Each of our campus partners in the pilot phase has a successful track record of raising additional funds from other sources to sustain and expand their efforts. At the local level the operational model we have developed a cost effective approach because of the following features of our approach

• Housing local PolicyOptions.org bureaus on affiliated college and university campuses offers several financial advantages, including:
  • Use of students as primary “community reporters” paid for with work-study which only requires a 25% matching contribution of their stipends (with the other 75% covered by the Federal Work-Study Program).
• Use of students as “policy analysts” who receive academic credit through their academic courses rather than any financial compensation.
  • In-kind support in technology access, workspace
  • Our web-based platform for all PolicyOption.org affiliate sites effectively removes technology development cost from their budgets
• Research provided based on academic rewards/recognition
  • Open source model for PolicyOption.org research means all affiliate sites benefit from shared information databases while only being responsible for local content they manage.

Almost all of the activities proposed in this grant will be connected with academic courses, which will make them cost-effective since those courses are taught every year and the students and faculty who are in them do not need to receive additional funding beyond the start-up mini-grants for faculty who are revising or developing these courses for the first time.

In the future, the sub-grantees will consider the following strategies:

• applying for an AmeriCorps VISTA member to further develop the community partner's capacity to engage in research, planning, and community dialogues;
• applying for AmeriCorps Education Awards to supplement Community Service Federal Work Study students receive to support their activities.