Have you heard the buzz about collective impact? It's the practice of using community partnerships to bring about large-scale change on complex social issues affecting communities. Partnerships open the door to an abundance of resources, which results in an even greater community impact. Funders at the local, state and national level are also taking note and are looking at how this practice relates to their grantmaking efforts.

On March 20, 2013, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), a longtime friend of public broadcasting, hosted a webinar to discuss the importance of collective impact in the agency's Arts Education priorities and goals. As trusted community organizations, public broadcasting stations are well positioned to communicate and address a community's needs and concerns in a way that other organizations cannot.

Read more about this trend and its relevance to public media stations.

Illinois Public Media Partners on Department of Education Grant
to provide Media Literacy Training

In 2012, Illinois Public Media received a grant from the Champaign Community Unit School District #4 to provide media literacy training for both students and teachers. The district was awarded a multi-million dollar Magnet Schools Assistance Program grant from the U.S. Department of Education, and $78,000 of that went to Illinois Public Media for their participation in the project from 2012 to 2015.

The funds will allow Illinois Public Media to help students and teachers create, maintain and staff a 21st Century Digital Media Center. Illinois Public Media created the Center's curriculum and ensured that it aligns with state standards. During the three year grant period, station staff members will provide in-school training and professional development, so that by the end of the project in 2015, students and teachers will be able to run the Media Center on their own.

Years of relationship-building led to this partnership and project. To learn more about the station's success and hear advice that could help you, read more.

School Turnaround Americorps: This program is a collaboration between the Corporation for National and Community Service and the U.S. Department of Education and is aimed to increase educational achievement, high school graduation rates and college readiness for students in the lowest-performing schools. An anticipated $5m will be available, and grant awards will range from $16,000 to $1m. Deadline: Required notice of intent to apply is due April 2, 2013; applications are due April 23, 2013.

Intermediary Organizations Serving Juvenile Offenders in High-Poverty, High-Crime Communities: For this program, the U.S. Department of Labor is seeking multi-site, multi-state projects that improve the long-term labor market prospects for juvenile offenders in high-poverty, high-crime communities. $20m is available, and four grants are expected to be awarded. Deadline: April 15, 2013.

Investing in Innovation Fund (i3) -- Development Grants: The purpose of these U.S. Department of Education grants is to provide competitive grants to applicants with a record of improving student achievement in order to expand the implementation of innovative practices that improve student achievement. Development grants provide funding to support high-potential and relatively untested practices, strategies, or programs. Development grants will be for up to $3m each, and between 10 and 20 grants will be awarded. Deadline: Notice of Intent to Submit a Pre-application is due April 16, 2013; Pre-applications are due April 26, 2013.

Strategies Targeting Characteristics Common to Female Ex-Offenders: Applicants to this U.S. Department of Labor program are expected to propose an integrated strategy for serving ex-offenders that includes empowerment and self-development, workforce development, education and case management, as well as required and additional state and/or local partnerships. An anticipated $12m is available to fund eight grants. Deadline: April 17, 2013.

Bay-Watershed Education and Training Program: This National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) program promotes locally relevant, experiential learning in the K-12 environment. Only the Pacific Northwest region is currently accepting proposals for FY 2013 funding. There will be approximately six awards, each of which will not exceed $60,000. A total of $400,000 will be available. Deadline: April 23, 2013.

Bridging Cultures Initiative: Created Equal: America's Civil Rights Struggle: In honor of the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation, the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) is planning to provide up to 500 recipients with a packaged set of NEH-funded films on civil rights history, accompanying programming resources, and a $1,200 grant to host community screenings and discussions about the changing meanings of freedom and equality in U.S. history. Deadline: May 1, 2013.

Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP): This U.S. Department of Education program is currently accepting applications for its College Savings Account Research Demonstration Project. Only current GEAR UP grantees are eligible to apply. Approximately $8.9m is available for this project, and awards will range from $500,000 to $8m. The Department anticipates awarding between one and 18 grants, with an average award size of $1.2m. Deadline: May 1, 2013.

Preservation and Access Education and Training: This NEH program helps the staff of cultural institutions, large and small, obtain the knowledge and skills needed to serve as effective stewards of humanities collections. Grants to regional preservation field service organizations may not exceed $175,000 per year. For all other applicants, the maximum award is $100,000 per year. Awards are normally for two years. Deadline: May 1, 2013.

Training to Work -- Adult Reentry: Funding distributed through this U.S. Department of Labor program will support training and employment services for inmates, 18 and older, enrolled in state and/or local work-release programs. Approximately $20m will be awarded across 15 grants. Deadline: May 2, 2013.

Face Forward-Serving Juvenile Offenders Grants: The U.S. Department of Labor is seeking proposals for projects that improve the long-term labor market prospects of both court involved youth and juvenile offenders. Approximately $26m is expected to be available and distributed across 26 grants. Deadline: May 10, 2013.

Choice Neighborhoods Initiative -- Planning Grants: This program, from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), aims to transform neighborhoods of poverty into viable mixed-income neighborhoods with access to economic opportunities by revitalizing severely distressed public and assisted housing. Planning grants will support the development of comprehensive neighborhood revitalization plans. HUD has requested $15m for this program, and the maximum grant request is $500,000. Deadline: May 28, 2013.

Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program: This U.S. Department of Education program is designed to effect long-range improvement in science and engineering education at predominately minority institutions and to increase the flow of underrepresented ethnic minorities, particularly minority women, into scientific and technological careers. An estimated $2.9m has been requested for this competition. Funds will be distributed across three types of grants. Deadline: May 31, 2013.

Bridging Cultures through Film: This NEH program supports projects that examine international and transnational themes in the humanities through documentary films. Both development and production funds are available. On average, NEH typically makes six awards per competition. Development grants will be for up to $75,000, and production grants will be for up to $800,000. Deadline: June 12, 2013.

Whether you are seeking federal or foundation funding, the Grant Center website, tailored specifically to public media grant seekers, will help you find just what you need. With over 300 funding opportunities, and growing each day, our user-friendly search options help you find the funding opportunity of your choice.

Visit our website. Then, be sure to check back often to see the most recent funding opportunities and news articles. We also encourage you to subscribe to our RSS feed or follow us on Twitter: @aptsgrantcenter.

The Grant Center is made possible by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Questions? Please email the Grant Center: grantcenter@apts.org, or visit our website: www.apts.org/grantcenter.