VA VetResources Community Network (VRCN) Catalyst Award
The VA VetResources Community Network (VRCN) Catalyst Award is an award that recognizes nonprofit veteran community-serving organizations for innovative solutions to reach and support underserved veterans, their families, caregivers, and/or survivors.
The top 10 non-profit organizations/teams will each receive a monetary award to plan and implement community-based outreach event(s) or activation(s) to reach over 5,000 underserved veterans across 4 priority categories:
- Transitioning veterans – Outreach efforts to the approximately 200,000 service members transitioning from military service to civilian life each year to increase access to VA and mental health support
- Rural veterans – Outreach efforts to the approximately 4.4 million Veterans living in rural and highly rural areas and Tribal communities, as well as their families, caregivers, and/or survivors to increase access to VA and mental health support
- Minority veterans – Outreach efforts to the Black, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, Women, LGBTQ+, and other minority veterans to increase access to VA and mental health support
- Veteran gaming community – Outreach efforts to the veteran gaming community to help reduce isolation, provide recreational therapy support, and increase access to VA and mental health support
Project ideas must:
- Demonstrate local coordination with the Department of Veterans Affairs to meet the needs of the local community and implement the event(s)/activation(s)
- Demonstrate proven and/or promising practices for community engagement and outreach that are feasible and scalable
- Improve customer experiences and access to and navigation of VA and/or non-VA services and benefits
- Leverage coalition-building and innovative outreach strategies to increase awareness of services and encourage collaboration between VA and community-based organizations to reach underserved veterans
- Demonstrate a scalable technology-based system which tracks organizational processes and outcomes
- Demonstrate peer support, mentoring, and/or 'buddy system' approaches to improve social, mental, and whole health experiences
- Support community efforts that address the pain points and moments that matter in the Veterans journey from transition through burial
Additional information:
Eligible applicants include any US-based nonprofit veteran-community serving organization or team delivering positive outcomes for veterans, their families, caregivers, and/or survivors. Community Veteran Engagement Boards (CVEB) and equivalent organizations or teams are eligible to apply. Grassroots and informal teams without formal nonprofit designations are eligible to apply if they can demonstrate that they are not a for-profit entity, and the prize money will not result in any direct and/or indirect profit for any team members.
During Phase 2, the top 20 scoring nonprofit organizations/teams will be invited to present their idea(s) during a live presentation to judges and other VA and non-VA stakeholders. After the Phase 2 presentations, 10 teams will each be awarded a monetary award of $10,000 in recognition of their outstanding achievement and will have the opportunity to present their innovative strategies to VA Leadership and the VetResources Community Network (VRCN). The total cash prizes will be $100,000.
Links to additional guidance, submission guidelines, and the application template are available on the program website.
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