From Theory to Practice: Sustainability Tools for Lifespan Respite Grantees and Partners

On July 16th, The Finance Project in collaboration with ARCH National Respite Network and Resource Center conducted a webinar for Lifespan Respite grantees on tools and strategies to help sustain the programs beyond the life of federal funds.

During the webinar, Shawn Stelow Griffin, Vice President of Education and Children's Services, reviewed the fundamental steps grantees should take when embarking on a sustainability process. She also shared the suite of Sustainability Planning Resources developed by the Finance Project. The webinar concluded with an opportunity for participants to interact with presenter and ask questions. The webinar was recorded and can be accessed at http://archrespite.org/webinars-and-teleconferences/from-theory-to-practice.

Measuring Social Return on Investment for Community Schools: A Practical Guide. Social return on investment (SROI) analysis offers a practical new approach for measuring and communicating the value of outcomes achieved by programs that provide social, health, and educational services to children and their families. This guide highlights the key steps in conducting SROI research, issues in data-gathering and analysis, as well as lessons learned from a case study of two New York City community schools. The guide also helps educators and community leaders understand how to present and use SROI findings to make a strong case for investments to sustain and scale up these promising education reform initiatives..

Measuring Social Return on Investment for Community Schools: A Case Study. This case study documents the process of applying social return on investment (SROI) analysis to measure the economic value of two community schools operated by The Children's Aid Society, in partnership with the New York City Department of Education, "one of the city's poorest neighborhoods" - PS 5 and Salomé Urena. The case study details each step of the data-gathering and measurement process and provides convincing evidence of the value of outcomes for students, families, and school communities..

DC Education Adequacy Study Overview
The Finance Project (TFP), In September 2012, the District of Columbia Government contracted with The Finance Project (TFP) to undertake a rigorous study of the costs of providing an "adequate" pre-K through 12 education to students in DC's traditional public schools and public charter schools. Over a 12-month period, The Finance Project, in partnership with Augenblick, Palaich and Associates (APA), a Denver-based education research firm, will:

1. Develop a data-driven estimate of the cost of an "adequate" pre-K through 12 education in the District of Columbia;

2. Recommend changes to the structure and level of foundation funding in the Uniform Per Student Funding Formula (UPSFF), as well as the weightings for students with special learning needs that require services which entail additional costs;

3. Recommend changes to the way in which capital investments, maintenance, utilities and custodial services for school buildings and facilities are financed and managed; and

4. Develop guidance for updating the study's basic elements on a continuing periodic basis.

Using a blend of Professional Judgment Panel and Successful Schools Study methods for analyzing the costs of an adequate education, the TFP/APA study team will examine the cost of resources required for public schools and public charter schools to meet DC academic standards, including the Common Core State Standards, once they are implemented.

For more information, please read an overview of the study at: www.financeproject.org/publications/SummaryDCEducation
AdequacyStudy.pdf. For more information about the study, please contact Cara Patrick at cpatrick@financeproject.org.

Sharing Risks and Returns: Social Impact Investment to Scale Up Effective Programs. This brief aims to help policymakers, community leaders, private investors, and other stakeholders understand what is known about the opportunities and conditions for success in designing and implementing incentive-based financing strategies to take innovative evidence-based social solutions to scale. It describes the design and implementation of three broad types of innovative financing strategies that make funding contingent on specific benchmarks for success. The brief also includes examples of how state and local leaders are designing and implementing these financing strategies to respond to demands for improved outcomes. It offers considerations for stakeholders to address when determining whether, and how, these strategies could work for a community or state seeking to link funding to achievable outcomes.

Analysis of the Fiscal Resources Supporting At-Risk Youth, Ages 13-24, in Hawaii. This fiscal mapping study helps Hawaiian state leaders identify the public and private funding sources available to support programs and services for at-risk Hawaiian youth, ages 13-24. The study also evaluates Hawaii's effectiveness at using funding to sustain the seventy-two state administered programs for at-risk youth in Fiscal Year 2011.

Sustaining Community Revitalization: A Tool for Mapping Funds for Promise Neighborhood Initiatives. The following fiscal mapping tool will help leaders identify funding resources in their communities to help build a stable base of support for their work.




Sustainability Planning Workbook
This workbook is the foundation for our training services and helps users clarify their vision, identify key issues in sustaining their work, and develop strategies to achieve their long-term goals.