AGENCY AWARDS

The program must have produced tangible results.This receives the highest number of points in the jury process. You must demonstrate the results of your program so that the jury can understand what was accomplished. If the jury cannot determine what you did, how many people were helped, etc., it will not be able to give your program the points it may deserve. Suggestions for the type of questions to address include:

What obstacles were overcome?
How much money was saved?
How many people were served? What percentage of the residents is this?
What did the program accomplish or help residents accomplish?
How did it change the lives of the residents? (Quantify if possible.)

The program must be innovative.  Our definition of innovative is "the techniques or procedures are not in common practice among agencies of similar size." Innovation receives the second highest number of points in the jury process. If your program has innovative twists on a program that is in common use, be sure that you emphasize what is different.

Use the information in the lists of previous award winners (available online in searchable format in the Solutions Database or in the listing of winners to help you determine if other agencies seem to be doing something similar. If you find similar programs, decide if your agency is a different size, has a different angle or has produced significant results.

 CATEGORY: How to decide to which category an entry belongs?

You may enter the same project/program in more than one category. To do so, you must submit separate entries tailored to the award category and pay a separate application fee.

Administrative Innovation focuses on how a program is administered. If you have developed a specialized approach to how a program works, improved efficiency in your operation, improved the operation of your agency, etc., the entry would go here.

Program Innovation focuses on the programs and their results. How the program is administered may be important, but what it accomplishes is the prime factor.

• Affordable Housing looks at innovative means to provide housing for low-income people. It could be the financing, the partnerships, the use of existing buildings, housing for special needs, etc.

• Community Revitalization looks primarily at the economic impact of the program on a neighborhood or a city. Does it create employment for residents, revitalize or preserve a neighborhood, rebuild a section of the downtown, etc.?

• Resident and Client Services focuses on the programs that positively impact the lives of low-income people. Usually more than half the entries received are in this category. If your program can appropriately be put in another category, that placement would increase your chances of being considered for an Excellence Award.

Project Design focuses primarily on the building, project, or landscape design only. If the design is unique and excellent, this is the category to use. If what is important is the program, the funding, or an aspect other than design, it belongs in a different category.

THE APPLICATION

Be sure the application follows the rules.

Summary.  No more than 100 words. All words count. You do not need to repeat the name of the agency. The name will be printed in the contact information that will appear with the summary. The summary should be concise and informative. You don't need to go into history here and it is not the place for agency promotion.

Focus most of your attention on the description of the program and the results. Make sure the reader will understand how the program operates, whom it serves, the roles of the various participants, and quantify your results. Don't just tell us how great it is and how wonderful your agency and director are in glowing terms.

This summary is the basis for what appears in the award catalog and in the Agency Awards Database on the NAHRO Web Site. It is the first thing the jury reads and the only thing that many will read. Make sure that it describes the program and what it accomplished.

Additional Tabs. Address each of the additional tabs appropriately following the descriptions in the application.

SCORING CRITERIA

Look over the scoring criteria so that you understand what the jury will be looking for, and produce your application accordingly. If the jury cannot find the information they need to understand the program, the role of the agency, the specific results, the cost and financing, and how the program is innovative, they cannot give the application the full score that it deserves.

APPLICATION FORMAT

It is recommended that you type it up and then copy the sections into the online application.  That way, you can have someone else read the application over for you and be sure you do an edit for usual spelling and grammar so errors can be corrected before they are sent in. Many applications do not seem to have had this step taken and the errors detract from the good program being described.

Credit card payments may be made on line.  If paying by check, one check for multiple entries is acceptable; be sure to include the names of all the award entries supported by the check. There are no refunds for any reason.

Additional materials. Other than the photographs and plans required with the Project Design applications, additional materials are not required. You may choose to attach them if you believe they will help to explain your program.