporting activities where individuals engage in competition on behalf of an organized group (such as singles tennis, team golf, or racing sports such as swimming or skiing) are included in this definition.

Line-item budgets should focus on programming costs, including, but not limited to, the following:

• Coaches/instructors/direct service staff/mentors (including training/professional development) necessary to support youth’s ability to participate in team sports.
• Referee
• Purchase of equipment or
• Purchase of Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) by local nonprofit or community-based organizations to support the requirements of Chapter 681 of the Laws of 2023, as amended by Chapter 9 of the Laws of 2024.

Applications are now being accepted for programs serving Greene County youth that will operate between October 1, 2024, and September 30, 2025. Interested parties should apply to the Greene County Department of Human Services by September 30, 2024. All submitted applications will be reviewed by the Greene County Youth Advisory Board at their October and November 2024 meetings. Any applications received after the deadline will be reviewed only if funding remains. Recipients of 2023-2024 funding will not be considered for 2024-2025 if they have not completed all past requirements for grants. Applicants will be notified of awards, around mid-November to early December 2024. Awarded funding is released following the completion of the program, monitoring and all required documentation being submitted.

 All applications must include:

• OCFS-5001 Program Application (Municipalities are to be signed by Chief Elected Official).
• OCFS-5002 Program Profile
• OCFS-5003 Program Components
• OCFS-5005 Program Budget
• List of current Board members with contact information and employer
• List of board members or staff who are authorized to sign

YSEF & YTS ONLY:

• All of above
• OCFS 5011 – Universal Sports Funding Application

The required forms required are available on the county website: Youth Funding Information | Greene Government

Completed applications with signatures should be submitted to Greene County Human Services (Youth Bureau), 411 Main Street, Catskill N. Y. 12414, Attention: Maureen Murphy/Office Manager. If your application packet will be the same as in the past, kindly send us an email & state you wish your 2024 grant “recycled”. In this case, we will only require Form OCFS-5001 with an original signature mailed to: Greene County Human Services (Youth Bureau), 411 Main Street, Catskill N. Y. 12414. Response must be made to mmurphy@greenecountyny.gov.

The Greene DHS Office Manager will receive and review all applications submitted to ensure the required paperwork is complete. The Department of Human Services and Greene County Youth Advisory Board reserve the right to reject or to seek modification of any application if it does not meet overall service and performance objectives.

All complete applications will be considered by the Greene County Youth Advisory Board. Applicants, if requested, must present supplemental information clarifying their applications, either in writing or in a presentation. If requests exceed the monetary amount from NYS, a reduction based on available funding will be made. Awards may be appealed by submitting in writing a request to the Executive Director of the Department of Human Services within ten (10) days of the award announcement. All appeals will be reviewed by the Executive Committee of the YAB within fourteen (14) days of receiving the appeal.

CONTRACT:

A contract with Greene County will need to be drawn up and executed as part of the award agreement. In the event of termination of the agreement for any reason, applicant must

• Account for and refund to the County, within 30 calendar days, any funds which have been paid to the agency pursuant to its agreement with the County which are in excess of expenses incurred prior to the notice of termination.
• Not incur any further obligations pursuant to this agreement beyond the termination
• Submit, within 30 calendar days of termination, a full report, report of receipts, expenditures of funds, program activities and accomplishments, and obstacles encountered relating to this agreement.

Assistance is available to all potential applicants. Please contact Maureen Murphy, Department of Human Services Office Manager at (518) 719-3555, mmurphy@greenecountyny.gov if questions.