Health and Wellness Youth Corps / HeartWood Centre for Community Youth Development
T: 902.444.5885/ F: 902.444.3140
E:

Funding Program Guidelines

Please consult these guidelines when preparing your application

Health and Wellness Youth Corps Overview

Leaders of Today (LOT) is an organization that amplifies youth voice and connects youth, communities, organizations and government. LOT holds spaces for collaborative discussion on youth issues across Nova Scotia that build understanding between youth and government, and inform government services, programs, policies and strategies. LOT also supports activities across Nova Scotia that seek to take action on youth issues.LOT was developed out of the youth mantra "If it's about us, don't do it without us".

The Health and Wellness Youth Corps (Youth Corps)is a program that supports community organizations and youth to engage in youth issues and supports organizations and government with meaningful youth engagement. We do this through granting funding to partner organizations to employ youth on specific projects and providing support to program participants throughout the duration of the project. We also connect organizations to the LOT network to facilitate continued action and involvement after the project has been completed.

From June 2014 to March 2015, the Youth Corps will support 8 youth employment opportunities at non-profit community organizations, colleges, universities, municipalities, and other community groups. Government departments, or other groups and organizations that do not meet the eligibility criteria, are encouraged to partner with eligible groups to apply.

Youth Corps grants will be distributed across the LOT regions of Nova Scotia (Northern, Western, Central, Eastern). Funding available can only be used to cover wages of a youth employee for up to 315 hours at $10.90 per hour.

Currently all available Youth Corps employment grants are funded by the Department of Health and Wellness and must focus on a) nurturing an awareness of, and interest in, health promotion issues amongst youth, and b) encouraging and supporting meaningful engagement of youth in health promotion.

Deadlines to apply:

Round 2 –October 10, 2014

The four main components of the Youth Corps are:

  1. Youth: Nova Scotia youth who are under the age of 30.
  2. Community organizations: Community organizations and groups throughout Nova Scotia who are interested in putting together a project proposal for submission to the Youth Corps; this project will provide work opportunities for local youth.
  3. Youth-Adult-Government Partnerships:Youth, adults and government working together for positive change.
  4. Topic Specific - Health and Wellness:Projects related to the health promotion and the social determinants of health.

Youth Employment:The Youth Corps provides youth with work experience through a variety of community projects within the province. Empowering youth by providing paid employment also allows youth to build skills and confidence in becoming leaders in their communities.

Building Capacity in Community-Based Organizations: The Youth Corps provides an opportunity to build capacity for organizations to support youth engagement throughout Nova Scotia.

Building Youth Adult Government Partnerships:The Youth Corps supports and facilitates relationship building between youth, adults and government. These relationships help to amplify youth voice within communities and government, and build cultural understanding between youth, adults and government.

Health and Wellness in Nova Scotia: The jobs created through this program provide youth with opportunities to be employed in health related fields in Nova Scotia, and develop skills and understanding of local health issues and solutions.

Eligibility

Applications will be accepted from non-profit community organizations, colleges, universities, municipalities, and other community groups located in Nova Scotia. We are unable to accept applications from individuals.

Community Partner Eligibility:

Be able to provide supervision, support and direction for the youth employee through the project duration (a workplace mentor)

Be able to provide work space and necessary materials and equipment for the project

Be able to administer payroll for youth employee

Be able to cover any expenditures for the project beyond youth employee wages and select training costs

Be able to participate inan upcoming LOT Summit (dates TBD)

Youth Employee Eligibility:

Between 15-30 years of age

Project Eligibility:

Cannot replace any work currently done by employees

Connected to social determinants of health (below)

Income and Income distribution
Education and Literacy
Unemployment and Job Security
Employment and Working Conditions
Early Childhood Development
Food Insecurity
Housing
Biology and Genetics / Social Exclusion
Social Safety Network
Health Services
Aboriginal Status
Gender
Race
Culture
Disability
Physical Environment

Criteria

Project proposals will the assessed on the following criteria:

  • Health Focus – proposals must demonstrate a clear connection to nurturing an awareness of, and interest in, health promotion amongst youth, and engaging youth in health promotion
  • Youth led/Youth Informed – proposals must show evidence that young people are leading/ or have informed the proposal process, thereby supporting the program in practice and the likelihood of the project’s success
  • Diversity – proposals must show evidence that the diversity of the youth community has been considered
  • Youth Adult Government Partnerships – proposals must show a commitment to connecting youth, adults and government to support collective action
  • Change Making Legacy – proposals must demonstrate a commitment to instilling new practices and behaviors in communities and organizations that can lead to permanent cultural change
  • Youth Skill Building – proposals must demonstrate a commitment to building and developing skills of the youth employee, including employability skills, responsibility and leadership skills (both “soft skills” and “hard skills”)
  • Organizational Learning and Sharing - proposals must demonstrate a commitment to applying the learnings of the project related to youth issues, youth engagement and employing youth, and to sharing these with others (particularly within the LOT network)

Roles and Responsibilities

HeartWood and DHW will:

  • Establish and communicate program criteria, and ensure fair and unbiased review of proposals
  • Finalize and communicate decisions in a timely manner
  • Distribute 80% of approved funding after the Community Partner & Employee Agreements have been signed, and the final balance after the necessary documentation is received
  • Help recruit and select youth employees as needed
  • Check-in with Community Partners and youth employees periodically through the duration of the project
  • Identify and offer training opportunities to Youth Corps participants, where applicable
  • Conduct an evaluation

Applicants will:

  • Consult this overview for guidance when preparing proposals
  • If approved, actively work with HeartWood and DHW to clarify or enhance proposals
  • Read, understand, sign and return the Community Partner Agreement within 2 weeks of receiving approval for funding
  • Read, understand, sign and return the Youth Employee Agreement within 1 week of hiring the youth employee
  • Use approved funding for its intended purpose, and provide progress and final reports as requested, including financial information
  • Acknowledge the contributions of the LOT Youth Corps and HeartWood Centre for Community Youth Development in all promotional material
  • Participate in the LOT Fall/Spring Summit (date TBD)
  • Participate in a project evaluation
  • File a final report on the progress towards the expected objectives, outputs and outcomes, and include financial statements showing wage related costs and a Record of Employment.

Eligible Costs

Youth wages, including mandatory employment related costs. Community partners are responsible for providing office space, project specific training and any other project related costs. The Youth Corps will cover $10.90 per hour of the youth intern wage for up to 315 hours.

Application process and Review

Applicants will complete the application form, including all requested support materials.Applicants are encouraged to discuss their proposal with Youth Corps staff prior to submittingthe request to ensure understanding of the process.

Proposals will be assessed by Youth Corps staff and a recommendation, if appropriate, will be made to the proper level for approval. Every effort will be made to ensure decisionsare made as quickly as possible.

Applications will be reviewed against the following factors:

  • Does the proposed project help achieve the goals of LOT and the Youth Corps?
  • Does the applicant and project fulfill the eligibility criteria?
  • Has the applicant demonstrated it can meet its roles and responsibilities asdescribed above?
  • Are the fundingcriteria reflected in the application?
  • Regional representation – funding will be distributed across the province
  • Given funding limitations, repeat applications from the same applicant are notencouraged. Successful applicants can expect that subsequent applications will notreceive priority consideration.

Applications must be submitted to HeartWood Centre for Community Youth Development by the following deadlines:

Round 2 –October 10th, with project dates November 2014 to March 2015

Final decisions will be communicated to applicants in writing.

Letters of Agreement

A Community Partner Agreement and Employee agreement will be sent to organizations that receive approval for their proposal.The Community Partner Agreement outlines the terms and conditions to be met by the Community Partner and HeartWood Centre for Community Youth Development/the Department of Health and Wellness. The Employee Agreement outlines the terms and conditions to be met by the Community Partner, the youth employee and DHW/HeartWood.

Payment Schedule

Project funding will be issued in two installments: 80 percent initially and 20 percent upon project completion and submission of a Final Report. The Final Report will report on the progress towards the expected objectives, outputs and outcomes, and include financial statements showing wage related costs and a Record of Employment.

If you have an idea in mind, but don’t know how to make it happen, contact us to chat about your application! We can help you complete the application and make the connections you might be looking for.

How to apply

Please file the application by fax or email with:

Michael Coolican

Health and Wellness Youth Corps

HeartWood Centre for Community Youth Development

5516 Spring Garden Road, Suite 202, B3J 1G6

T: 902.444.5885/ F: 902.444.3140