FILL OUT THE TEMPLATES ATTACHED ACCORDING TO THESE INSTRUCTIONS
Individual Assignment #1A: Draft Business Plan, Theory of Change Model, & Executive Summary for a Social Enterprise or Nonprofit (Draft Grant Application Packet) (5 – 10 pp., single- or double-spaced, 10-12 size font). Under this assignment, you’ll be asked to propose a new social enterprise or nonprofit and to enter a hypothetical grant competition to secure some funding for your organization. These critically important items will help you put together a Grant Application Packet (GAP) as part of a hypothetical grant funding competition that you’ll enter. The type of plan, model, and summary you are asked to develop, as well as the GAP exercise, are guided by some of the course’s research-based content and entrepreneurship business-related best practices. The details of the assignment are outlined below.
For this draft assignment, write your thoughts under an outline format or using complete sentences under the appropriate sections. Yes, you can use bullets or a formal outline format. Ideally, you should address all areas as best you can with preliminary ideas (at minimum, address half of the sections). To separate the five parts of this assignment, use page dividers and note the section titles. It is preferred that you submit all sections under one document (you may submit the parts as separate documents). Cite your references using an APA, ASA, MLA, or another appropriate format (include a references section). An appendix or appendices section is optional. The following overview represents the guidelines of the final assignment (address as best you can in draft form).
Description: This is the general background to keep in mind for this assignment
A plethora of social ills continue to plague many communities throughout the U.S. and the world. Here are some examples of the many concerning issues in America and around the world: poverty, malnutrition, homelessness, affordable housing, unemployment, illiteracy, lacking access to adequate educational preparation, environmental concerns, plant and animal extinctions, various human illness and life-threatening diseases, lacking access to healthcare, human trafficking, domestic violence, child abuse, teenage pregnancies, gun violence, alcohol and drug addiction, school-to-prison pipeline, income inequities and wage gaps, and racism and discrimination, just to to name a few. In the U.S. and in other countries, the government, nonprofit sector, private business, and other segments of a society have attempted, either independently or collaboratively, to address many of these problems. While some progress has been made, there is still much room for addressing many of these challenges and to help improve the lives of people who continue to suffer under these areas.
Through social entrepreneurship, both social enterprises and nonprofits continue to play a critical role in addressing many of today’s most pressing social problems. Under this assignment, you have the opportunity to think like and to implement the steps of a social entrepreneur. You are asked to propose a new social enterprise or nonprofit that seeks to address a social issue you are concerned about. First, identify an issue to address from your local community, city, or state. You can also address an issue at the national level in the U.S. or internationally. Second, determine if you will propose a social enterprise or a nonprofit. A social enterprise is a business that seeks to generate revenue/profits while simultaneously addressing a serious social problem (the social side, however, is at the center of operations and often more important than the revenue/profits side). Through this type of organization, the profits are usually the primary funding sources for addressing the social problem and running the business. Fundraising, donations, and grant sources are also streams of funding for social enterprises. On the other hand, a pure nonprofit is focused strictly on addressing a social problem and its goals are not focused on generating revenue/profits (the social side is the primary and all-encompassing issue focused on). Under a pure nonprofit, philanthropy, namely through donations, fundraising, and grant-writing, forms the core of the primary funding sources for addressing the social problem and running the organization.
Scenario: This is the specific contextual information to keep in mind for the assignment
- You are proposing to start a social enterprise or nonprofit that will operate over a three-year pilot period. Determine if you will propose a social enterprise or a nonprofit.
- Your venture will address a social-related problem that you and others are concerned about. The issue you seek to address can be local, regional, statewide, countrywide, or global. Identify a specific social problem to address.
- Plan to do most of the work in your own organization either independently or in a team, regardless plan to have others on board to assist and provide the necessary skills sets, as appropriate.
- You are eligible to apply for a $360,000.00 grant award that will be dispersed in equal amounts annually. If you are awarded, you’ll receive $120,000.00 every year, which breaks down to $10,000.00 monthly. The grant is funded by a collaborative involving the state, federal government, and a private philanthropic organization. Depending on the effectiveness and success of your organization, you will be eligible to apply for a second round of three-year funding after the initial three-year pilot period.
- To apply for the grant, you need to submit a Grant Application Packet (GAP) that includes the following sections: a Business Plan (BP), Theory of Change (ToC) Model, Executive Summary (ES), a statement related to the social problem you are addressing using a Sociological Perspective (SP), and a References Sections (Appendices are optional). Detailed guidelines and templates are provided to help complete the various sections of the GAP, as outlined below.
Grant Packet Packet GAP: These are the parts of the assignment that you need to submit (submit under this sequence)
- One-page to three-page Executive Summary (ES) for the Proposed Social Enterprise or Nonprofit (Address: Organizational Overview, Market Analysis, Marketing Plan, Partnerships, Objectives and Assessment, Finances and Budgeting, etc.).
- One-page to three-page Theory Of Change (ToC) Model for the Social Enterprise or Nonprofit (Address: Inputs, Activities/Processes, Outputs, Outcomes & Impact)
- One-page to three-page Business Plan (BP) for the Social Enterprise or Nonprofit (Address: Organization Description/Overview, Need/Problem Addressed, Goals/Objectives, Targeted Market/Constituents, Services & Products, Marketing, Competitors, Evaluation, Management/Operations, Finances/Budgets, etc.)
- One paragraph to one-page statement using a Sociological Perspective (SP) to describe the social problem the Social Enterprise or Nonprofit seeks to address (Address: From sociological perspective, what exactly is the problem? What are some micro-levels and macro-level sociological dynamics of the problem? Which sociological theory(ies) can help contextualize the problem?)
- One-page Reference Section (at least 1 to 2 references) and include if necessary an Appendix/Appendices Section (optional)
Guidelines & Templates: These are the references/templates that will help you complete the various sections of your GAP
Note: If the Theory of Change Template, the Business Plan Template, or the Executive Summary Template are giving you problems as it relates to entering information, opening, saving, formatting, tech issues, etc., go ahead and develop your own document(s) and include the sections in the templates and provide the requested information. The problems in opening and downloading these templates may be due to not having the correct or updated programs on electronic devices such as computers and cell phones. Download for free Word, Acrobat Adobe, etc. to facilitate access to these assignment templates at https://it.ucla.edu/it-support-center/software-downloads. It’s often helpful to start with the ToC first, then to develop the BP, and to work on the EC last (where you bring it all together). The templates are designed to capture your your ideas as they stand now in an outline/draft format You can submit the documents separately or combine and submit as one. If you combine provided templates, it’s sometimes best to do this with PDF’s.
