Table of Contents
- Executive Summary
- Introduction
- Aligning Around a Clear Vision
- Determining your Funding Strategy
- Choosing Your Partnerships with Community-Based Organizations
- Privacy Best Practices
- Implementing Your Program
- Managing the Program
- Delivering Cash
- Building Toward the Future
- Additional Resources
- Worksheet 1: Putting your Cash Assistance Program Strategy in Place
- Worksheet 2: Program Checklist: Use two weeks into your program
Choosing Your Partnerships with Community-Based Organizations
Key takeaways from this section:
- Decide who you’ll partner with to distribute funds
- Decide whether you will release cash payments or whether you will regrant to partner organizations to do this
As a city or state administering a cash assistance program, you’ll want to rely on community-based organizations (CBOs) to help you connect with those individuals and families who will qualify for help. They can help set eligibility requirements and identify qualified applicants. They can distribute the funds to individuals and families. Beyond playing a role in community outreach, the CBOs that you work with will also be assets in helping you choose the best implementation methods for the program.
How do you choose the best CBOs to work with? Here are two main criteria:
They should be aligned with your program’s values and goals: You are bringing CBOs onboard to connect your program with the people who most need it. Choose partnerships with CBOs that are rooted in the communities most relevant to your program. The organizations that we spoke with all had different approaches to finding the right, value-aligned partners. Some national organizations reached out to local affiliates while others solicited applications from CBOs with whom they had no existing relationship. Others found CBOs that were loosely within their network and worked in the same ecosystem (organizations focused on housing in a specific region, for example). The main point is that you should only bring in CBOs that have trusting relationships with the people that you intend to serve.
They should have bandwidth for the work: If you are partnering with a CBO to help with outreach, they should have at least one individual available to work full-time on the project for at least eight weeks while the program is active. It’s important that someone be available to respond to applicants and recipients as your program is underway—it’s safest to assume that the work will require full-time attention.
Also, be careful not to burden your partner CBOs with administrative work that is outside of scope for them. Know that the organizations that you’ll work with are probably stretched thin as-is. Tap in to their expertise, but be prepared to take on the burdens of administration yourself.
*Note that if you are involved in running a cash assistance program and you have lessons of your own to share, believe that we left something out, or believe that we got something wrong, please let us know. We’ll be collecting feedback through the end of July. Thank you!