Greetings!

While the agenda is almost complete for our Governor's Grants conference September 14, (see story #2), we have had an interesting summer project conducting a state-wide, web-based survey on how counties fund their local non-profits. As you can see in the first story below, I will be discussing the results of this survey at the Maryland Association of Counties (MACo) summer conference at 8:00 a.m., Wednesday, August 15 at the Ocean City Conference Center.

If I don't see you at MACo, I hope to see you at the 2007 Governor's Grants Conference!

Eric Brenner, Director

The Governor's Grants Office contacted the Maryland Association of Counties (MACo) and the two organizations agreed to work together on a survey of the counties, with the goal being to gather information about if and how individual counties fund nonprofits. The GGO and MACo submitted questions to a list of contacts in each county. Eighteen counties responded. For those of you participating in the MACo summer conference in mid-August, Eric Brenner will unofficially discuss the report at 8:00 a.m. on Thursday, August 16 (room location t.b.a. at conference hall.)

I thank Melissa Wabnik, who compiled the results of this survey. Melissa, a Master's student at The University of Maryland, interned with our contact at the City of Bowie, Jesse Buggs, this summer.

The survey results will be posted on the GGO website following the MACo conference.

With five separate tracks and more than 40 expert panelists speaking on a variety of subjects, and a chance to network with local, state and federal grants administrators, you won't want to miss this training extravaganza!

Governor Martin O'Malley encourages Marylanders to attend. He said, "To help our state secure the most grant dollars possible, the Governor's Grants Office offers a wide range of training opportunities throughout the year, but this one-day conference is the single best way to improve our competitive edge when seeking grant assistance."

The conference cost is $85, and includes continental breakfast, lunch, and afternoon refreshments. Parking is free and adjacent to the conference center. For more information and to register, click on the photograph or visit www.gov.state.md.us/grants and click on the 2007 conference link in the What's New box. Hurry, because we expect it to be a sell-out by September 1.

Governor's Grants Office Director Eric Brenner said, "We are happy to see the great cross-section of local government and non- profit folks registering for the conference."

While attendees are free to visit any session they choose, we have clustered the sessions into five different "tracks:"

Track I: Find and Apply for Grants
Track II: Post-Award Grants Management
Track III: Grant Opportunities by Specific Topic
Track IV: Grants Line of Business
Track V: "Good Things That Don't Fit Anywhere."

Here is the Agenda:

7:30-9:00 a.m. Conference Check-in/Continental Breakfast

9:00 - 9:35 a.m.PLENARY SESSION (Auditorium)

Eric Brenner, Director of the Maryland Governor's Grants Office, Welcome and introductions.

Martin O'Malley, Governor (invited).

Eloise Foster, Secretary, MD Department of Budget and Management, will address the State budget and the O'Malley Administration's comprehensive strategy to improve coordination and customer service for local governments and non-profits.

9:50 - 10:50 a.m. Concurrent Sessions:

Researching Grant Opportunities: Andrea Snyder, Grants Specialist at the Enoch Pratt Public Library, will cover the basics of how to stay informed on all new grant opportunities from both government and foundations. (Track I)
Federal Administrative Requirements:OMB Circulars: Jeanne Conklin, the National Grants Training Coordinator at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will discuss the administrative rules that apply to all federal grants as established in the OMB Circulars, some of which have undergone recent changes. (Track II)
Meeting Housing Needs: John Greiner, Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development; Chickie Grayson, Enterprise Homes, Inc., and Maria Miller, Shelter Development Group, will team up to discuss current resource opportunities in the housing field, along with successful strategies that non-profits may choose to pursue in securing assistance. (Track III)
Future Trends in Federal Funding: Vic Miller, Senior Fellow at Federal Funds Information for States and Gil Tran, US Office of Management and Budget will discuss past trends in federal funding for grant programs (both formula and competitive), along with the current changes that will dramatically impact how most grant programs evolve in the years ahead. (Track IV)
Capacity Building for Non-Profit Organizations: Peter Berns, the Executive Director of the Maryland Association of Nonprofit Organizations will provide an overview of capacity building strategies for non-profit organizations that stretches beyond grants and fund-raising.(Track V)

11:00 - 12:00 p.m. Concurrent Sessions:

Strategic Grant Proposals: Linda Koser, of the Harford County Community Foundation, will highlight the most important aspects of grant writing and preparing grant proposals that maximize their chance of success. (Track I)
Federal Cost Principles: OMB Circulars: Peter Wathen-Dunn, Senior Attorney at the U.S. Department of Education will discuss the federal cost principles (different from the administrative rules) that apply to all federal grants as established in the OMB Circulars, some of which have also undergone recent changes. (Track II)
Meeting the Needs of Youth and Families: Carolyn Edmonds, Grants Coordinator for the Maryland Department of Human Resources, and Kim Malat from the Governor's Office for Children will discuss funding opportunities that are available from both of their agencies, which will include a summary of how Local Management Boards move money from various state and federal grants into direct services for youth in each community. (Track III)
Local Governments and Grants Issues: Jesse Buggs, City of Bowie Grants Administrator; Debbie Posey, Charles County Budget Department; and Kathleen Sheedy, Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services, will discuss a range of issues that were selected specifically for this session as the top priorities for local government grants administrators. (Track IV)
Homeland Security: Gary Harrity, Maryland Emergency Management Agency; Rob Kevan, Preparedness Officer at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security; and Andy Lauland, Governor's Office of Homeland Security, will discuss the most recent changes in how money flows from the federal government to the state, and on to local governments to meet the homeland security needs of each jurisdiction. (Track V)

12:00pm-1:00pm Lunch (Ballroom)
1:00pm-1:40pm Luncheon Keynote - As the current Congress wraps up this year's budget process, Maryland U.S. Senator Barbara Mikulski and U.S. Congressman Steny Hoyer have been invited to provide their perspectives on what the current budget means for Maryland on both competitive grants and formula grants, along with a discussion on the future of the earmark process in Congress and whether all of the recent attention on this topic will result in substantive changes in the years ahead.
1:40pm-2:00pm State Agency Networking. The primary grants contacts in most of the Maryland State Agencies will be stationed at marked tables in the lunch area, where participants can ask specific questions if they have not been able to do so previously.

2:00pm-3:00pm: Concurrent Sessions:

Electronic Grant Applications for Federal Grants: Now that all federal grant applications must be filed on-line, Earl Warrington, Central Contracting Registry; Bill Reed, Internal Revenue Service; Mike Pellegrino, Grants.gov, and Brian Williams, D& B, will coordinate their presentations to ensure that participants have all of the relevant information needed to successfully file an on-line grant application. (Track I)
Surviving a Federal Audit: OMB Circular A -133: John Seeba, Assistant Inspector General at the US Department of Commerce will provide advice and direction for all federal grant recipients on how to plan for a successful federal audit. (Track II)
Public Safety Resources: Greg Leyko, Governor's Office of Crime, Control and Prevention, and Elizabeth Griffith from the US Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance, will join forces with Katherine Perez, the Police Chief in Bowie (also a juvenile justice expert and former Attorney General staffer) to provide both specific information about available funding opportunities and ways to think about resource management to meet particular public safety resource needs. (Track III)
Community Foundations as Key Partners: Tom Wilcox, President and CEO of the Baltimore Community Foundation; Desiree Griffin Moore, Executive Director of the Prince George's Community Foundation; and, Jackie Ogg, Deputy Director of the Montgomery County Community Foundation will discuss the increase in "coverage" among community foundations across the state. They also will describe ways that local governments are working more closely with community foundations to improve decision making around grants going to local non-profits. (Track IV)
The Certified Grants Management Specialist: Katherine Hermosilla, Senior Manager, Federal Grants Management Solutions at Bearing Point and President of the National Grants Management Association (NGMA), and Torryn Brazell, Executive Director of NGMA, will discuss the progress of building the body of knowledge and credentialing individuals working in the grants management profession. (Track V)

3:00pm-3:15pm - REFRESHMENT BREAK

3:15-4:15 p.m. Concurrent Sessions:

Leveraging Community Assets: It's Not Just About the Money: Izzy Patoka, Director of the Governor's Office of Community Initiatives, and Keith Hart, Director of the Governor's Office on Service and Volunteerism, will describe the many ways that organizations can identify and harness resources to help meet their goals, even though these resources may not involve actual grant dollars. (Track I)
The Impact of Law on Grants: Richard Melnick, Associate County Attorney, Montgomery County; Julius Cotton, Federal Grants System Administrator at the US Department of Education; and Turhan Robinson, Assistant Attorney General at the Maryland Department of Human Resources, will cover a variety of day-to-day operational grants management issues where knowledge of the law and the ways attorneys think can improve outcomes for your organization. (Track II)
Environment and Natural Resources: Chip Price, Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Program Open Space, and George Keller, Maryland Department of the Environment, will discuss the wide range of financial resources available from their two agencies to meet the many needs of the State. The discussion will include the subject of wastewater treatment plants. (Track III)
Performance Measures for Local Governments and Non-Profit Organizations: John Greiner, Sr., Management and Budget Analyst, Office of Management and Budget, Montgomery County, will discuss setting performance standards and measuring outcomes and impacts for grant-funded programs. (Track IV)
Where to Find Grants Management Resource Tools: Jerry Ashworth, Editor, Thompson Publishing, and Merril Oliver, Deputy Director or the Governor's Grants Office, will provide an overview of where to go and how to use a variety of grants management resources, i,e., OMB Circulars, A-133 Audits online, and other useful grants management information and data. (Track V)

We do hope you can join us on September 14 for what promises to be a fulfilling day.

Click here to go directly to the 2007 Governor's Grants Conference Information and Registration Webpage

read: National Governor's Association's article "Front and Center: Maryland to Host Conference on Federal Grant Process"

Quantities of the 308-page book are available for community outreach efforts by contacting the Governor's Grants Office at 410-974-5090 or MDGrantsOffice@gov.state.md.us.

The $15 million, five-year grant is part of the Gates Foundation's Collaboration for AIDS Vaccine Discovery, an international network of research consortia focused on accelerating the pace of HIV vaccine development.

"This grant reinforces what Marylanders have long known: that our state is a world leader in biotechnology, and more importantly, a leader in finding a vaccine that can help the thousands of people affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic," Governor O'Malley said. "I want to thank the Gates Foundation for funding this research."

Read on...

Tuesday, August 28 * 6:00pm-8:00pm * Rockville Library , 2nd Floor Meeting Room * 21 Maryland Avenue * Rockville, MD

Click here for more information and online registration

On August 1, Governor Martin O'Malley announced approval of more than $12 million in Program Open Space funding that will preserve a unique Bay-front property in Queen Anne's County and provide for 13 local projects.

The Board of Public Works approved the State's purchase of the 74-acre Langenfelder property located on the northern tip of Kent Island, north of Stevensville. The $7.2 million acquisition will preserve an important natural and historic site, provide for public recreation, enhance existing land and water trails, serve as a living classroom for environmental education, safeguard wildlife habitat, and allow for significant restoration activities to improve water quality.

This property represents a confluence of opportunities to help preserve and restore the Chesapeake Bay and will help our state expand public access to this natural treasure," said Gov. Martin O'Malley. "Program Open Space is nationally-recognized program that has been used to protect over 320,000 aces in our State from sprawl and development."

Thirteen other localities received Open Space grants. Open Space program manager Chip Price will speak at at the 2007 Governor's Grants Conference as part of a panel entitled "Meeting the Challenges of the Environment and Natural Resources" with George Keller, the Maryland Department of Environment.

Read on...