Are communities of need preselected? How can an organization determine if it meets the “communities of need” criteria?
As a national intermediary, we have not preselected communities of need. EMCF defines a community of need as a geography with higher than national average rates of unemployment, teen pregnancy, youth involvement in the foster care or justice system, high school dropouts, or disconnected youth; high concentrations of poverty and extreme poverty; and/or a high proportion of youth eligible for free or reduced-price lunch at school, Medicaid or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. All applicants must demonstrate on the basis of this definition the needs of the communities in which they plan to expand. We encourage you to describe as specifically as possible the needs of the population you are serving, especially as these relate to the outcomes you are trying to address, and to include additional information that may document these needs.
