Dream Big™ for Hunger Relief 2023 Grant Application Form -- U.S. Nonprofit Organizations

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Dream Big for Hunger Relief 2023

Applications:
Open: April 22, 2022

Close: April 28, 2023 (11:59 PM Pacific Time)

Dream Big™ Grant Applicants will receive a decision update the week of June 12-16, 2023.

 What is the Dream Big™ for Hunger Relief?

TechBridge is excited to announce our 2023 Dream Big™ Technology Grant (DBTG) opportunity. The DBTG celebrates and supports hunger relief-focused nonprofits with more than five full time employees. TechBridge is honored to contribute by providing technology products and services to the awarded/winning organizations.

Eligible applicants of the Dream Big for Hunger Relief Grant will be entered into a drawing to receive complimentary AgencyExpress4 services. The AgencyExpress platform is a web-based shopping tool that enables Feeding America Network member food banks to list their inventories online, making food ordering simple and efficient. A full list of eligibility requirements for the organizations that qualify for the AgencyExpress4 drawing can be found in the eligibility description section of this application.

Applications will be available on TechBridge’s website beginning April 22, 2022.

Applicants of the Dream Big™ Technology Grant (DBTG) and AgencyEpress4 drawing will receive a decision update the week of June 12-16, 2023.

Start thinking about how data and technology can grow the impact of your hunger relief nonprofit. Our experienced TechBridge teams will evaluate your idea for estimate costs. Your organization will describe the idea and why it matters to your organization.

TechBridge will fund 80% of the project and your nonprofit will fund 20% through its other funders. 

Applicants are requested to add the email address dreambig@techbridge.org to their personal contact lists to facilitate a timely notification process and minimize the risk of notification e-mails being misdirected.

Applicants agree that TechBridge reserves the right to use any photograph(s)/video(s) taken at any event sponsored by TechBridge, without the expressed written permission of those included within the photograph(s)/video(s). TechBridge may use the photograph(s)/video(s) of Dream Big™ Technology Grant recipients in publications or other media material produced, used, or contracted by TechBridge including but not limited to websites, brochures, invitations, books, newspapers, magazines, television, podcast, etc. Applicants must register for the National Hunger Relief Summit and be present to win. The winning nonprofit agrees to sit for a TechBridge interview post award.

ELIGIBILITY DESCRIPTION

The grant award will include a requisite Technology Assessment, provided by TechBridge. This will be waived if a nonprofit has received one within the last two years. Please note that the grant will also include a detailed discovery process by TechBridge to understand the organization and the proposed technology project. This discovery process may include, but is not limited to, a Technology Assessment, Solution Design, Process Definition, and/or Functional and Technical Requirements. Following this discovery phase, it may be mutually determined and agreed to by TechBridge and the grantee that a different project is the best fit for the awarded funding.

Eligible Organizations

Nonprofits that meet the following requirements are eligible to apply for a grant from the Dream Big™ for Hunger Relief Technology Grant:

Nonprofit organization must be located and providing services within the United States.
Nonprofit organization must be classified by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service under Section 501(c)(3) of the I.R.S. code as a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization, donations to which are deductible as charitable contributions under Section 170 (c)(2), and the I.R.S. determination must be current;

Nonprofit organization must have a minimum two-year operating history after the date of receipt of its 501(c)(3) classification;
Nonprofit organization must have annual operating expenses greater than $2,000,000 as reflected in the most recently filed I.R.S. Form 990 (click here for more information on Form 990: https://www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/about-form-990;
Nonprofit organization must have at least five (5) full-time paid employees or Full Time Equivalents (FTE), paid minimum wage or more, working at least 35 hours per week or two employees working a combined 35 hours per week, all classified as a W-2 employee for the 12 months prior to submitting an application (please note that contractors or consultants do not count toward this requirement)

Ineligible Organizations

The following organizations are not eligible to apply for funding:

Private and publicly funded schools (K-12) and institutions of higher learning. This does not include nonprofit charter schools;
Organizations that exclusively raise funds for publicly funded schools (K-12), institutions of higher learning and government agencies;
Organizations that require participation in religious services and/or education as a condition of receiving services; and/or
Organizations that have discriminatory policies and/or practices on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, sex/gender, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information or political beliefs.

Ineligible Requests

The following application requests are not eligible to apply for funding:

Applications for consulting services that take place outside the grant period.
Applications for services not provided by TechBridge

Applications for equipment or hardware, website design, services by other vendors

  AgencyExpress4 Drawing

TechBridge will host a drawing to select eligible food banks to receive complimentary AgencyExpress4 services. The AgencyExpress platform is a web-based shopping tool that enables Feeding America Network member food banks to list their inventories online, making food ordering simple and efficient.

TechBridge and Feeding America will launch the latest iteration of AgencyExpress, AgencyExpress4, in 2023. AgencyExpress4 works with any food bank ERP platform by leveraging modern application programming interfaces and web services solutions for real-time data sync. This allows agencies to see real-time inventory, reduces disruptions in order fulfillment, provides the ability to set the frequency at which individual agencies can order, and provides enhanced pickup and delivery scheduling. AgencyExpress4's brand-new user interface is browser independent and mobile/tablet friendly.

To be considered for the drawing, food banks must meet the following criteria:

Apply for the Dream Big for Hunger Relief Grant
Be a part of the Feeding America Network
Be a new user for the AgencyExpress Platform

APPLICATION PROCESS

When will the application be available?

April 22, 2022

I submitted my online application form but didn’t get confirmation – did you receive it?

If you did not receive a confirmation email, please first check your spam/junk folder for an email from dreambig@techbridge.org. If no confirmation is there, please email us at dreambig@techbridge.org and we can verify receipt.

I submitted my application but now realize I omitted important information – how do I edit it?

You may resubmit your application in its entirety prior to the deadline and we will put forward the application with the latest submission date/time for judging consideration.

I completed my application in Word – who can I email it to? 

If you have any issues using the online form, simply email dreambig@techbridge.org.

What specifically will you require from our organization by way of financial documentation to show that we practice financial responsibility?

We require all applicants to verify that they demonstrate fiscal responsibility, the appropriate use of funds and accounting standards. While we do not require documentation to substantiate this claim, relevant proof of sound financial practices could include:

Maintaining a complete and accurate set of accounting records;
Making available upon request audited financial statements;
Having a treasurer/finance committee at the board level involved in reviewing financial results;
Completing all IRS filings, including Form 990 or Form 990EZ;
Producing a public annual financial report that discloses the source and use of funds received.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Please be advised that to accept the application, all the criteria below must be met and checked. 

Please confirm the following to launch the application:

Organization is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization defined by the Internal Revenue Service); Organization is focused on Hunger Relief. Hunger Relief Organizations include but may not be limited to: Hunger Relief Advocates, Food Banks, Food Pantries, Food Rescue Organizations, Community Gardens, Urban Farms, Nutrition and wellness organizations, Grocery Stores, Food Vendors, and Food donors.

Organization is not a private or publicly funded K-12 school or an institution of higher learning. (This does not include nonprofit charter schools); 

Organization does not exclusively raise funds for publicly funded schools (K-12), institutions of higher learning and/or government agencies; and/or

Organization does not require participation in religious services and/or education as a condition of receiving services; 

Organization must be based and operate in the United States of America.

Organization has at least five (5) full-time employees or Full Time Equivalents (FTE), paid minimum wage or more, working at least 35 hours per week or two employees working a combined 35 hours per week, all classified as a W-2 employee for the 12 months prior to submitting an application (please note that contractors or consultants do not count toward this requirement).

Organization has annual revenue in the current or most recent fiscal year of at least $2,000,000 as reflected in the most recently filed I.R.S. Form 990 (click here for more information on Form 990.

Organization follows EEOC guidelines and provides equal employment opportunity to all persons regardless of age, color, national origin, physical or mental disability, race, religion, creed, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, status as a disabled veteran or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law;

Proposed project incorporates specific TechBridge services as outlined here.

Organization demonstrates fiscal responsibility, the appropriate use of funds and accounting standards;Organization will submit (upload) their most recent Federal Form 990 with the grant application.

If you cannot check all boxes above, please revisit the project proposal before completing this application.

ORGANIZATION INFORMATION

Note: Please do not use Auto-fill to complete any portion of the application as the data may not save correctly.

Nonprofit Name:

Address:

City:

State:

Zip Code:

Web Address:

Primary Contact's First Name:

Primary Contact's Last Name:

Primary Contact's Email:

Primary Contact's Phone:

Secondary Contact's First Name:

Secondary Contact's Last Name:

Secondary Contact's Email:

Secondary Contact's Phone:

NONPROFIT SUMMARY

Mission:

Limit 600 characters with spaces

How is your mission aligned with TechBridge's hunger relief pillar?

Limit 600 characters with spaces

What TechBridge products and services are you interested in applying for as part of your Dream Big™ grant application? (Check all that apply)

Technology Assessment: https://www.tfaforms.com/4673583

Salesforce Services: https://www.techbridge.org/what-we-do/nonprofit-support/salesforce-services/

Agency Express™: https://techbridge.org/products/hunger-relief/agency-express/

Virtual Food Drive™: https://techbridge.org/products/hunger-relief/virtual-food-drive/

Mobile Application Development: https://techbridge.org/products/mobile-application-development/

Custom Application Development: https://techbridge.org/products/custom-application-development/

Year Founded:

Number of Current Full-time Paid Employees or FTE's:

Current Fiscal Year Operating Budget:

Example: $50, $100.00, 1000

Geography Served:

Limit 300 characters with spaces

Services Your Nonprofit Provides:

Limit 600 characters with spaces

Number of People Served Last Calendar Year:

Limit 300 characters with spaces

Upload a 2-3 minute video that shares how your organization is Dreaming Big for Hunger Relief. Share how technology can magnify your nonprofit's impact. These videos may be shown at future TechBridge events and shared in future marketing efforts via email, social, etc.

Maximum file size limit is 25MB

Primary Sources of Funding:

Limit 300 characters with spaces

Please upload your most recently filed IRS Form 990 or Form 990EZ

Maximum file size limit is 25MB

Has TechBridge ever completed an assessment of your organization's technology?

YesNo

If yes, please explain the extent and any related outcome(s).

Limit 255 characters with spaces

OUTREACH

Does your organization have a strategic plan?

We do not have a strategic plan.We have a strategic plan with measurable objectives.We are measuring the implementation of our strategic plan initiatives.We are delivering on our strategic plan goals and we have a focus of collective action.

Do you have a technology plan or roadmap and an appropriate budget to support it?

We have neither a plan nor a budget.We have a designated IT budget, but no official IT plan.We have both a plan and a budget and we try to adhere to them.We consistently execute against our technology plan and budget and look for new ways to use technology to expand our programs.

Are you able to easily communicate about your programs with potential clients?

No, we have trouble getting the word out to the right people.Yes, we have enough interest to keep our programs full.We maintain a waitlist for people wanting to experience our programs.We are able to reach people via partnerships and innovative approaches to create high demand for our programs.

SERVE

Does the organization have a theory of change that connects its programs and services with the community issues the nonprofit is addressing? Do each of your nonprofit programs and services have a logic model developed that contains inputs, activities, outputs, and impact outcome measures?

We do not have a theory of change or logic models.We have some aspects of a theory of change and logic models but not for all of our programs.We have a theory of change and program logic models, and we are trying to tie our program delivery to these models.We have a theory of change that clearly connects our programs and services to community impact. We can measure return on investment.

Has your organization developed short, intermediate, long-term impact outcome measures related to the logic models? Are you tracking and reporting on these measures on a regular basis?

We do not have defined outcome measures.We are measuring outcomes today in many ways, some are very manual (e.g. Excel).We regularly use automation to create key reports on our outcome measures.We have all of these items in place and we can identify the data elements that go into each key metric to create program scorecards, reports, and dashboards.

Does your organization have a client/case management system? If so, does that system have integration capability with community platform?

Everything is manual; we have no formal client management system.We have a system to manage cases but it is not very efficient.We have a solid case management system with good reporting.We have a client management system that meets all of our needs and allows us to share data with other community service providers.

Do you have a solid technology foundation at your organization?

We have limited bandwidth and our backup and security are weak. We have intermittent bandwidth issues and we have concerns about security and backup.Our internet, security and backup infrastructure meet most of our needs.We are pleased with our bandwidth and confident in our backup and security practices.

Do you have productivity tools that allow you to save time and be effective?

We have regular issues with our email, file share, and calendars.We feel that we could be more efficient with our email, file share, and calendars.We have these services available for us on a consistent basis.Yes, we have an aligned platform for cloud email, file sharing and calendaring.

INTAKE

Do you have effective online assessment tools?

We do not conduct assessments of potential clients.We have a manual and inefficient process for conducting client assessments.We have an efficient process for conducting client assessments that allow us to do as many assessments as needed and understand the results.We have an automated assessment that feeds directly into our client/case management database.

Are you able to easily refer people who are not a good fit for your program to other programs?

We are not able to easily make referrals to other organizations.We make referrals today but the process is manual and inefficient.We have an automated system to keep track of referrals.We have an online system for sharing information about clients with service delivery partners.

PERFORM

Do you have real-time reports and dashboards that drive decision-making?

We are able to produce reports but we are swimming in spreadsheets.Most of our data collection processes lead to good reports, but the information is not consolidated.We have real-time data that shows our impact and is used to improve our programs.We share our data with other organizations in order to organize collective action.

FUNDRAISE

Does your organization have a system for managing financial donors, sponsors and grantors? Can you also track related fundraising information like volunteers and events?

We do not have a donor management system.We have a basic system for tracking donors.Our donor management system is effective and holds other key data in addition to donor info.Our system consolidates info about volunteers, grants, sponsors, and events and has solid, real-time reports and dashboards.

CORE OPERATIONS

Are you able to automatically balance donations with your accounting software?

Our systems are not in sync.We are able to produce reports that finance uses to balance the accounting system.Our donor management and finance systems are integrated.Our donor management system and accounting system are on the same platform.

Please tell us what software or services your organization is using to track the following data:

Case Management/Client ManagementBasic CRMDonorsEventsVolunteersEmail MarketingPeer-to-Peer FundraisingGrantsOnline GivingDonor Intelligence Solutions (Wealth Engine, Target Analytics, etc.)Business IntelligenceAccounting

What software does your organization use for Case Management/Client Management data?

What is the approximate annual cost for your Case Management/Client Management software?

Example: $50, $100.00, 1000

What software does your organization use for Supply Chain Management data?

What is the approximate annual cost for your Supply Chain Management software?

Example: $50, $100.00, 1000

What software does your organization use for Basic CRM data?

What is the approximate annual cost for your Basic CRM software?

Example: $50, $100.00, 1000

What software does your organization use for Donor data?

What is the approximate annual cost for your Donor software?

Example: $50, $100.00, 1000

What software does your organization use for Event data?

What is the approximate annual cost for your Event software?

Example: $50, $100.00, 1000

What software does your organization use for Volunteer data?

What is the approximate annual cost for your Volunteer software?

Example: $50, $100.00, 1000

What software does your organization use for Email Marketing?

What is the approximate annual cost for your Email Marketing software?

Example: $50, $100.00, 1000

What software does your organization use for Peer-to-Peer Fundraising?

What is the approximate annual cost for your Peer-to-Peer Fundraising software?

Example: $50, $100.00, 1000

What software does your organization use for Grant tracking?

What is the approximate annual cost for your Grant Tracking software?

Example: $50, $100.00, 1000

What software does your organization use for Onling Giving?

What is the approximate annual cost for your Online Giving software?

Example: $50, $100.00, 1000

What software does your organization use for Donor Intelligence?

What is the approximate annual cost for your Donor Intelligence software?

Example: $50, $100.00, 1000

What software does your organization use for Business Intelligence?

What is the approximate annual cost for your Business Intelligence software?

Example: $50, $100.00, 1000

What software does your organization use for Accounting?

What is the approximate annual cost for your Accounting software?

Example: $50, $100.00, 1000

APPLICATION ESSAY

Help TechBridge Understand Your Idea, Vision and “Dream Big for Hunger Relief” by Answering the Following Open-ended Essay Questions:

Describe how you are Dreaming Big for Hunger Relief. Share your idea and the situation that needs to be improved.