Salary and benefits breakdown: (reoccurring all 3 years)

  1 FTE Program Manager

• 1 FTE Salary = $32,904
• 1 FTE Benefits = $14,129

                                   $47,033

1 FTE Program Coordinator:

• 1 FTE Salary = $28,410
• 1 FTE Benefits = $12,199

                                  $40,609

Capital breakdown:

$5000 for set-up and training (one time)

$3000 for authentication (one time

$42,000 annual subscription (reoccurring all 3 years)

Other Operations breakdown: (reoccurring all 3 years)

                        $12,000 = Student Community Engagement Mini-Grants

                        $20,000 = Engagement Ambassador Stipends

Proposal Scope

The goal set out in the new MSU strategic plan around engagement reads, “Members of the Montana State University community will be leaders, scholars and engaged citizens of their local, national and global communities, working together with community partners to exchange and apply knowledge and resources to improve the human prospect.”

Thus the purpose of this proposal is to build the capacity and infrastructure needed for MSU to achieve this strategic goal by the year 2019.  The three objectives put forward here are 1) establish a set of human and financial resources to support, students in their engagement efforts and 2) purchase, install and manage an online tool for students, faculty and staff to document and track their engagement, service and outreach activities; 3) establish stable funding for a Program Manager position that oversees a highly effective student academic engagement program.

Beneficiaries of this work will include students, faculty and staff affiliated with MSU, and non-profit, governmental and community-based organizations and their clients in the local, regional, national, and global communities with whom we partner in our engagement efforts.

Proposal outcomes include:

1)      The establishment of the following campus-based student engagement resources:

a. Engagement Ambassadors Program- We will recruit, select and train 20 peer educators to support students and faculty as they work to effectively engage on campus and/or in the community.  Available by the fall 2013.

b. Student Community Engagement Mini-Grants Program - Dedicated funding for students to support student initiated community service projects that meet needs identified by the community and in partnership with an area non-profit organization. Available by the fall of 2013.

c. One Program Coordinator position that will manage the Engagement Ambassadors and Student Community Engagement Min-Grants Programs as well as the implementation and marketing of the online tracking tool mentioned below

2)      A fully functioning online student, faculty and staff engagement tracking tool

3)      Stable funding for a Program Manager position that manages Montana’s largest campus-based AmeriCorps program in the state.

Describe the proposal

The mission of the MSU Office of Activities and Engagement is to provide the campus community with resources and opportunities to engage students both within and beyond the academic classroom as they build necessary skills as future leaders and active citizens. This office has thrived on campus in one form or another for over 25 years and is currently staffed with a strong, committed, and creative collection of professional, classified and student staff. This is the foundation for an investment proposal to develop stable mechanisms to involve and track student engagement on and off-campus.

The resources we propose to develop to support student engagement on and off campus include the Engagement Ambassadors Program modeled after the former Cat Crew Program, which operated out of the Dean of Students Office from 2004 through spring of 2007.  We propose to take this model and broaden the focus of the Ambassadors with this initial group of 20 students being trained on both campus and community engagement activities and resources to share with students in a wide array of venues.  We request a total of $20,000 per year over the next three years to be distributed in the form of $1,000 stipends for each Ambassador.

We know that our students are passionate, creative individuals with a wide array of gifts and ideas to share with the rest of us here on campus and in the larger community.  With this in mind we would like to create the Student Community Engagement Mini-Grants Program. While clubs on campus have access to funds to put on events and fund their ideas through the Student Organization Fee individual students who work in partnership with a non-profit organization to develop new and innovative ways to meet pressing community needs have no such campus-based financial resource to tap into.  This program would fill that gap and up to 10 students would be able to apply for mini-grants of up to $1,200 to bring their ideas to fruition ($12,000 total per year over 3 years).  The student and their community partner will develop a compelling proposal and will be accountable to document and report project outcomes. They will be expected to present their experience and outcomes to the broader campus community and in a community-based venue as well. The Program Coordinator position included on this proposal will be a full-time position managing all of the initiatives proposed in this document.

As MSU has adopted this new strategic plan, there are four metrics associated with the engagement goal that will require us to be able to track and report quantifiable data on students, faculty and staff outreach, service and engagement activities.  At this point in time we have no centralized mechanism to do this.  There are software packages available on the market today which will meet our tracking and reporting needs, provide added functionality, and will interface with the Banner system.  We propose to set aside funds toward the purchase, installation and management of such a system. Three such tools have been explored thus far: OrgSync (www.orgsync.com), CollegiateLink, a product of Higher One, Inc., (www.campuslabs.com/products/collegiatelink/) and AngelPoints, a product of MicroEdge LLC (http://www.microedge.com/Products/AngelPoints.aspx).

The Program Manager position we seek to fund through this proposal oversees and manages the largest campus-based AmeriCorps program in the state of Montana. Last year alone 178 Montana State University-Bozeman students participated in this program, meeting needs in communities across the state as nursing students, counseling majors, community health, architecture, education, business, agriculture and microbiology majors, as well as WWAMI medical students. These students collectively contributed 104,328 hours of service to Montana citizens. AmeriCorps programs grant education award funds to those members who successfully complete their service commitment.  Last year these MSU students earned a grand total of $331,499 in funds to support their educational pursuits. This position is currently funded with soft money that will no longer be available to us effective July 1, 2013.  I encourage you to consider the risk involved in loosing funding to support this position.

Our students are generally eager to be of assistance and the greatest challenge is keeping them well informed on where they are needed. This proposal is designed to increase the number of individuals on our campus who can and will be active sources of engagement information to our students.  As more of our students get the information they need to engage, a tracking system will allow us to report our progress to the world and tell our unique story as well as the compelling stories of our community partners.

The campus-based AmeriCorps program I have described above Provides meaningful national service experiences to our students who engage in the community by virtue of their discipline.  These students receive a valuable education award from the federal trust upon completion of their hourly service commitment so they are also securing funds (not loans) to help pay for their higher education expenses.  This program will no longer be available to our students if this position is not funded.  Can we afford to let this program go as we enter into this new era committing to support and foster more student engagement and knowing that student debt is a growing challenge?

Year 1: (2013-2014)

Engagement Ambassadors Program:

• Provide 3 initial training sessions for Ambassadors in August 2013 connecting their service to the year of engaged leadership theme, “Commitment to personal growth”:
• Ambassadors begin work with students and faculty in fall 2013
• January 2014 host 2 training sessions
• Debrief session at end of fall 2013 semester and again at end of spring 2014
• Recruit fall 2014 Ambassadors in spring.

 Student Community Engagement Mini-Grants Program:

• In fall of 2013 form an Advisory Board
• Board develops criteria, and process for students to apply for and for the Advisory Board to judge applications for mini-grants.
• Board establishes deliverables required of all students and their community partners who will be funded (i.e. campus/community presentations etc.).
• Create systems in OAE to effectively track use of funds.
• Launch program spring 2014.

 Tracking Software:

• Research, purchase and install tracking software
• Roll out to campus community in spring of 2014
• Saturate first year students at orientations over summer of 2014 with the tool
• Ensure all registered Student Organizations are using the tool

Program Coordinator Position:

• Recruit and fill position at start of FY 14

 Program Manager Position:

• Fund salaries and benefits of this position for the year

 Year 2: (2014-2015)

Engagement Ambassadors Program:

• Review and revise training materials as needed
• Three initial training sessions for Ambassadors in August 2014
• Ambassadors begin work with students and faculty in fall 2014
• Two more training sessions to Ambassadors in January 2015
• Debrief sessions at end of fall 2014 semester and again at the end of spring
• Recruit fall 2015 Ambassadors in spring 2015

Student Community Engagement Mini-Grants Program:

• Advisory Board to review criteria, and process for students to apply for and for the Advisory Board to judge applications for mini-grants.
• Board will review deliverables required of all students and their community partners who will be funded
• Prepare a marketing campaign around last year’s recipients and their work to meet needs in the community that will be implemented in conjunction with solicitations of new applicants for the new program year.

 Tracking Software:

• Spend fall 2014 heavily promoting tracking tool to students

Program Coordinator Position:

• Fund salaries and benefits of this position for the year

 Program Manager Position:

• Fund salaries and benefits of this position for the year

 Year 3: (2015-2016 )

Engagement Ambassadors Program:

• Over the summer of 2015 review and revise training materials as needed
• Provide 3 initial training sessions for Ambassadors in August 2015
• Ambassadors begin work with students and faculty in fall 2015
• Provide 2 more training sessions to Ambassadors in January 2016
• Host a debrief session at end of fall 2015 semester and again at the end of spring 2016
• In spring 2016 will recruit Ambassadors to begin next fall 2016.

 Student Community Engagement Mini-Grants Program:

• In fall of 2015 the Advisory Board will review criteria, and process for students to apply for and for the Advisory Board to judge applications for mini-grants. 
• Advisory Board will review deliverables required of all students and their community partners who will be funded
• Prepare a marketing campaign around last year’s recipients and their work to meet needs in the community that will be released in conjunction with solicitations of new applicants for the new program year.

 Tracking Software:

• By fall of 2015 begin collecting and reporting baseline engagement data for students, faculty and staff

 Program Coordinator Position:

• Fund salaries and benefits of this position for the year

Program Manager Position:

• Fund salaries and benefits of this position for the year

Year 1:

Engagement Ambassadors Program:

• Ambassadors will have made a total of at least 5000 contacts by the end of year 1

 Student Community Engagement Mini-Grants Program:

• at least 5 mini-grants will be awarded in year 1

 Tracking Software:

• Initial user pool will be 1000 by the end of year 1

 Program Manager Position:

• At least 150 positions filled in year 1
• At least 100 members will successfully complete their service commitment and secure the education award funds
• Total service hours of students involved will exceed 100,000 in year 1

Year 2:

Engagement Ambassadors Program:

• Ambassadors will have made a total of at least 10,000 contacts by the end of year 2

 Student Community Engagement Mini-Grants Program:

• At least 10 mini-grants will be awarded in year 2
• All of previous year recipients will make presentations on campus and in the community on their project outcomes

 Tracking Software:

• Will document at least 2000 new users by the end of year 2

 Program Manager Position:

• At least 180 positions filled in year 2
• At least 150 members will successfully complete their service commitment and secure the education award funds
• Total service hours of students involved will exceed 125,000 in year 2

 Year 3:

Engagement Ambassadors Program:

• Ambassadors will have made a total of at least 15,000 contacts by the end of year 3

 Student Community Engagement Mini-Grants Program:

• At least 10 mini-grants will be awarded in year 3
• All of previous year recipients will make presentations on campus and in the community on their project outcomes

 Tracking Software:

• Will document at least 2000 new users by the end of year 3

 Program Manager Position:

• At least 200 positions filled in year 3
• At least 150 members will successfully complete their service commitment and secure the education award funds
• Total service hours of students involved will exceed 150,000 in year 3

If objectives above are not met we will determine why they were not met, assess the value of making adjustments to the plan and moving forward or discontinuing the plan or that portion of the plan all together.  We will work with our Vice President and senior division leadership to make informed decisions in a timely fashion.