All of our work at The Rapides Foundation revolves around our overall Mission of improving the health status of Central Louisiana. Our three priority areas, and objectives in each area, are as follows:
Healthy People: To promote healthy behaviors and improve access to healthcare.
Education: To increase the level of educational attainment and achievement as the primary path to improved economic, social and health status.
Healthy Communities: To improve economic opportunity and family income; and enhance civic and community opportunities for more effective leaders and organizations.

Information about these priority areas follows below. Or for more information, view the document Program and Funding Interests.

Healthy People 

We use the term Healthy People in recognition of the health and wellness goals reflected in the national Healthy People 2010 report supported by the federal Department of Health and Human Services. For specific measures relevant to your community, we encourage you to view the Community Health Assessment Data on our Web site.

Under the Healthy People area, the Foundation will fund services and programs addressing the following concerns:

HEALTHY BEHAVIOR
The historic public health work by William Foege and J. Michael McGinnis has demonstrated that at least 50 percent of all illness and premature death is directly connected to lifestyle choices. Smoking, obesity, lack of exercise, alcohol and substance abuse all contribute to early death and disease. Choosing to live a healthy lifestyle is particularly important for teenagers, as their behavior choices will strongly influence their lifelong health status.

Foundation-driven Initiatives
The Rapides Foundation plans to take the lead on projects that focus on these
important areas of interest:
• tobacco
• diet
• physical activity
We are not accepting unsolicited grant proposals in these areas; however, we will be looking for partners to help us tackle these issues.

Tobacco:
The Rapides Foundation is taking the lead in the effort to curb the use of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco in Central Louisiana. We will look for partners in this important endeavor, which will include involvement with the schools, local organizations and also the medical community. Cigarette smoking is the single most preventable cause of disease and death in the United States. It is a major risk factor for heart disease, stroke, lung cancer and chronic lung diseases. In addition, second-hand smoke can increase the risk of heart disease and lung conditions, especially asthma and bronchitis in children.
Consider these alarming facts: The Rapides Foundation’s 2005 Community Health Assessment shows that one in four Central Louisiana adults smoke cigarettes at least occasionally. In addition, the percentage of adults who use smokeless tobacco is 8.5 percent – that’s nearly twice the national average and a significant increase from 2002 when 7.3 percent of Central Louisiana adults reportedly used smokeless tobacco.

Diet:
The Rapides Foundation’s goal is to encourage Central Louisiana residents to eat more fruits and vegetables each day and to eat fewer unhealthy foods. Nearly one in three Central Louisiana residents eat five or more servings of fruits and vegetables a day, the daily recommended allowance to maintain a healthy diet. Unfortunately, that means the rest are not eating healthy diets, and that includes our children. Consider that nearly 35 percent of local parents report that their children ages 5-17 eat at least three fast-food meals a week. Add to that the fact that nearly 68 percent of Central Louisiana adults are overweight, with 31 percent classified as “obese.” Overweight and obesity are major contributors to many preventable causes of death. As the obesity rate increases in the United States, so do the medical costs associated with it. Efforts to maintain a healthy weight should start early in childhood and continue throughout adulthood.

Physical activity:
The Foundation will spearhead efforts to develop proven and innovative programs designed to increase physical activities in both young and old. Regular physical activity throughout life is important for maintaining a healthy body, enhancing psychological well-being, and preventing premature death. Regular physical activity decreases the risk of death from heart disease, lowers the risk of developing diabetes, and is associated with a decreased risk of some cancers. Also, regular physical activity helps prevent high blood pressure and helps reduce blood pressure in persons with elevated levels.
Our 2005 Community Health Assessment shows some Central Louisiana residents are engaging in some form of physical activity; however, one in three residents report that they do not exercise, outside of their regular work duties.

Program Opportunity Grants
Under Healthy Behaviors, The Rapides Foundation will accept grants for programs that tackle these two important issues:
• teen pregnancy
• alcohol abuse
Unintended pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases can result from unprotected sex. In the past decade there has been an increase in abstinence among youths and an increase in condom use among those young people who are sexually active. But although teen pregnancies are on the decline, teenagers still account for the highest rates of unplanned pregnancies in the nation. Eighteen percent of all births in Central Louisiana were to teenage mothers. The Foundation welcomes proposals that seek to decrease teen pregnancies in our area.

Alcohol abuse is associated with many of this country’s most serious problems – child and spousal abuse; sexually transmitted diseases, teen pregnancy; school failure; motor vehicle crashes; escalation of health care costs; low worker productivity; and homelessness. Chronic drinkers – those who average two or more drinks a day – make up about 5 percent of Central Louisiana’s adult population, similar to the nationwide statistic. Just over 14 percent of adults are classified as binge drinkers – those who drink five or more drinks on a single occasion.
The Foundation welcomes proposals that seek to decrease the number of chronic and binge drinkers, as well as those that decrease the prevalence of drunken driving.

HEALTHCARE ACCESS:
Honoring our 100-year legacy as a provider of quality healthcare services to members of the Central Louisiana community, The Rapides Foundation will continue to work to support efforts that help people get access to the healthcare services they need.
An unacceptable number of people in our communities cannot get the medical, dental and mental services they need. Because of this, some people delay or neglect treatment and their health problems get worse. Our children are affected as well. Almost five percent of Central Louisiana parents reported that there was a time in the past year when they needed medical care for their child, but were unable to get it.
Additionally, some Central Louisiana residents do not get medical screenings that are so vital in early detection of various cancers. For example, only 53 percent of area adults over age 50 have ever had a colonoscopy exam, used to detect colorectal cancer. While that is a significant increase over the 45 percent rate in 2002, it’s still lower than the national average.
More disappointing are the findings that show only 35 percent of area adults over age 50 have ever had the yearly fecal occult blood stool test that is also used to screen for colorectal cancer.

Foundation-driven Initiatives
The Rapides Foundation plans to take the lead on projects that focus on these important
areas of interest:
• Access to primary healthcare and mental health services
• Screenings for colon, prostate, cervical and breast cancers
We are not accepting unsolicited grant proposals in these areas; however, we will be looking for partners to help us tackle these issues.

Program Opportunity Grants
The Rapides Foundation will accept grants for programs designed to increase the number of people who get selected immunizations. Our 2005 Community Health Assessment, for example, shows that while a high percentage of area adults 65 and older get regular flu shots and pneumonia vaccinations, Central Louisiana falls well below Healthy People 2010 targets.

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Education 

The Foundation's interest in K-12 education stems from two separate but related concepts: (1) an individual's ability to pursue higher wage employment and take care of their health and the health of their family is directly linked to the knowledge and skills they acquired in school, and (2) the learning environment in a school is a critical component of a community's infrastructure similar in importance to vibrant business and heath sectors. In response, we have chosen a number of carefully targeted programs for funding that all seek to improve student achievement through proven long-term strategies involving teacher and administrative training and support, enhancement of subject specific knowledge and increasing community ownership of the schools. All communities would like their students and schools to be higher performers.

We believe that our support of the following areas will provide the structure for long-term change:

Systemic Initiative in Education: The Foundation’s education efforts initially started out as school-level grants, mostly for five years. What resulted were definable improvements in student performance and teacher knowledge, confidence and engagement. The Foundation then expanded its efforts in education to the district level with the Systemic Initiative in Education. It is the logical next step for the Foundation to engage districts more deeply in the type of school improvement work that the Foundation has supported over the last five years through its K-12 grants and national team of technical assistants. To engage the community in the high school redesign debate, the Foundation recently sponsored two important conferences: one for community leaders and the other for School Board members and superintendents. Both were designed to get educators and the community to come up with ways to improve our area’s high schools. In the coming years we will place an added focus on science and technology.

The Orchard Foundation: One of the hallmarks of a strong community is active involvement of local business and civic leaders in the schools. The Foundation has funded a nonprofit organization, The Orchard Foundation, to provide meaningful opportunities for local engagement, with the goal of providing a permanent home for local efforts supporting higher student achievement. As a result, this local education fund is leading efforts to attract additional state, federal and private funds in a close alliance with school districts.
Research was conducted and this Initiative is now expanding the Foundation's efforts in education to the district level. It is the logical next step for the Foundation to engage districts more deeply in the type of school improvement work that the Foundation has supported over the last five years through its K-12 grants and national team of technical assistants.

Note that applications for grant-funded projects are not being received under the Education focus area.  Please contact Program Department staff for additional information.

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Healthy Communities 

Under the Healthy Communities area, the Foundation will fund proposals addressing one or more of the following community building strategies:

Economic Development: This is an important part of the Foundation’s work. A vibrant economy helps local employers, puts more people to work and increases local wages. The Foundation’s interest in this area correlates the ability to earn a higher wage with other indicated measures such as home ownership and the ability to purchase health insurance. And research shows that people who achieve these goals are in much better health than those who are unable to do so. The Foundation is funding two major economic development programs, and also plans to initiate projects designed to improve the economic environment in Central Louisiana.

Cenla Advantage Partnership: Cenla Advantage Partnership (CAP) is a private regional nonprofit economic development organization committed to meeting the needs of our existing businesses and our entrepreneurs. CAP is funded by the business community and The Rapides Foundation, which is committed to matching the local investments for up to $1.5 million over three years.

Entrepreneurial League System® of Central Louisiana: Research shows that most new jobs come from existing business of locally developed new business. Unfortunately, Central Louisiana data shows relatively low levels of business start-ups in this region. The Entrepreneurial League System® of Central Louisiana hopes to change that by working closely with entrepreneurs in Central Louisiana. Using baseball terminology and structure, ELS recruits coaches to instill discipline to raise the level of our local entrepreneurs.

Community Development: The Rapides Foundation recognizes that improving the overall health of individuals requires investment in both new and existing organizational structures within a community. Through these partnerships, individuals, nonprofits, government and business are better able to work together and target improvements in the standard of living for all community members. We use the term Healthy Communities in recognition of the work of the National Civic League in modeling and supporting community-wide efforts for positive change. For specific measures relevant to your community, we strongly encourage you to view the Community Health Assessment data available at www.rapidesfoundation.org. We also have a number of assessments and surveys in Workforce Development and Community Development that we would recommend you review. Copies are available from the Program Department Assistant.

Citizen and Nonprofit Training and Organizational Development: Our work to date has shown that individuals and organizations throughout the service area are strongly motivated to learn to become more effective. Unfortunately, the rural geography, combined with the relative underdevelopment of the local nonprofit community, does not provide many formal learning opportunities for the average citizen. In response, the Foundation funds Community Development Works (CDW) to meet this need.
CDW is a capacity building initiative that provides free access to training, leadership programs, and informational resources to support citizen-led efforts that address local issues to improve the quality of life in Central Louisiana. The programs are designed for nonprofit organizations, congregations, and citizens working to increase the quality of life in Central Louisiana. CDW programs and services include Nonprofit Management Training, Board Builders, Board Works and the Learning Lab.
CDW is located on the first floor of The Rapides Foundation Building and can be reached at 800-803-8075 or 318-443-7880. For specific program information and links to nonprofit data, please visit www.communitydevelopmentworks.org.

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Community Data, Information and Resources 

A great deal of the activity of the Foundation reflects our role as a broker of information. From early in the Foundation's history, we have emphasized the power of fact-based decision-making in everything from targeting a nonprofit's outreach efforts to developing plans for locating healthcare and counseling services. We have invested both time and funds in the development of various assessments, surveys and databanks. All of these are available to community members through the Foundation's Program Department. In addition, an interactive Web site supports community access to a wealth of primary and secondary community health data. We have also opened a Resource Center, the Community Development Works Learning Lab, on the 1st floor of The Rapides Foundation building to provide additional community access to publications and databases -- to help community people pursue their work more efficiently.

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Deadlines and Award Amounts 

Letters of Intent are due May 15 or October 15. Applications are accepted for programs up to $1,000,000 for a maximum of four years although few grants are awarded at the maximum levels.

Requests for projects of $10,000 or less are accepted at any time as part of our Mini Opportunity Grant Program.

Selected Review Considerations:

• Successful applicants will look to maximize use of existing local, state and federal funds and services in an effort to develop and sustain more effective systems.
  
• Successful applicants will demonstrate a high level of knowledge of the issues. They will also be able to demonstrate that they can be expected to manage a program with a good chance of being effective and creating positive change in community health and well-being.
  
• Successful applicants will propose to develop or provide services to a sufficient number of community residents to make an impact.

On the other hand, proposals calling for large grants to serve thousands of individuals across multiple parishes are rarely funded at that scale. Successful applicants will, at a minimum, recognize the importance of evaluation in developing and supporting services that go beyond goodwill or charity.

Applicants with weak or non-functioning Boards of Directors are generally not successful.

Application materials, eligibility criteria and related selection criteria are contained in the booklet titled Applying for Funds from The Rapides Foundation. Any group or organization interested in applying for funds is encouraged to call the Program Assistant at 318-767-3013. She will direct your call to the appropriate Program staff person. Calls and e-mails are strongly encouraged prior to any formal written submissions.

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