How to Sustain your backpack Program

1. How to Sustain your backpack Program

2. Local Resources • Transportation • Funding • Media • Staff • Volunteers • Food • Carriers

3. FUnding In order for your program to continue long-term YOUR PROGRAM MUST DEVELOP SUSTAINABLE FOOD & FUNDING SOURCES

4. Important questions • How many children do you want to serve? (or How many do you plan to serve?) • How Many weeks will you operate? • How many bags of food will be needed? (ex. 50 students X 36 weeks= 1,800 Bags) • How Much Funding will be needed for your Program? (Ex. 1,800 Bags x $2.50 = $4,500)

5. Important Questions • Cost of Each Bag is dependent on how much food is put in each bag. How much food do you put in each bag? How much food can you afford to put in each bag? • Are you going to distribute additional food or resources for extended breaks? • Answers will allow you to create a budget for the work you want to do

6. Buying Food • Purchase food from the food Bank-purchase program • Purchase food in Bulk • Talk with your local grocery stores about specials or working with your program

7. The Eight Elements of Sustainability • VISION • RESULTS Orientation • Strategic Financing Orientation • Adaptability • Community Support • Key Champions • Strong Internal Systems • Sustainability Plan

8. VIsion Results • What do you want to achieve? • Be Specific- Specific Goals lead to Specific Results • Do you want to serve 50 students…75…100 • Your Goals may remain fluid and change but that’s OK. • Set Short-Term and Long Term Goals • Measure your results and keep track of your progress • Set Performance Measures (Such as we want to serve 52 students for $X,XXX in 2014) • Keep track of Success Stories • Evaluate your program at the end of the school year

9. Strategic Financing Orientation • Startup Grants • Local Foundations- www.foundationcenter.org • WV Pass- www.wvpass.org • Rural Assistance Center- www.raconline.org • Mountaineer Food Bank Pass Through Grants • Long-Term Funding • Fundraisers • Sponsorships • Individual Donations • Church & Organization Support

10. Adaptability Community • If needed, can you immediately serve more students? Can you provide other services for youth in need? • Keep up with current opportunities • Keep the Community engaged! • Social networks • Websites • Email blasts • Newspapers

11. Community Support • Business members • Faith-based organizations • Higher education staff • Policy makers • Community organizations • Youth • Parents • Teachers/administrators • Local residents • Public officials

12. Key Champions Strong Internal Systems • Recruit key champions strategically. • Find people that have something in common with your cause. • Can bring more than just monetary benefits. • Set clear expectations for staff and volunteers • Strong accounting/audit systems • Honest assessments of strengths and weaknesses of the organization • 100% Documentation

13. Sustainability Plan • What does the organization want to sustain, including its vision, results and core strategies and activities? • What financial resources, key champions, community support and strong internal systems are required to sustain this work? • What are the tasks, roles, priorities, responsibilities and timelines for generating these resources?

14. Sustainability Plan • The answers must be documented in writing • A written plan provides a record of decisions. • Your sustainability plan will be an on-going document with short and long term goals