The Promise Neighborhoods grant program was established in 2010 under the legislative authority of the Fund for the Improvement of Education Program (FIE) and is administered through the Office of Innovation and Improvement (OII) within the Department of Education (ED). The program builds on the experience of initiatives such as the Harlem Children’s Zone and is the realization of President Obama’s vision for taking an all-hands-on-deck approach to addressing generational family and community poverty.
There are two types of Promise Neighborhood grants—planning and implementation.
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The Promise Neighborhoods planning grants focus on understanding the needs in a targeted geographic area and developing a sound structure and plan to implement a continuum of supports that address the identified needs in that neighborhood. The planning phase includes the following components:
The Promise Neighborhoods implementation grants support eligible organizations in carrying out plans to create a continuum of solutions that will significantly improve the educational and developmental outcomes of children and youth in a target neighborhood. The implementation phase includes the following components:
Organizations that are eligible for Promise Neighborhood grants include nonprofit organizations (this may include faith-based nonprofit organizations);3 institutions of higher education4; and Indian tribes. Learn more about eligibility for Promise Neighborhood grants on ED’s website.
For both planning and implementation grants, a Promise Neighborhood is defined as both a place and a strategy. Promise Neighborhoods are places or distressed neighborhoods that are characterized by
The program is also a strategy for addressing the issues that these communities face through a continuum of cradle-to-career solutions. Great schools are at the center of this effort. Other essential components of this effort include
While not requirements, Promise Neighborhoods also aim to contribute to broader neighborhood revitalization strategies by breaking down public agency silos, addressing regulatory and policy barriers, and leveraging and integrating existing investments in the community.
In 2010, the Promise Neighborhoods program awarded one-year grants to eligible entities in 21 communities across the country. In 2011, the Department of Education awarded a second round of planning grants and a first round of implementation grants. The five implementation grants and 15 planning grants will reach an additional 16 communities throughout the United States. As of the spring of 2012, the Promise Neighborhoods program is in 18 states and the District of Columbia.
1 ,2 U.S. Department of Education (2012). Applications for new awards; Promise Neighborhoods program—planning grant competition. Federal Register, 77(77), 23690-23704. Retrieved from http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2012-04-20/pdf/2012-9595.pdf
3 Nonprofit organizations that meet the definition of a nonprofit under 34 CFR 77.1(c).
4 Institutions of higher education as defined by section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended.
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