Legislative Session Wrap-Up      

During the 2011 Legislative Session, MOST was actively involved in supporting two pieces of legislation: SB42/HB1068 & SB829/HB716.  We want to thank our legislative sponsors and everyone who reached out to the Legislature in person, by phone, postcard or e-mail!

We are really proud of the work we all did this session. We generated many contacts to key legislators noting the need and importance of Out of School Time. Through our testimony on this bill and others that we supported, MOST was recognized as experts in the youth development field.  We continue to show that we are a great partner to our sponsors and Champions.  While it can be frustrating to end the session without achieving our intended short term goal, we know we are making incremental progress and planting seeds that will be sown.   Out of 2,353 pieces of legislation introduced only 707 passed in this contentious and busy session. We’ll be ready for next year! For more information on specific legislation visit:

·         SB42/HB1068 would have created The Maryland Afterschool and Summer Learning Activity Fund via voluntary donation on the Maryland State Tax Return and was reintroduced this year OST Champions Senator Catherine Pugh and Delegate Jolene Ivey.  This bill garnered considerable momentum and public support with 750 postcards mailed to targeted committee members and nearly 900 total e-mails sent via our Action Alerts.  Despite the support of both the public and many members of the legislature, the bill was never voted on in committee, likely overshadowed by several contentious and difficult debates that marked an unusually active legislative session. 

·         SB829/HB716 would have created the Maryland Combating Child hood Obesity Fund by adding the sales and use tax to snack foods not currently taxed under Maryland (for example: chips, pork rinds, cheese puff, etc.).  The bill was sponsored by OST Champions Senator Bill Ferguson and Delegate Jay Walker. We had anticipated this would be a difficult measure and this bill also did not make it out of committee.  However, our work on this bill was very important to bring greater emphasis and awareness around the prevalence of Childhood Obesity and the need for programming both in-school and out-of-school. We understand that there will be continued discussions within at least one legislative committee in the interim focused on this very topic with the goal to build more comprehensive legislation for the 2012 session and we will be at the table encouraging and pushing forward that work.  

The Finance Project is pleased to present a new publication, LEARNING TO READ: A Guide to Federal Funding for Grade-Level Reading Proficiency.  A first of its kind, this guide helps state and local officials, leaders of community-based and national organizations, school leaders, and private investors find funding to strengthen and sustain grade-level reading programs and services for children from birth through third grade.  Learning to Read identifies more than 100 federal funding sources that can be used to address the root causes of failing to read, to help fund remediation strategies, and to build cohesive infrastructure and systems necessary to effectively train and guide professionals.  For more information, visit: www.financeproject.org.

The AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation is currently offering grants to fund Cardiovascular Health programs, including after school and obesity prevention programs.  Funding Amount: Minimum $150,000; Deadline: April 20, 2011; Link: http://www.astrazeneca-us.com/foundation 

 Youth As Resources, Baltimore's youth-led grant making organization has funds available! Youth (up to age 21) in Baltimore City and County who want to put their community organizing ideas into action are invited to apply for funding. Grants range from $500 - $3,500 and are available for community organizing  programs that are created and carried out by young people. Youth As Resources is offering grant seeker workshops on: Saturday, March 26 at 10:30 a.m. and Monday, March 28 at 5:00 p.m.Applicants are required to attend one of the two workshops and must be represented by one or two youth and no more than one optional adult.  Application deadline is on Friday, Friday, April 22 by 5:00 p.m. To sign up for a workshop and/or for more information, please call (410) 576-9551 or email jreeder@bcf.org.

As part of the Maryland Partnership's campaign to increase access to summer meals, Share Our Strength is pleased to announce a mini-grant opportunity for summer meal sites and sponsors.   These grants are intended to help organizations expand access to and participation in USDA-funded summer meals programs.  Funds may be used by current meal sites to help them expand their capacity or increase the number of days they operate; or they may be used to help establish new summer meals sites.  Eligible expenses may include (but are not limited to) equipment, personnel, supplies, training, and marketing and outreach materials.   The maximum grant amount is $5,000; however most grants will range from $1,000 to $2,500. Download the application here.  The application deadline is April 1, 2011.  All grant recipients will receive their awards in May.  Download the application HERE. 

ESA Foundation Offers Support for Youth-Focused Education Technology Programs

The ESA Foundation, a philanthropic vehicle of the Entertainment Software Association, is dedicated to supporting programs that make a difference in the lives of America's youth. The foundation is accepting grant applications from nonprofit organizations that provide programs and services utilizing technology and/or computer and video games to educate America's youth and young adults (ages 7 to 18). First-time awardees will be considered for grants of up to $50,000 each. The grant application deadline is May 15, 2011 for projects to be implemented in 2012. Visit the ESA Web site for complete program guidelines and application procedures:  http://www.theesa.com/foundation/index.asp