TO: The Honorable Board of County Commissioners
THROUGH: John A. Titkanich, Jr., County Administrator
Michael C. Zito, Deputy County Administrator
Cindy Emerson, Community Services Director
FROM: Megan Kendrick, Human Services Administrator
DATE: July 15, 2025
SUBJECT: Children’s Services Advisory Committee Recommended Program Funding Allocations for Fiscal Year 25/26
__________________________________________________________________
BACKGROUND
On February 1, 2025, the County issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) inviting not-for-profit and for-profit organizations, government agencies, and individuals to apply for funding to support children’s programs and services in Indian River County. This grant program is administered by Indian River County with assistance from the Children’s Services Advisory Committee (CSAC), consistent with Ordinance Number 2022-007 and the County’s Outside Agency Funding Policy Revisions approved by the Board on August 4, 2022. In response to the RFP, the County received 52 proposals requesting a total of $3,799,638 in funding. All 52 proposals can be found on The Children’s Services Webpage.
Over the past 10 months, staff has collaborated with the CSAC Main Committee, the Needs Assessment Subcommittee, and the Grants Subcommittee to refine the RFP process. The goal is to ensure the needs of the children and families in our community are being met, to provide agencies with professional development and coaching to develop strong RFPs, to establish clear measurable outcomes for agencies, to analyze and share impact reports with the public, and to increase transparency throughout the process. Below is a timeline of the work that has been done to improve the RFP process by enhancing accountability and impact.
• January
o Professional Development- RFP Walkthrough and Grant Writing
o Coaching- RFP Individualized Support, Budgeting
• February
o Professional Development- Grant Writing Continued
o Coaching- RFP Individualized Support, Budgeting
o Application Open
• March
o Professional Development- Grant Writing Continued
o Coaching- RFP Individualized Support, Budgeting
o Application Closes
• April
o Grant Application Review- Grant Subcommittee reviewed 52 grant applications using the RFP Scoring Rubric
o Coaching- Individualized presentation preparation support offered
• May
o Grant Presentations: May 14, 15, 27
o CSAC Grant Subcommittee Funding Recommendation: May 27
• July
o CSAC Main Committee Funding Recommendation: July 8
o BOCC Vote on 25/26 CSAC Funding: July 15
ANALYSIS
Staff organized programs into the three priorities identified in the Needs Assessment: Health and Well-being, Nurturing Families and Communities, and Success in School and Life. After the CSAC Grant Subcommittee reviewed, analyzed, scored, and heard presentations from the 52 programs, they used the scores from the RFP Scoring Rubric, supporting documentation, and information from the presentations to determine how much funding each program should be allocated. Once the allocation for each program had been decided, the CSAC Grant Subcommittee voted on the total funding recommendation for programs in each priority.
The CSAC Grant Subcommittee approved full or partial requested funding for: 11 out of 12 programs in Health and Well-being, 10 out of 13 programs in Nurturing Families and Communities, and 25 out of 27 programs in Success in School and Life. Thus allocating funding to 46 total programs in the amount of $3,201,133.
BUDGETARY IMPACT
On March 25, 2025, the Board of County Commissioners approved FY 25/26 funding for Children’s Services in the amount of $3,479,492, with up to $278,359 for administrative expenses and up to $3,201,133 in Children’s Program expenses.
Staff organized programs into the three priorities identified in the Needs Assessment: Health and Well-being, Nurturing Families and Communities, and Success in School and Life. After the CSAC Grant Subcommittee reviewed, analyzed, scored, and heard presentations from the 52 programs, they used the scores from the RFP Scoring Rubric, supporting documentation, and information from the presentations to determine how much funding each program should be allocated. Once the allocation for each program had been decided, the CSAC Grant Subcommittee voted on the total funding recommendation for programs in each priority.
The CSAC Grant Subcommittee approved full or partial requested funding for the following programs, per priority:
|
Priority |
# of Appl. Programs |
# of Awarded Programs |
Award |
|
Health & Well-Being |
12 |
11 |
$663,500 |
|
Nurturing Families and Communities |
13 |
10 |
$275,985 |
|
Success in School & Life |
27 |
25 |
$2,261,648 |
|
Totals |
52 |
46 |
$3,201,133 |
PREVIOUS BOARD ACTIONS
On July 2, 2024, the Board of County Commissioners approved the Children’s Services Advisory Committee Recommended Program Funding Allocations for Fiscal Year 24/25
POTENTIAL FUTURE BOARD ACTIONS
Should program funding be affected by default, noncompliance, or early termination of an awarded grant program during the fiscal year, staff will bring an item to the Board for approval to de-obligate funds.
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT
Quality of Life
OTHER PLAN ALIGNMENT
N/A
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
Recommended Action
Staff respectfully recommends that the Board of County Commissioners approve CSAC’s funding recommendations for children’s programs for FY 25/26 and authorize the County Administrator to execute the 46 program grant agreements after review and approval by the County Attorney for legal sufficiency.