WHITE PLAINS, NY — County Executive Robert P. Astorino today announced that grants totaling more than $6 million – $2,077,000 annually for 2015, 2016 and 2017 – will be awarded under Westchester’s Invest-In-Kids program.
“Invest-In-Kids is a vital partnership between Westchester County and our non-profits to provide essential services with far-reaching, positive results for our at-risk youth population,” Astorino said. “I am excited to partner with these 30 agencies for the next three years.”
Dr. Iris Pagan, executive director of the Westchester County Youth Bureau, said the grants are being awarded to 50 programs as part of a three-year Request For Proposals (RFP) process. The annual grants include $1,725,000 provided through Westchester County’s Invest-in-Kids program and $352,000 in anticipated grants provided to the Westchester County Youth Bureau by the New York State Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS). Under Invest-In-Kids, the grants will fund approximately 65% of each program for calendar years 2015-2017 and the agencies will match the grant to 35%. Under the terms of the grant, all programs will be provided free of charge and must operate year round.
Astorino has committed to keep the funding level for the three-year cycle to provide non-profits with certainty with respect to their funding.
The dollar amounts of grants sought was almost triple the available funding. “Unfortunately, demand outstripped our resources,” said Pagan. “But, the process is designed to give each application an objective review. We apologize for the extra time needed to award the grants, but we needed it to ensure every application got a careful evaluation and every award would produce positive results.”
Under Westchester County’s procurement process, contracts to award the grants will be submitted to the Board of Acquisition and Contract for approval. Programs not selected to continue their Invest-in-Kids or OCFS contract with Westchester County will be offered pro-rated compensation for their programs through February 13, 2015.
Established in 1993, Invest-In-Kids addresses the needs of at-risk youth in 11 urban communities: Elmsford, Greenburgh, Mount Vernon, New Rochelle, Ossining, Peekskill, Port Chester, Sleepy Hollow, Tarrytown, White Plains and Yonkers.