IHCDA makes changes to ‘My Community, My Vision’ program
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Lieutenant Governor Suzanne Crouch and the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority are revamping the My Community, My Vision program. The program, which connects high school students with their peers and communities, will offer five selected cohorts of students the opportunity to participate in four months of workshops, planning, and fundraising towards a place-based community project.
The IHCDA says the program will utilize features of the IHCDA’s crowd-granting CreatINg Places program, which is a placemaking program allowing nonprofit or local governments to raise funds for community improvements. The program is a collaboration with the Indiana Philanthropy Alliance Youth Council program and the Association of Indiana Municipalities Mayoral Youth Council.
“Maintaining strong and viable communities is important to the future of Indiana, and we need future leaders to begin thinking about their own vision for their city or town,” said Crouch. “My Community, My Vision invites these future decision makers to share their ideas and plans with local officials. By their involvement, student leaders will learn about the planning process and the collaborative efforts required to create an even more vibrant community.”
Students who strategize, plan, and raise a fundraising goal of between $5,000 and $50,000 for their project will receive a matched grant from IHCDA.
According to the IHCDA, high school youth council groups will work throughout the semester to determine a project and budget, as well as develop a fundraising strategy and raise the needed funds for all materials during a 30-day fundraising campaign. Students will also take part in three in-person workshops, covering place-based community development, project planning, fundraising strategies, and stakeholder engagement.
Applications must be submitted by November 7, and selected teams are expected to be announced November 30. Selected teams will begin the program with a workshop event in January.
You can connect to the full application, including checklist of additional documents, by clicking here.