Has your organization achieved measurable systems change and/or scalable innovation within a workforce initiative? If your Cuyahoga County nonprofit has successfully completed either systems change or scalable innovation or both in a workforce context, we welcome you to apply to the Deborah Vesy Systems Change Champion Award – by the deadline coming up quickly: June 30. The award is an unrestricted $50,000 grant to honor work that has been completed (rather than work planned or proposed).
Below is a brief FAQ, based on the most common questions we’ve received, on the Deborah Vesy Systems Change Champion Award.
Q: Why do you Award the Systems Change Champion Award?
A: The Deborah Vesy Systems Change Champion Award is in honor of the former long-time president of the Deaconess Foundation. Those who are familiar with Ms. Vesy know that as the president, she had a passion for systems change efforts, particularly those that were collaborative in nature. She was a champion herself for initiatives which didn’t just help job seekers and employers but transformed all the actors in the workforce system and how they worked with each other, in order to increase outcomes.
Q: Can you provide examples of systems change? What about scalable innovation?
A: We outline the types of changes which fit the criteria of systems change on the web page providing information about the award. So maybe it is particularly helpful here to let you know about the last two award winners, who won for their workforce systems change accomplishments:
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- MAGNET and GCP (Greater Cleveland Partnership) won the award in 2021 based on their efforts, together with Towards Employment and other partners, to make manufacturing jobs more visible to returning citizens and youth 18-25. In their work, they refined what manufacturers actually need new employees to know when they come into work, then built a program to deliver exactly that. People now need only 3 weeks of training, vs. 4 months or more. The team also worked with employers to reduce some of the barriers to being hired, such as removing a blanket ban on hiring those with a criminal record. All these actions have led to hundreds of successful people being hired into manufacturing firms.
- College Now Greater Cleveland won the award in 2022 based on designing and implementing a completely new curriculum to train teachers, advisors, principals, counselors, and non-profit partners, across what will be 11 different school systems, for more effectively discussing careers with middle and high school students. This new curriculum enabled hundreds of these professionals to transform how career discussions happen and what the outcomes are with students in 2021 and will continue in the coming years.
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And scalable innovation is a new category this year, so we don’t have any past examples we can provide you (beyond the information on the web page providing examples. But one idea could be: has your organization recently identified something new you noticed from another market across the U.S. or the world which you have brought here and implemented it, and it’s benefitted your work? That would be an ideal candidate.
Q: Who is eligible to apply for the Award?
A: Any nonprofit that serves the residents of Cuyahoga County is eligible to apply. There are no restrictions on size or age of nonprofits, only that you serve clients in Cuyahoga County. You may nominate your own organization or someone else can nominate your organization on your behalf.
Q: When is the deadline to apply? What’s the latest I can reach out to you with questions to apply? When will the Award recipient be announced?
A: The deadline to apply or nominate an organization is 5 pm on Friday, June 30 by the end of the day, so I will take questions up until 5 pm on Wednesday, June 28. That provides applicants with a full two days to complete the application if they are eligible. If the Foundation has questions about your proposal, we will reach out no later than Tuesday, August 1.
The winner of the Systems Change Champion Award will be notified by the end of September. Deaconess Foundation will host an event to present the award at the City Club on Friday, October 13. At least one representative from the finalist’s organization needs to be present at the City Club.
Q: Who judges the Award applicants?
A: Applicants are reviewed by Deaconess Foundation grants committee as well as community members, and of course, Deborah Vesy. The community members that assist in the review process include an expert in systems change, in a Cuyahoga County ecosystem, usually outside of the workforce development ecosystem. The other community member is an expert in workforce development but without any ties to the applicants.
Q: What if I have additional questions?
A: If you would like more details about the Deborah Vesy Systems Change Award, please review our website here. But if you still have questions? Reach out to me, Danielle Crawford, at dcrawford@deaconessfdn.org to set up a time to discuss your proposal. Keep in mind: the clock is ticking!