Lights On! The nation's rally for afterschool is coming! On October 17, 1 million Americans and thousands of communities nationwide will celebrate the 14th annual Lights On Afterschool to shine a light on the afterschool programs that keep kids safe, inspire them to learn and help working families. Register to host a Lights On Afterschool celebration! Find planning tips and event updates at:  http://www.afterschoolalliance.org/loa.cfm

The National Afterschool Association believes that a diverse, professional, educated, and well-compensated workforce is the key to high quality afterschool programming. With the information gathered from this Benefits survey, NAA seeks to collect data that will position them to advocate for increases and improvements in the salary and benefits of professionals in the youth-serving field. http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/BDXT5GS

Survey ends on September 1st. NAA is giving away two $50 gift cards to Oriental Trading for survey participants.

Advocacy: 21st Century Community Learning Centers
As many of you know, there is urgency to advocate for sustaining 21st Century Community Learning Centers - the largest funding for afterschool and summer programs in the nation. It's often challenging following the national conversations and knowing when to advocate. So, we are here to give you the latest information and let you know that there is real urgency about the sustainability of 21st CCLC. Indiana receives $19M for 21st CLCC distributed to 250 programs serving 20,000 children and youth each year. This year, the need and requests for 21st CCLC funding far exceeded available funding and many long-time funded 21st CCLC programs were not funded, impacting thousands of K-12 youth statewide. Congress is currently debating renewing the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), which includes the 21st Century program.  You can make a difference!  Let your legislators know how important this funding is to children, youth and families in our state.  Click here to send emails to your legislators.  The Afterschool Alliance has provided language to help you make your case: http://capwiz.com/afterschool/issues/alert/?alertid=61025651   Invite legislators to you visit your program.  Celebrate Lights On Afterschool.   Contact Chelsie Mann-Sharp at the Indiana Afterschool Network for ideas and questions cmann@indianaafterschool.org

Save the Date!
March 17-18, 2014
Indiana Summit On Out-of-School Learning
"I Am Indiana Afterschool"  
JW Marriott Downtown Indianapolis

More information coming soon!
   

Indiana Division of Mental Health and Addiction is offering a $500,000 grant opportunity for substance abuse prevention and mental health promotion. Grant range:  $500,000 (November 2013 - June 2016).  Deadline: September 23, 2013. For more information click here.

US2020 City Competition
A nationwide contest supporting outstanding, multi-sector efforts to increase STEM mentorship for underrepresented youth. The City Competition will distribute over $1 million in in-kind and direct support among 3-5 cities, including on-the-ground service corps members, access to a state-of-the-art online volunteer platform, consulting services from a leading firm, and participation in local and national communities of practice. Introduced by President Clinton in June, the month-long first-phase application period will open on September 18, with winning projects launching in Fall 2014.
http://us2020.org/city-competition to learn more about the US2020 competition and prepare to apply.

American Honda Foundation
http://corporate.honda.com/america/philanthropy.aspx?id=ahf
The America Honda Foundation supports youth education with a specific focus on the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) subjects in addition to the environment. The grant range is from $20,000 to $75,000 over a one-year period. Deadline: November 1, 2013

2014 RISE Award
Google RISE Awards are designed to promote and support education initiatives to increase engagement in science and technology, especially computer science. Google grants awards of $15,000 - $50,000 USD to non-for-profit organizations around the world working to expand access to these fields for K-12/Pre-University students, specifically girls and underrepresented groups. Deadline: September 30 http://www.google.com/edu/programs/google-rise-awards/index.html#!overview

Aetna Foundation's Regional Grants
The Aetna Foundation's Regional Grants fund community wellness initiatives that serve those who are most at risk for poor health - low income, underserved or minority populations. A healthy diet and regular exercise can help prevent obesity and many chronic conditions. Grants will target communities where healthy food can be difficult to buy, and where social and environmental factors may limit people's ability to be physically active. Funding limits: proposals seeking $25,000 - $40,000. Deadline: September 15, 2013
http://www.aetna-foundation.org/foundation/apply-for-a-grant/regional-grants/index.html

William T. Grant Foundation: Youth Service Improvement
Do you have an afterschool program or youth service organization in New York City that has seen some degree of success but lacks the funding to make necessary improvements? The William T. Grant Foundation is awarding $25,000 grants to small to medium sized direct service organizations in an effort to improve the quality of services being offered to youth between the ages of 8 and 25. Deadline: Sept. 11.  More HERE.
 
MetLife Foundation Afterschool Innovator Awards nominations now open! In partnership with MetLife Foundation, the Afterschool Alliance is looking to award $10,000 to five exemplary afterschool programs serving middle school youth. In particular, we need your help to find innovative and lesser-known programs in four categories: keeping kids safe and supported, afterschool and the Common Core, students with disabilities and other special needs, and using data to improve programming https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MetLife2013

Make A Difference Day
Each year on the fourth Saturday of October, millions of Americans take part in Make A Difference Day, the nation's largest annual day of volunteering. By participating in Make A Difference Day your charity has a chance to receive a $10,000 grant from Newman's Own. For a chance to win a $10,000 grant from Newman's Own: Register your project http://daytabank.handsonnetwork.org/  After completing your project on Oct. 26, fill out a simple form at http://daytabank.handsonnetwork.org/ describing what took place and the impact you witnessed.

Bright House Networks announces StudentCam, C-SPAN's annual national video documentary competition that encourages students to think critically about issues that affect our communities and our nation. This year students in middle school and high school will compete to share in $100,000 in cash prizes, with 150 total student prizes awarded.  Bright House will select six regional winners to share in $12,000. This year's question is, " A Message to the U.S. Congress." What's the most important issue the U.S. Congress should consider in 2014? For a complete list of competition rules, http://www.studentcam.org/rules.htm 
 
Unitarian Universalist Association: Fund for a Just Society
The Fund for a Just Society, a program of the Unitarian Universalist Association, provides grants that address issues of social and economic justice. The Fund supports organizations that use community organizing to bring about systemic change leading to a more just society and mobilize with those who have been disenfranchised and excluded from resources, power, and the right to self-determination. The maximum grant amount is $15,000; however, most grants range between $6,000 and $8,000. Deadline: September 16, 2013
http://www.uua.org/giving/funding/102186.shtml

The Lilly Endowment Teacher Creativity Fellowship Program: designed to provide teachers, counselors, librarians, media specialists and administrators with professional development and renewal. 100 fellowships at $10,000 each. Deadline: November 1 http://www.teachercreativity.org/

Finish Line Youth Foundation
http://www.finishline.com/store/youthfoundation/guidelines.jsp
The Finish Line Youth Foundation provides funding to organizations that youth athletic programs and sports-based camps, especially those serving disadvantaged and special needs children. Deadline: Rolling  Grants range from $1,000 - $5,000.

Build a Bear Foundation
Build a Bear Workshop's Foundation has an RFP out for literacy programs (mostly for books) and child well-being programs. Amounts range from $1,000-$5,000. Deadline is October 31st
http://foundationcenter.org/pnd/rfp/rfp_item.jhtml?id=426900036

STEM Education Projects
Westinghouse Electric Company is accepting applications from schools in the United States working to provide creative hands-on projects related to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Through its N-Visioning a Brighter Future program, Westinghouse will award $1,000 grants to three schools for any project with a STEM-based focus. An additional $2,000 grant will be awarded to each school's science department for general needs. Deadline: November 15, 2013
http://foundationcenter.org/pnd/rfp/rfp_item.jhtml?id=425300028

Pollination Project
Seed grants of $1,000 for educators to implement projects promoting environmental stewardship, social justice, human rights, and animal protection. Deadline September 22, 2013
http://foundationcenter.org/pnd/rfp/rfp_item.jhtml?id=427500011

Office Depot Foundation
Supports nonprofit organizations, government agencies, libraries, and schools that bring systemic change to the communities they serve. The Foundation provides grants averaging $1,000 in three distinct categories. The focus of the "Giving Children Tools for Success" category is on activities that give young people tools to succeed in school and in life through education and inspiration. The "Building Capacity to Serve Communities" category targets programs that help nonprofit organizations to serve the needs of their communities efficiently. Deadline: October 31, 2013
http://www.officedepotfoundation.org/funding.asp

WellPoint Foundation - Healthy Generations
The WellPoint Foundation invests in domestic initiatives that help improve the lives of people and the health of local communities. The Foundation promotes healthy behaviors, health-risk prevention, and healthy environments. Focus areas include childhood obesity prevention. Amount Varies. Deadline: September 13, 2013
http://www.sparkpe.org/grants/featured-grants/wellpoint-foundation-healthy-generations/