The New Jersey Council on Developmental Disabilities announces its Grant Process for projects starting in 2007. The NJ Council on Developmental Disabilities is mandated to apply its federal funds to systems change, capacity building and advocacy in such manner as to achieve the integration, independence and productivity of citizens with developmental disabilities living in New Jersey.

The Council will list its targeted objectives on its web site beginning in January, 2007. Interested persons or organizations should review the Council’s State Plan for 2007-11 which can be found on the Council’s web site at www.njcdd.org or obtained by calling the Council at 609-292-3745. All potential projects will be required to submit an initial Letter of Interest (LOI) detailing the concept or proposed activity.

The State Plan is the official document that contains details on Council membership, a listing of Council priority areas and activities for the Plan Cycle. In it, the Council states its VISION for people with developmental disabilities living in New Jersey.

The Council is authorized to distribute grant funds by the federal Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act, and in New Jersey state government by NJSA 30:1AA 1,2 and is codified in Title 10 of the State Administrative Codes.

General Process for Grant Applications:

The Notice of Funds Available (NOFA) will be released by the first week of January.

A required NOFA training will be held. (See schedule at right.)

There will be a two phase application process, and applicants will compete equally for Council funds. The timelines for this process will be posted on the Council’s web site and reviewed at the NOFA meeting.

Phase I: Letters of Interest (LOI) will be accepted from any entities wishing to pursue one or more of the council’s targeted objectives during the 12 month period from October 1, 2007 through September 30, 2008.

Phase II: LOI will be reviewed by the Council’s Grants Committee, and those selected will be asked to submit a full proposal. All applicants will be competing for Council funding rather than competing within designated topic areas (such as housing, employment, etc.).

If you require large print, Braille print, or speech synthesizer format, please contact Gail Hodges at 609-292-3745 to arrange for obtaining a file of the announcement on disk. If there are questions or concerns about the NOFA process, please address these by E-Mail to dennis.rizzo@njddc.org or by mail to Dennis Rizzo, NJCDD, PO Box 700, Trenton, NJ 08625-0700.