Playing Smart changelabsolutions.org | kaboom.org 45 state, see the National Park Service website at www.nps.gov/ncrc/programs/lwcf/contact_list.html. 21st Century Community Learning Centers Program The primary goal of this program is to create community learning centers that provide academic, artistic, cultural, and recreational enrichment activities during non-school hours for students who attend low-performing schools and live in high-poverty areas. The centers also must offer literacy and other educational services to the students’ families. Activities funded through this program include remedial education, arts and music programs, tutoring services, computer literacy programs, and recreational opportunities. Funds are allocated to each state’s department of education, which then awards funds through a competitive grant program to eligible entities, including school districts, county offices of education, and community-based organizations. Priority is given to applications from partnerships of two or more eligible entities. For due dates, applicant requirements, and award criteria for your state, go to the U.S. Department of Education’s website at www2.ed.gov/programs/21stcclc/contacts.html#state. Community Facilities Grants Program The U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development offers grants to rural areas and towns with populations up to 20,000 to develop essential community facilities.60 Funds may be used to build, enlarge, or improve schools, libraries, hospitals, medical clinics, and community centers, and can include equipment purchases. Grants are available to local governments (towns, counties, special-purpose districts) as well as to nonprofit organizations and tribal governments. For more information about this program, see www.rurdev.usda.gov/HAD-CF_Grants.html. Community Transformation Grants The new national health care reform law (the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010) authorizes funding for innovative chronic disease-prevention initiatives through the Community Transformation Grants program. This program will enable communities to implement programs and policies that help reduce chronic disease rates and address health inequities by creating healthier school environments, encouraging physical activity, increasing access to nutritious foods, and improving community safety. State and local governments, nonprofit agencies, national networks of community-based organizations, and Indian tribes are eligible to apply. Twenty percent of funding is set aside for rural and frontier areas.61 For more information about the program, see www.cdc.gov/communitytransformation. Community Development Block Grants This rather flexible program provides annual grant allocations to states, urban counties, and qualified cities to fund a broad array of community development activities that benefit low- and moderate-income families, including building public facilities, improving neighborhood conditions, and investing in parks and recreational opportunities. For more information about this program, see the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development website at http://portal. hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/ comm_planning/communitydevelopment/programs. State Grants Most states have some type of grant program to help local school districts finance facility construction/ renovation or program operations and ongoing maintenance. Types of funding vary widely from state to state and can take the form of direct aid, matching grants, loans, and assistance with debt service (bond repayments).62 Here are examples of two state grant programs that specifically fund community use of schools: Arkansas The Arkansas Department of Education has established a competitive grant program that funds schools to implement joint use policies and agreements that maximize opportunities for physical activity. This program supports collaborative partnerships between schools and local government agencies or communitybased organizations. Funded by the state’s tobacco tax (the Arkansas Tobacco Excise Tax, Arkansas Act 190 of 2009), the program is a coordinated effort of the Arkansas Department of Education, the Department of Health, and the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement. To learn more about the program, see www.arkansascsh.org/apply-it-in-your-school/584c0b1 fb838fc7e23da42ce07caf9b3.php.
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