FAQs
For this inaugural grant cycle, no limits have been put in place in an effort to find the most impactful projects/programs through the application process. This may change in subsequent years. There may be instances where we may reach out to an organization to discuss an alternate amount if unable to award the entire requested amount.
Visit the Health First Allen County Grant Application Portal to create an account and submit application materials. Helpful preparation resources can be found HERE.
For the 2024 grant cycle and due to the quick turn-around to build the grant platform, we are asking that organizations choose the most fitting/relevant Core Public Health Service under which to submit their request, and choose only one. If the project/program request will "touch" more than one CPHS, that is absolutely acceptable - and we ask that you do your best to explain the cross-connection among CPHS areas, but only apply under the one that appears to be the closest match. This could change in future years.
For the 2024 grant cycle, we are asking organizations to choose the most applicable Core Public Health Service under which to apply and only submit one application per organization. This could change in future years.
Funding for mental health was removed by the legislature from the Health First Indiana funding. The money was given to the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) for stand-alone programming for emergencies and for various centers. Further, the Indiana Department of Health has programming for this as well. No monies were provided to local health departments for mental health programming or issues. That said, it does not mean these types of projects won't be accepted for consideration by the Allen County Department of Health if the project/program closely aligns with one of the identified Core Public Health Services or Key Performance Indicators.
The Health First Allen County grant funds, once awarded, can be used for approved staffing costs, some equipment costs, and other contractual costs for services, depending on the nature of the project/program. The list of funding preclusions can be found in the Request for Applications, which can be found HERE.
The Allen County Department of Health does not have a great amount of data of that sort in the Core Public Health Service areas for which funding may be sought in the 2024 grant cycle. Nearly all of those services were previously overseen by the Indiana Department of Health (IDOH) or others. We look forward to learning from the experts currently working in these areas regarding their data sets, known areas of need for which they feel projects/programs are needed, and are currently working to obtain any public data sets from IDOH or others to build our repository.
It is difficult to answer that question until a project/program is submitted so that we may assess its relevancy and alignment with the defined Core Public Health Services and Key Performance Indicators.
This is possible but will depend on the process, topic, timeline and overall alignment with the needs of the specific Core Public Health Service area objectives for 2024. We encourage submission of projects/programs for consideration so we may view the specifics of the plan being requested.
Honestly, that is just too difficult to predict. While there are plans to deploy new programming and projects within the 22 Core Public Health Service areas, our current focus is staffing and space growth and deployment of the public health grants program.
There are no required matching funds to receive HFAC funding awards at this time. We encourage organizations to share any relevant information on current dollars now being put forth or received to support the efforts so that we have that information to consider when deciding upon funding for projects/programs. The grant application itself will request certain budget information like this.
It will depend on the Core Public Health Service area as well as the project/program in question. It is possible the funding can support either of these needs. For the future, the hope for use of this funding will be focused on growth and reaching more people with needed services. For the first year, we will carefully consider each application to ensure the best fit, the widest reach, and the best alignment with the needed goals of the funding in its initial stages.
Until we receive our final funding award amount from the Indiana Department of Health, an exact number cannot be provided. We expect to receive that in September and will revise our budget accordingly. There are certain services and certain staffing requirements local health departments must meet, utilizing the funds as stipulated in the funding legislation. Further, the Department will proactively deploy new programming on its own over time. It is estimated that the Department will grant out more than $2 million in 2024 (possibly more) and likely around twice that amount in 2025 (pending actual amounts received).
If a project is awarded that is not operational year-round, it is likely that a more tailored metric and reporting structure would be created for that specific project.
For this first year of the grants program and due to the importance that has been put upon the completion of the required Core Public Health Services and Key Performance Indicators, a strong emphasis will be put on existing organizations with an existing track record of success in similar areas. That said, organizations can still submit a letter of intent and their submissions will be reviewed and provided with feedback.
The full list of applicable dates and deadlines can be found in the Request for Proposals document, which can be found HERE.
Health First Allen County Grants Team, or HFAC Grants Team.
Since full budgets for organizations were required for submission through the letter of intent (LOI) stage, we are only interested in the budget for your proposed project/program/expansion during the application phase. We are looking for specificity regarding how the requested funds will be used.