Deadline: 22 February 2019
ViiV Healthcare is proud to deepen its commitment through the Positive Action for Youth program with the launch of the Amp Grant, a new grant opportunity that will spotlight innovative youth-centered projects by young leaders who have typically lacked access to grant funding, skills development and resources.
The Amp Grant is a $75,000, 18-month commitment to one organization— the Program Lead — in the US or Puerto Rico to launch a grantmaking and project assistance initiative. The Program Lead will provide small grants and implementation support for up to a dozen Youth Leaders whose projects aim to reduce HIV stigma, create safe spaces, share stories and break down barriers deterring young people from engaging in HIV prevention, care and treatment.
ViiV Healthcare expects the Program Lead to offer network-wide technical assistance and capacity-building activities quarterly. For example, Program Lead might create and offer:
- Webinars
- Phone Calls
- Video Conferences
In addition, the Program Lead will create a forum for grantees to connect and share throughout the year. Examples might include:
- Creating an online message board and social community
- Circulating bulletins
- Creating a directory
- Creating a ListServ
Objectives
Identify and develop a pipeline of emerging Youth Leaders
- Increase the scale and sustainability of innovative and co-created youth-led HIV work across the country
- Reach more youth living in underserved communities or that are disengaged from systems
- Decrease HIV stigma in young people’s communities including in families, schools, media and beyond
Intended Outcomes
- Established youth-developed and -led initiatives to educate youth about HIV and prevent HIV among youth populations
- Increased community-driven solutions informed by youth living with and affected by HIV
- Decreased HIV stigma in young people’s communities
Funding Information
The Program Lead will receive $75,000 for the management of the program and distribution of the remaining Amp Grant to appropriate Youth Leaders. Eligible organizations may apply for eighteen months of funding—pending review and approval by ViiV Healthcare—to be distributed to a diverse group of Youth Leaders in early to mid-2019 for work during 2019 and 2020. The Program Lead will develop program criteria and a small grants process to identify and support the Youth Leaders (approximately 8-12 grants at $3,000 each).
Eligibility Criteria
At minimum, all eligible non-profit organizations must:
- Be a 501(c)(3) Internal Revenue Service (IRS)-designated nonprofit organization
- Be located in the U.S. or Puerto Rico;
- Provide programs and support primarily to those persons or communities impacted by or affected by HIV in the U.S.;
- Received no more than 25 percent of applicant’s total operating budget (total annual revenue) in 2018 from ViiV Healthcare and anticipate the same for 2019;
- Organizations applying for the grant must be the same organization receiving the funds and must be responsible for the implementation and management of the project.
Organizational Criteria
Knowledge of the Youth HIV Space & Youth-Friendly Services
- Knowledge of and best practices for:
- Health literacy training and education
- Healthy behavior education
- Stigma reduction
- Safe spaces
- Disclosure modeling
- Referral to other support services
- Academic and school support (e.g., counseling or tutoring support)
- Places where youth exchange information (i.e.: social media, drop in centers)
- Demonstrated cultural competency, including sensitivity to youth culture, racial/ethnic cultures, gender, sexual orientation, and HIV status
- Organization maintains an organizational culture that is youthful and welcoming
- Organization has produced informational materials that are appropriate to literacy level(s) and language(s) of youth served
- Organization has a national network of young people and youth-serving organizations that connect in traditional and nontraditional spaces
How to Apply
- Organizations interested in applying as the program lead should register and must submit proposals via online grantee portal.
- An information session about the Amp Grant opportunity will be held on Thursday, January 31, from 2:30-3:30pm ET.
For more information, please visit https://www.viivhealthcare.com/en-us/positive-action-for-youth/
