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Michigan NOW!

Michigan Now! Training Calendar June - September 2008
Now Available - click here to download

The Michigan Nonprofit Association (MNA) will deliver training, technical assistance, and sub-grant awards to nonprofits throughout the state of Michigan through Michigan NOW!(Nonprofit Organizations Work!), a three-year federal Compassion Capital Fund grant to build the capacity of community-based and faith-based organizations with budgets of up to $500,000 per year.

Michigan NOW! will be delivered state-wide (excluding Wayne, Oakland, Macomb and Ingham counties which are served by other programs) by program staff and through partners in four regions (map and list of partners).

The goal of Michigan NOW! is to increase the effectiveness and sustainability of the organizations served, including enhancing their ability to provide quality service, expand their organizations, diversify funding and create collaborations.

The specific objectives of Michigan NOW! are:

• Group training in approximately 60 sessions, including monthly webinars and site-based trainings to at least 900 individuals from at least 200 organizations per year;
• Delivery of brief (8 – 10 hours) consulting to approximately 200 organizations over three years; and
• Delivery of longer-term consulting (20+ hours) and grants of up to $10,000 to approximately 150 organizations over three years.

2008 Grantees & Technical Assistance Recipients

Target Audience:  Michigan NOW! will provide capacity building services to small nonprofit organizations who are providing services to vulnerable individuals and families in the national priority human services areas. Click here for a list of 2008 Michigan NOW! program participants. The national priority human service areas are:

• At risk youth
• The homeless
• Elders in need
• Families in transition from welfare to work
• Those in need of intensive rehabilitation
• Prisoners reentering the community and their children
• Preparation for sustaining healthy marriages

As a result of these services, we anticipate a measurably stronger, more effective social service sector. In addition, the project will foster collaboration among organizations as well as the growth of an online learning community sharing information and resources. Finally, participating organizations will have the benefit of support through MNA membership, which includes information and resources to increase operational capacity and mission fulfillment.

Forms for Approved Organizations:

Michigan NOW! Technical Assistance and Opportunity Grants Final Report Forms Instructions:

The Technical Assistance Consultant Final Report and the Opportunity Grant Final Program Report are both interactive electronic forms. To access these forms, users should be sure to download the most recent version of Adobe Reader, which can be found at http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html and is available free of charge. This software will allow users to fill in, print, and submit the report forms via email. Users with Adobe Acrobat Standard, Professional or 3D may also save the completed forms, but there is a cost associated with these software options. For this reason, a user should plan to complete an interactive form in one sitting. It is acceptable to print a blank form to prepare responses in advance of completing it. With some preparation, each form should take no more than 10 minutes to complete.

Helpful Tips:

• Users should select fields in the interactive form by using the mouse to point and click, or by tabbing from field to field. At the end of each page, it may be necessary to use the mouse to go to the first field on the next page.
• Users should insert a scanned image of the signature required on the final page of each form. This image should be in either .jpg or .gif format, and will automatically adjust to the size of the form field.
• Users should keep a record of their responses by printing a copy of the completed form. Do so by clicking on the “Print” button at the top of page 1 on each form.
• Users should click on the “Submit by Email” button at the top of page 1 on each form in order to send the final version of their responses to Deborah Foster. Clicking on this button will prompt the user to send the form via email. Users must hit “Send” in their email application to complete the submission. Users will receive an automated response from Deborah’s email account when a form has been submitted.
• Technical Assistance Consultant Final Report (online submission)
• Opportunity Grant Final Report (online submission)
• 2008 Opportunity Grant Final Financial Reports (mail-in with receipts)
• Michigan NOW! Fact Sheet
• Regional Orientation Registration Form
• 2008 Organizational Assessment: Basic Infrastructure Checklist
• Opportunity Grant Budget Items and Guidelines
• Electronic Signature Instructions
• Group Training Registration Instructions
• Guidelines for Partnering with the Federal Government
• Opportunity Grants Management Webinar

Instructions for completing electronic forms:

• Click on the form name to open
• Type in the information requested
• Save the form as an MS Word document on your hard-drive
• Exit the website
• Open the saved file
• Print it out
• Sign it
• Attach any requested documents
• Mail it to the address listed

To be placed on the mailing list, please send your contact information to dfoster@mnaonline.org. For more information contact Michelle Dunlap, Program Manager at 517-492-2441 or mdunlap@mnaonline.org.