The Urban Institute and the Microsoft Justice Reform Initiative are collaborating on the Catalyst Grant Program to help nonprofits use data and technology to advance racial equity and reform at the front end of the adult criminal legal system.

Catalyst Grant Program goals include the following: create a space for locally embedded nonprofit organizations to implement data- and technology- focused projects that advance racial equity and reform at the front end of the criminal legal system; enhance the technological and data capacity of nonprofit organizations focused on promoting justice and racial equity through project assistance, peer-learning opportunities, and financial support; and disseminate innovative practices and lessons learned during implementation to stakeholders throughout the criminal legal reform community.

Selected applicants will receive $40,000 in grant funds; assistance on data, policy, and community engagement from the Urban Institute; access to Microsoft technology and related support; and peer-learning opportunities.

Projects must focus on reform and racial equity at the front end of the criminal legal system (i.e., criminal legal system activities and relevant actors up to and including sentencing and activities to prevent unnecessary criminal legal system involvement). Projects must also incorporate data and technology and be locally focused.

Projects are not required to use Microsoft technology, though projects that use Microsoft technology in ways integral to the proposed data and technology activities will be eligible for additional in-kind technology access and support.

To be eligible, lead organizations must be locally embedded 501(c)(3) organizations based in the United States, excluding colleges and universities. There is a focus on those organizations embedded in communities of color, particularly Black communities. Lead organizations may include partner organizations that do not meet lead organization eligibility criteria.

For complete program guidelines and application instructions, see the Urban Institute website.

Deadline: November 22, 2024 at 8:00 p.m. ET

A certified B-corporation, Cause Strategy Partners works at the intersection of nonprofits and corporations to connect diverse and talented professionals interested in board service with value-aligned nonprofits seeking new board members.

To that end, the organization invites applications to its Nonprofit Board Fellowship, which was born out of a commitment to advancing authentic leadership on nonprofit boards. The fellowship experience is designed to connect leaders of color across the United States to nonprofit board roles and, once elected, provide the training and support needed to excel.

Selected fellows have the opportunity to be matched with a top-choice, vetted nonprofit board for consideration as a future board member through Cause Strategy Partners’ flagship program, BoardLead; become BoardLearn Certified through a six-hour online, best-in-class board member boot camp; access ongoing training with experts in the nonprofit board governance field; and connect with other Nonprofit Board Service Fellows on a similar journey.

To be eligible, applicants must be mid- to senior-level professionals of color with at least eight years of professional experience; community-driven individuals seeking to become more involved in nonprofit work and find a way to serve their cause; rising leaders looking to further their skills and connect with others in a hands-on service environment; and professionals prepared to make a commitment to nonprofit board service and the full fellowship process, including attending all fellowship convenings.

For complete program guidelines and application instructions, see the Cause Strategy Partners website.

Deadline: November 6, 2024

The People With Disabilities Foundation (PWDF) aims to provide education and advocacy for people with psychiatric and/or developmental disabilities, with or without physical disabilities, so they can achieve equal opportunities in all aspects of life.

The foundation invites applications for its grants program, which will award funding to organizations with missions and programs that benefit people with psychiatric and/or developmental disabilities. An potential recipient’s program must have direct contact with this population, either through advocacy, education, which may include destigmatization programs, or other relevant services.

Grants may be used for a specific program, project, or general operating expenses if related to a specific program or project, in furtherance of providing advocacy, education, vocational, or other areas of particular impact to people with psychiatric and/or developmental disabilities. This includes full-scale advocacy and education where there currently is a void for this population.

Grants in the range of $5,000 to $12,500 will be awarded.

To be eligible, applicants must be tax-exempt as defined by section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code or provide a very clear statement of service, impact, and need for the grant; must have been in operations a minimum of three years; and provide documentation of same in the grant process.

Letters of interest are due November 6, 2024. Upon review, selected applicants will be invited to submit a full proposal.

For complete program guidelines and application instructions, see the People With Disabilities Foundation website.

Deadline: November 6, 2024 (Letters of Interest)

The Philadelphia Funder Collaborative for the Semiquincentennial aims to assist Philadelphia-area programs celebrating the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States. Philadelphia has long enjoyed pride of place for the observation of major national milestones.

The collaborative will provide support to Philadelphia-area nonprofits that intend to honor Philadelphia’s unique importance to the founding of the United States; encourage widespread community participation in the events commemorating the 250th anniversary of the nation’s independence; celebrate the diversity of the city and the region through inclusive programming that reflects the experiences of all Philadelphians, past and present; imagine the possibilities for Philadelphia’s contributions to the next 250 years of American democracy; and inspire greater civic engagement by promoting civil dialogue, community service, and voluntary solutions to the city’s ongoing challenges. In addition, the collaborative strongly encourages collaborative projects that involve jointly developed programs among multiple institutional partners; projects that are directly, rather than incidentally, tied to the Semiquincentennial commemoration; and projects for which the residents of the greater Philadelphia region are the primary audience.

The collaborative is now only accepting proposals for implementation grants. While it has previously considered proposals for planning grants, those funding cycles have closed. Implementation grants are intended for qualified organizations to host programs related to the upcoming 2026 celebrations. Implementation grants are not capped, but they are constrained by the resources available to the collaborative.

To be eligible, applicants must be a public charity recognized as tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. All project activities must take place in the city of Philadelphia, and/or the Pennsylvania counties of Bucks, Chester, Delaware, or Montgomery.

Letters of inquiry for funding cycle seven will close on December, 6, 2024. Upon review, selected applicants will be invited to submit a second-stage application.

For complete program guidelines and application instructions, see the Philadelphia Funder Collaborative for the Semiquincentennial website.

Deadline: December 6, 2024 (Letters of Inquiry)

Get Out the Vote (GOTV) is your chance to make sure that all those people you registered and educated actually cast their ballots, whether in person or by absentee vote. Even if you can’t vote yourself, getting others out to vote is a great way to have an impact this Election Day! Get Out the Vote (GOTV) efforts are crucial for shaping the future of democracy. With young people making up nearly 40% of eligible voters in the U.S., their participation can influence election outcomes and policies.

5 Ways to GOTV:

1. Canvassing (Door Knocking)
2. Literature Drop
3. Phone Banking
4. E-mail Blasts
5. Social Media Influencing

Or choose one of these 5 Halloween-themed Get Out the Vote ideas to help your community get to the polls this election season.

Did you know that many people don’t vote because of busy schedules, registration problems, and transportation issues? Let’s cut down excuses by helping your peers figure out their plan! Remember to ask:

• How they plan to vote: Do they plan to vote in person or absentee / by mail? Have they checked if they need an ID to vote?
• When they plan to vote: Before or after work or school? On a lunch break? Are they voting early (if available in your state)?
• Where they plan to vote: Have they double checked their polling place? How do they plan to get there and back? Do they need transportation?

Get the ServiceVote Get Out the Vote Toolkit.

Purpose & Overview

The research fellow’s purpose is to implement the research process to assemble a refined competency model for Community Engagement Professionals in coordination with the other research fellows and the Principal Investigators. Within their application, research fellows will indicate the top two functional areas of CEP that most interest them and upon selection to join the team, will be assigned to a specific functional area of focus for the duration of the research project. Research fellows will meet regularly with the Primary Investigators as a full research team and with an assigned co-research fellow within their functional area.

Supervision

Research Fellows will report to and receive support from the Principal Investigator and project leaders.

Key Responsibilities

Research

• With an additional co-researcher, conduct a literature review and qualitative inquiry within a specific functional area of community engagement practice
• With an additional co-researcher, conduct 4-6 semi-structured interviews with community engagement professionals representative of the same functional area as the literature review
• Develop a qualitative portrait of a professional in this specific functional area.
• Engage in the dissemination of the results of the research through the completion of a co-authored literature review resource and book chapter with additional co-researcher

Contribution to Research Group

• Attend monthly meetings with the Principal Investigator, project leaders and research team.
• Upon completion of the literature review and interviews, engage in facilitated discussions that identify a select number of “core” competencies (areas of shared knowledge, skill, disposition, and critical commitments) that are central for all CEPs to acquire. Fellows will contribute literature references to the project team that substantiate those areas of “core” competence.
• Participate, at the fellow’s discretion and level of interest, in presentations about the project and in dissemination opportunities post-publication.

Qualifications

Candidates for Research Fellows will generally have two or more years of experience as a Community Engagement Professional within the identified functional area representative of the area they are researching, previous research experience, and the ability to excel in a collaborative working posture. The functional areas include Anchor & Economic Opportunity, Extension, Place-Based Engagement, Chief Engagement Leadership, Social Impact Research, Community Affairs, Cross-Functional Practice. Student-Centered Engagement, Faculty-Focused Engagement and Community Partnerships.

Application Deadline

The priority deadline for applications will be Monday, November 11. After the priority deadline, applications will be reviewed until all fellows are selected.

Learn more here.

ACCESS APPLICATION HERE

If you have any questions or comments, please email Dr. Justin Dandoy, CEP Competencies Research Team Coordinator at justin.dandoy@pitt.edu.

Here is a simple FAQ to voting in the 2024 election in Philadelphia, PA, with a more detailed nuts-and-bolts how-to-vote guide here.

Read more.

Join us as we continue the journey of freedom with Fox and Rob with a screening of the documentary Time II, the sequel to the Oscar nominated documentary Time, featuring Fox and Rob on Saturday, November 9th at Centre Theater in Norristown. Doors open at 5 for cocktail hour, screening starts at 6PM with previews of the documentary A Woman on the Outside Kristal Bush’ journey of sharing space with other women with incarcerated loved ones as well as Pardon Me a 2023 short film that explores the advantages and challenges of applying for a pardon, a process that erases all records of a past crime and features our own Akeem Simms. Enjoy light refreshments and meet and greet cocktail reception following the full screening of the documentary.

Sunday, November 10th at 449 E. Lafayette Street, Norristown, PA 19401 (Blu Bear Studios) from 3-7PM we will be hosting our 5 Year Anniversary Open House which is free and open to the public. The Eagles/Dallas game will be live streamed in the green room and a formerly incarcerated artist Art Gallery will be on display for auction. Get there early to enjoy all of the interactions, goodies, prizes and give a ways…plus good food and good company.

Remember to register to join us and please share with your networks.

Introducing PlayAloud, a dynamic fusion of Reader’s Theatre and Audio Modeling, igniting a reading revolution! Our kid-tested playscripts come to life with audio playback for each of the character’s lines. Students click to hear professional voice actors dramatically deliver the lines and then can perform it themselves. The fusion unlocks greater confidence for students to read aloud with improved fluency and expression!

Testing duration: Testing will Commence on November 1st, 2024 and will conclude on December 6th, 2024 which can be accessed at playaloud.org.

Where? Entirely online.

What to expect?

1. Testing will commence on November 1st, 2024 and conclude on December 6th, 2024.
2. Expect to receive a full PlayAloud experience while receiving complete access to several stories.
3. You will have the option to purchase a membership beginning on the test date of November 1,2024.
4. We value your feedback. After your experience we ask that you please fill out a feedback form to further meet the needs of our users.

For further questions please contact Victoria Kent at vkent@storiestogrowby.org.

Philadelphia voters are expected to once again play a critical role this year in deciding who the next president will be and which party will control the U.S. Senate.

At the state level, they’ll help determine who comes out on top in key races for Attorney General and other positions. The winners will shape state policy for the next four years and advance along the track to possible future runs for governor and other higher offices.

In addition, a contested race for an open Pa. state House seat in Northeast Philly could be crucial in determining whether Democrats hold on to their one-vote majority in that legislative body or Republicans seize back control.

To help you figure it all out, we’ve pulled together the candidates Philly voters will see on their ballots, along with guidance on how and where to vote.

Read more.

This webinar and the larger community of practice is free and open to anyone from any institution as they consider how to leverage the framework for institutional change.

Date and Time: December 3, 2024, 3:00-4:00 PM

Register.

Make a Voting Plan Tool: Students can visit here to update their registration or register to vote, research their ballot, find their polling place or request a mail ballot, look up the rules in their state, and find state-specific deadlines here.

GOTV Toolkit: ALL IN has shared our 2024 ALL IN to Vote GOTV toolkit including graphics with voter registration reminders, civic holidays, and other nonpartisan, evergreen content with campuses to ensure students are #VoteReady in 2024. Feel free to share these graphics on your social media channels.

“Preserving fresh food and preventing it from going landfills is vital to fighting hunger in Pennsylvania,” said DEP Acting Secretary Jessica Shirley, speaking at the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank. “The Food Recovery Infrastructure Grant helps put food where it belongs – in people, not in landfills.”

The Food Recovery Infrastructure Grants can be awarded to reimburse the cost of equipment like refrigerators, freezers, refrigerated and non-refrigerated vehicles, stoves, and microwaves to store, transport, or prepare the recovered safe, wholesome foods to ensure that the food can be redistributed to the public. Grants up to $50,000 are available per applicant. Special consideration will be given to applicants with projects that serve Environmental Justice areas.

“In addition to helping feed Pennsylvanians in need, keeping food waste out of landfills also helps fight climate change. Organic waste like food breaks down into methane, a potent greenhouse gas – so every potato, every stalk of broccoli, every apple, every tomato that doesn’t go to a landfill is helping to fight climate change in Pennsylvania,” said Shirley.

Applications for the Food Recovery Infrastructure Grant will be accepted beginning on October 12, 2024. Interested applicants must have a pre-application meeting with their local DEP Regional Recycling Coordinator prior to submitting their applications.

Grant applications must be submitted through the Electronic Single Application web site. Applications must be received by February 28, 2025 by 11:59PM, to be eligible for funding.

For more information, visit the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s website, or follow DEP on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), or LinkedIn.

Learn about new practices and strategies that make a real difference in communities worldwide!

Discussion topics will include:

• How service-learning builds leadership, empathy, and civic engagement.
• Success stories from international service-learning projects.
• How service-learning promotes global awareness and responsibility.
• Ensuring fairness and mutual benefit in service-learning projects.
• The importance of community involvement in service-learning.
• New trends and future opportunities in service-learning.

Date and Time: November 13, 2024, 12:00-1:30 PM

Learn more and register.

This year’s theme is “Above the Current.” The teams have to design a floating city and provide two innovative examples of how your floating city works and keeps its citizens healthy and safe.

Our local competition takes place on January 18, 2025 in Radnor, PA and the winning team goes on to compete in a National competition.

Volunteers are needed to make it all happen!

Learn more and consider helping out.

Have you ever left a volunteer shift and wondered if you made a difference? Serve as a tax preparer with CHOP MFP and KNOW that you are improving people’s financial well being! Not comfortable preparing someone’s taxes? Serve as a “greeter” to share information about the tax prep process, help families fill out paperwork, and support the tax preparers. Training for both roles is provided!

Volunteer shifts run January 17- April 15 (Tues/Thurs 4:30-7:30pm, Sat 9am-1:30pm). 1 shift per week is preferred.

For more information, please fill out this interest sheet and we will be in touch with more details regarding trainings and logistics.

Questions? Contact Janee J. Smith at smithj54@chop.edu.

THE POSITION

Responsible for the strategic leadership of all aspects of Human Resources and Organizational Development & Learning functions, to include: Talent Acquisition, Talent Management, Organizational Development, Staff and Leadership Development, Total Rewards, Organizational Culture — including Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Employee Relations & Engagement, Workforce Planning, Occupational Health, HR Compliance and Affirmative Action. The Chief HR Officer is a strategic leader focused on partnering with organizational leadership to facilitate a positive, productive culture, outstanding employee experience, and maintaining a productive, diverse, talented and engaged workforce through the design, development and execution of Human Resources strategies that align with organizational goals and objectives. Serves as the key business partner for the President & CEO and Executives.

Learn more and apply here.

The Community Engagement Manager (CEM) oversees the day-to-day operations of The Clay Studio’s (TCS) Claymobile program and studio. They work closely with the Deputy Director to balance timelines, schedules, and budgets. The Claymobile program works with schools, community organizations, and social service agencies around the Philadelphia region to provide under-resourced communities with high-quality arts programming. The program offers an innovative, hands-on approach to learning that strengthens and enhances existing cultural programming, supplements educational curricula, and catalyzes community engagement.

The Clay Studio will review applications immediately.

Full job description and application information.

Join the Urban Institute and a panel of experts to learn more about these findings and discuss strategies to enhance financial well-being and repair the social fabric of America.

This event will be held virtually on Wednesday, October 30, 2024, at 3:00 PM.

Learn more and register.

This event will take place at the Holeman Lounge at the National Press Club on Tuesday, October 29, 2024, 2:30 PM and will also be livestreamed.

Click here to register for in person or virtual attendance.