Coaching Grant Opportunities – Cross Country Skiing

1. Coaching Grant Opportunities – Cross Country Skiing

2. Available Grants - National CCC External Organizations NCCSDA (CCC managed) CAC – Internship Grant Women in Coaching GM Making Dreams Possible (Club & HP Grants) • AltaGas Club Professional Coach Support Program • Women on Skis Committee • AltaGas High Performance Coaching Experience Program

3. AltaGas Club Professional Coach Support Program • Provide funding support to clubs for the purpose of hiring a full time coach • Primarily for clubs targeting L2C-T2C stages • Currently offering 3 yr grants on a declining scale (15k, 12k, 8k) • Next available application period will be May 2011

4. High Performance Coaching Experience Program – HPCE • Not technically a grant, however does provide funding for professional development experiences • Opportunities could include coaching at World Junior/U23 Championships, other international racing trips and camps, working with NST/NDC programs in camp and race situations. • Typically all expenses are covered for the coach to attend the race/camp • Similar programs are run by each Division (Alberta Coaching Experience Program – ACE), ex coaches for Canada Winter Games and Alberta Ski Team camps

5. GM Making Dreams Possible Chevrolet Club Coaching Grants Chevrolet High Performance Grants Targeting coaches for the purpose of enhancing coaching excellence and expertise that will support their athletes’ drive to the podium. Coach-Athlete pairing with specific plan for targeted funding 10 grants of $10,000 each year (ex Alex Harvey/Louis Bouchard) • Targeting community based clubs looking for funding assistance for coach education and training • 51 grants of $2,000 twice per year • Next application: June 2010

6. Women in Coaching • CAC Professional Development Grants • $2,000 to eligible female coaches for professional development (courses, seminars, competitions, etc) • Must be a level 3 coach and eligible for the level 4/5 program • NCI Scholarship • $1,500 per year for tuition in an NCI program (level 4 candidates) • Apply through the NCI Director (deadline – July 15, 2010) • National Team Apprentice Program • Provide opportunities for female coaches to work with National Team programs in the lead up to major international competitions (World Champs, Olympics) • Program runs for 2 ½ years, next cycle should begin fall 2010 • Canada Games Apprentices • Provide opportunity for female coaches to gain experience at national multi-sport games • Currently group for 2011 is already selected (includes cross country ski coach from New Brunswick)

7. NCCSDA - National Cross Country Ski Development Association • ‘The “National Cross-Country Ski Development Association” has been established to assist cross-country ski clubs in financing their skier development and competitive racing programs.’ • Program has a focus on high performance racing at the L2C-T2C level by providing support for coaches and coaching development in order to develop the next generation of National Team skiers • 4 priorities for funding assistance: • Full time club coaches (or additional part time coaches) • Assisting with education of professional ski coaches including former racers • Direct assistance to high performance athletes • Funding for CCC National Development Centre’s • Private association distributing funds from an endowment started by a friend of CCC • Managed by CCC, direction and all final funding decisions handled by the NCCSDA Board • Program is currently in the 3rd season (just completed application process) • 1st yr – 240k – 8 clubs, 4 coaches (NCI) – only AB,BC,YK • 2nd yr – 150k – 9 clubs, 3 coaches – only AB,BC,YK • 3rd yr – over 65 applications (including athletes) total over 800k in requests – applications from all across Canada - first year for direct athlete grants

8. CAC Internship Program • Provide funding to hire young professional coaches • Part of the GoC’s ‘Youth Employment Strategy’ • 10 - $12,000 grants every season (next application should be this summer) • Coach requirements • Canadian citizen • 15-30 yrs old • Post-secondary graduate, out of school • Currently not employed in field of study (this can be a little flexible typically) • They expect a minimum of a matching contribution from the club (ie. $24,000 salary for the coach) • Several ski clubs in Canada have used this grant effectively to hire coaches (Nakkertok, Team Hardwood, CNEPH, Big Thunder, Skibec)

9. Grant Writing Tips • Find out exactly what the purpose, objectives and expectations are for each specific grant application you are planning to submit • Contact the organization to ask for any clarification or ‘tips’ that they might have for your application • Often times they will provide information that they are not able to write on the actual application information, they might be able to give some examples of applications that have been successful in the past • Ensure that your program meets all the requirements of the grant, clarify any questions before you submit the application • Keep applications focused on the essential information, clear and concise. • Organizations are often reviewing dozens or even hundreds of applications and will quickly discard applications that are running around in circles • An ‘executive summary’ with all the relevant information is a good start since you can make all the necessary points without excess information and follow up with supporting documents • Why is your program the best choice for the grant? What makes your program different?? How will your club use the grant to improve programs and meet the goals of the funding organization?

10. Grant Writing Tips (cont) • Work on documenting your club program in a manner that makes it easy to present your program in applications • Each application can use the same basic club information with the specifics tailored to the expectations of the grant • This is typically the same information that is effective in promoting the program to parents/athletes and other potential sponsors • Look at creating a strategic plan, organization charts, program charts/descriptions, mission statements and your organization’s purpose and objectives • Ensure that all information, proposals and claims made in a grant application are completely accurate and realistic • Each organization with undertake due diligence when screening/ reviewing applications and almost without exception they will weed out the inaccurate or unrealistic claims • National organizations like the CAC will contact the respective NSO or PSO to inquire and confirm all applications related to those groups. CCC will often need to endorse an application in order for a grant to be approved (eg. GM High Performance Grants) • If you have someone in your club that is effective at writing grants, support them and encourage them to keep doing it. You might even consider providing a commission to them if they are really effective.