General Mills: Application Form Guide

Introduction

The goal of the General Mills Champions for Healthy Kids grants is to encourage communities in the United States to improve the eating and physical activity patterns of young people, ages 2-18. This Application Guide is designed to assist you in completing the application in a way that clearly illustrates your program proposal. Guidance is provided for each field on the online application form. You can use this guide online or print it out as a reference tool; however, the Champions Grants Application Form can only be completed online. Text fields have word maximums and your application information must fit within those word and space limits. The following is systematic guidance through each of the data fields on the online Application Form

Organization Information

Insert the name of your organization along with key contact information. Grants will only be awarded to 501(c)(3) and 509(a) status not-for-profit organizations and agencies. You must indicate that the IRS has granted tax-exempt status to your organization by selecting the appropriate box. Priority will be given to organizations working with communities that demonstrate the greatest need and likelihood of sustainable impact on young people’s nutrition and activity levels through innovative programs.

Individual Responsible

Provide the name of the key contact person for the grant proposal. A secondary contact person can be helpful in order to enhance communication regarding your grant application.

Registered Dietitian

Fill in the name and registration number of the registered dietitian involved in your program. To ensure that the nutrition and physical fitness information in the proposed program is accurate and is scientifically based, a Registered Dietitian (RD) must either be directly involved or serve as an advisor to the program. If you need help in locating a dietetics professional in your area, go to the American Dietetic Association's Web site at www.eatright.org and click on “Find a Nutrition Professional.”

Fitness Professional (if applicable)

Indicate if your program also has a fitness professional, athletic trainer, exercise physiologist, physical education teacher, or other exercise professional involved in your program. The fitness professional may also be a registered dietitian.

Program Name

Indicate the name of your program. The name should reflect the overall goals of the program and be targeted toward the program participants. Past grant recipients have had names including: “Healthy Kids: A Family Affair,” “ENRG Campaign,” “Health Nuts,” and “Hip-2-Be-Fit.” Visit the list of past grant recipients for additional program names and descriptions.

Brief Program Overview and Rationale

In 75 words or less, provide the description, overall goal, and rationale of your program. Indicate if the program is new, based on a model program, or involves the implementation or expansion of an existing program. Also, indicate why your program is needed and important to improve the nutrition and physical activity habits of our youth. Program overviews written in concise language or brief bullet points are encouraged.

Program Objectives

You may submit up to five program objectives. Each program must include at least one nutrition objective and at least one physical activity objective. Objectives can be behavioral such as increasing whole grain intake, or they can reflect gains in knowledge, awareness, and/or intent to change behavior (100 word maximum).

Program Setting

Select the appropriate categories that indicate where the program will be delivered.

Program’s Target Audience, Reach, & Secondary Audience

Indicate the age range of your target audience. Then, fill in the number of participants that you expect to reach through your program over the next year.

In addition to the primary target audience, the secondary target audience includes others who would be impacted by the program. Fill in the numbers of individuals in the secondary target audience that you expect to reach. Only fill in the fields for the secondary audiences that are applicable to your program. In the text field, please explain how this secondary audience(s) would be involved in and impacted by your program (50 word maximum).

Target Youth Recruiting Strategy

In 50 words or less, explain your recruiting strategy action steps. Please describe how you will recruit, enroll, and maintain participants for this program. Describe any recruiting materials, community partners, or other communication channels that will be used.

Target Youth Gender

In the appropriate field, indicate whether male, female, or both genders will be included in your program.

Target Youth Race/Ethnicity

Enter the percentage of the ethnic/racial mix of your target audience. The racial/ethnic mix of your community, school, or group could be helpful in determining your estimate. The sum of all percentages should equal 100%.

Target Youth Geographic Location

Indicate what percent of your target audience lives in rural, suburban and/or urban locations. The sum of all percentages should equal 100%.

Target Youth’s Need for Funding (optional)

If your program is targeted to groups that are at increased health risk due to income, indicate what percent would be below the poverty line or eligible for free/reduced lunch.

Special Needs or Risks Addressed (optional)

If your program reaches groups of youth with special risk, indicate by selecting appropriate categories.

Explain how program addresses a special need or risk (if identified above):

Describe how the program strategy is designed to address one or more special needs or risk. For example, a program targeted to teen parents may provide childcare for teens attending healthy lifestyle classes (50 word maximum).

Key Program Dates

Indicate the proposed program timeline for program implementation by filling in the start and end dates for program planning, participation, and evaluation phases of the program.

Program Method of Delivery

Select all delivery methods that will be used in the program. Consider recruiting, implementation, and evaluation stages of the program.

Model or Packaged Programs (optional)

If your program is based on or uses materials from a model or packaged program, select the appropriate program or programs used. Although not required, there may be benefits to using model or packaged programs. Go to model and packaged programs for additional information. If you will be using a program not listed, please indicate the name and source in the spot provided.

Program Frequency and Duration

In 50 words or less, in the text field, describe how many sessions will be held (i.e., sessions per week or month) and how long each session will be.

In the appropriate boxes, estimate how many hours and/or minutes each participant will be in contact with the program.

Program Expected Outcomes

Select only those expected outcomes that apply (at least one required). Outcomes should be consistent with program objectives. For example, if objectives indicate change in attitude, attitude would also be an expected outcome. If objectives indicate behavior change, then behavior would be an expected outcome.

In the text box provided, describe the specific outcomes the program intends to achieve and how the program will produce the specified outcomes (75 word maximum).

Evaluation Plan

Describe what evaluation methods and tools will be used (75 word maximum). Evaluation methods and tools should be consistent with stated program objectives and expected outcomes.

Nutrition Topics

Programs can cover a wide variety of nutrition topics. Select the nutrition topics that will be addressed in your program.

In the text field, describe how your program will address these topics (75 word maximum).

Physical Activities Promoted

Programs can promote a wide variety of physical activities. Select the type or types of physical activity that will be addressed in your program.

In the text field, describe how your program will promote these types of physical activity and incorporate them into the program (75 word maximum).

Staffing Model

Describe who will staff your program and their roles, including who will develop, coordinate, implement, and evaluate the program. Also describe the role of the Registered Dietitian (RD) and the fitness professional (if applicable) (50 word maximum).

Documentation

List and describe the type of pictures and other documentation that you will provide as part of the overall program evaluation (50 word maximum).

Sustainability

Describe how you plan to sustain the program, or parts of the program, with future staffing, funding, partnerships, or other methods that extend beyond the grant period (50 word maximum).

Overall Budget

In the space provided, indicate how $10,000 will be spent as part of the development and delivery costs of the grant. Note that some expenses are only allowed during delivery (such as food costs) and others only allowed during development (capital equipment). The total budget must equal exactly $10,000. In addition, provide a brief description and rationale justifying the line items.

Although actual program costs may not reflect these estimates exactly, every effort must be made to spend grant dollars according to estimates during the grant period.

Budget Breakout

In the fields provided, indicate what percent of the total $10,000 budget would be dedicated to nutrition and what percent dedicated to physical activity. The total must equal 100%.

In the next two fields, indicate what percent of the total $10,000 budget would be dedicated to education and what percent used for equipment and other overhead. The total must equal 100%.

Optional: Please describe any additional resources of funding that may be used in conjunction with the Champions Grant either during program implementation or after in an effort to sustain the program (50 word maximum).

Final Statement

In this field, describe why your program proposal is unique and has the potential to be effective in improving nutrition and physical activity in youth. State clearly why you believe that your proposal should be selected. Although it may summarize previous information, this statement should not repeat information previously stated in the grant application (200 word maximum).

Additional information for all grant applicants

Completed proposals must be completed and submitted online no later than January 15, 2008.

The information presented here is an overview of the General Mills Champions for Healthy Kids grants program. Grant applications will become the property of the General Mills Foundation and the American Dietetic Association Foundation. The General Mills Champions for Healthy Kids grants application forms should be completed and submitted online via www.generalmills.com/foundation. Applicants will be notified of results in May 2008 by electronic mail.

The General Mills Foundation and the American Dietetic Association Foundation cannot be responsible for late or incomplete grant applications. In order to submit a complete application, in addition to following the directions in this Application Guide, it is important that you review all of the following information before completing your application:

Evaluation

Thank you for participating in the General Mills Champions for Healthy Kids initiative, a partnership of the American Dietetic Association Foundation, the President’s Challenge, and the General Mills Foundation.