2022 Beyond Idea Grant Recipients Announced

Fourteen South Dakota nonprofits will receive grant awards totaling $1,190,770 from the South Dakota Community Foundation’s (SDCF) Beyond Idea Grant (BIG) program. Offered in partnership with the Bush Foundation, the BIG program supports community-based problem-solving efforts in South Dakota. The announcement marks the completion of the inaugural round of the BIG program in 2022.

“The Bush Foundation entrusted the SDCF with awarding $1.2 million dollars to support problem-solving work in South Dakota each year for six years,” says Ginger Niemann, SDCF Senior Program Officer. “We’re looking forward to supporting this first round of grant recipients from our BIG program and are looking forward to what we will learn as we move this program into 2023.”

SDCF received 133 applications for this initial round of the BIG program. A review committee comprised of individuals from across South Dakota chose to financially support the following projects:

Statewide

Dakota Resources - $200,000

• Funding will support Dakota Resources B.O.L.D. Framework (Building Organizations for Local Development) work to engage local economic development organization board members in quality organizational capacity-building activities to equip those leaders to create a thriving rural community. Funding will support multiple community coaching training activities in communities across the state.

• Funding will support the development and creation of best practice standards for afterschool programs in South Dakota. The South Dakota Afterschool Network will engage partners to build the core elements of a comprehensive quality system for programs. They will develop best practice standards and a program self-assessment tool aligned with the standards. SD is 1 of only 10 U.S. states without quality out-of-school time standard.

Early Learner South Dakota - $58,000

• Funding will support Early Learner South Dakota’s work to improve the access to and quality of early learning experiences and environments for children in South Dakota. They will use the National League of Cities Action Guide to focus on four specific areas: community leadership to make early childhood a priority, quality services for all children and families, neighborhoods where families can thrive, and policies that support families.

• Black Hills Area Habitat for Humanity will look for innovative solutions in the delivery of affordable home ownership in South Dakota. Collaboration between South Dakota Habitat affiliates will assist in determining what can be done to increase the organization’s impact given the challenges of inflation and a resource stretched environment.

Eastern South Dakota

Northeast South Dakota Community Action Program (Sisseton) - $100,000

• Northeast South Dakota Community Action Program (NESDCAP) will assist the Sisseton Economic Development Corporation in planning for the sale and development of lots in Sisseton to address housing needs. NESDCAP will work in partnership with several other community groups, businesses, and individuals to determine what housing needs exist. This pilot project could be a model for other communities and their housing needs.

• Mitchell Area Housing Inc. aims to revitalize the oldest neighborhoods in Mitchell. Funding will support administrative costs and forgivable loans for eligible, low-income homeowners to make needed repairs and improve the quality of housing in Mitchell. Steps to develop this program include policies & procedures, home buyer education, training, marketing, survey's, identification of other communities, and a capital campaign to offer other communities loans for their rehab programs.

• The Avera Behavioral Health team in Brookings plans to jumpstart an innovative, sustainable care delivery model that removes silos for care through Integrated Behavioral Health. They will conduct planning meetings with partners in the health systems, engage providers in the primary care field on education and training the trainer, integrate two licensed individuals into care model. Once implemented, this model is highly replicable in other communities and primary care settings.

• Aberdeen Development Corporation aims to develop a remote-able workforce through tech training and prepare business owners and entrepreneurs to grow their remote workforce. The project will intentionally train employees and employers in tech skills and remote-able best practices. The project aims to foster a regional tech and remote-able culture across the region. The goal is to create quality work in remote communities and addressing the severe workforce challenge in the counties of McPherson, Edmunds, Faulk, Spink, Marshall, Day and Roberts.

• The Housing Action Team from Sioux Falls Thrive will work with community stakeholders, including the city, community foundation, developers, and others to create a community model and address potential sources for the future funding of a Sioux Falls Housing Trust Fund. A housing trust fund will provide a sustainable source of local funding that supports the development and rehabilitation of housing units that are affordable.

• Lewis & Clark Behavioral Health Services proposes to develop a pilot Rural Mobile Behavioral Health Crisis Response Follow-up program to provide same day and next day crisis care follow-up for individuals in Union County. They plan to hire outreach staff, develop crisis care follow up, create materials, develop a survey, training for health crisis, track referrals and plans for outreach to an additional 4 counties for this pilot project.

• The Beverly Ann Miller Foundation plans to develop a multifaceted community building project focused on the Whittier Neighborhood in Sioux Falls. Funding will support the organization’s work to strengthen community connections in the neighborhood and support emerging leaders in the neighborhood.

• The Center for the Prevention of Child Maltreatment plans to equip community leaders with skills to lead efforts to prevent adverse childhood experiences (ACES) at a local level. The Resilient Community effort seeks to shift the focus on preventing adverse childhood experiences away from individual responsibly and towards community solutions, while leveraging existing strengths and positive childhood experiences inherent in every community.

Western South Dakota

Children’s Home Society of South Dakota (Rapid City) - $74,545

• Family Engagement Services (FES), operating under Children’s Home Society, has been using in-home services to support families who carry a risk of involvement in the child welfare or juvenile/criminal justice systems. FES has been using in-home visits to promote family stability with education, skill development, and crisis management. Due to the program’s success in Pennington County, Children’s Home Society plans to expand the opportunity to four more counties in western South Dakota to include Meade, Lawrence, Butte and Fall River.

Central South Dakota

Simply Smiles, Inc (LaPlant) - $82,080

• Simply Smiles will test their idea aimed at transforming foster care in/for Native American communities at their Children’s Village in LaPlant. Simply Smiles is committed to their children’s villages being led by persons from the communities the villages serve and has demonstrated that commitment on the Cheyenne River Reservation. They partner with the South Dakota Department of Social Services, Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and Child Protection Services.

A total of $1.2 million dollars will be available for the SDCF to award in 2023. In 2023, SDCF will open two separate rounds for the BIG program in March and August. Interested organizations can visit SDCommunityFoundation.org/BIG to review the grant guidelines, deadlines and application instructions. In order to qualify, a nonprofit must be IRS Publication 78 verified or have a fiscal sponsor. Any questions regarding the program can be directed to Ginger Niemann by phone at 800.888.1842 or by email gniemann@sdcommunityfoundation.org.