The Wellmark Foundation Community Kickstarter Grant Program Official Rules

(as of August 17, 2015)

1. Grant Description. The Wellmark Foundation is a private, non-profit foundation created in 1991, by Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Iowa. Its mission is to efficiently and effectively facilitate the continual improvement of health status within Iowa and South Dakota communities by providing financial and technical assistance.  The Wellmark Foundation is introducing a new grant program called the Community Kickstarter Grants. Subject to the additional restrictions below, The Wellmark Foundation will award grants up to $10,000 per proposal that improve community health. The environmental factors of the community in which that person lives, works, learns and plays can greatly impact a person’s behavior. Therefore, The Wellmark Foundation is looking to award grants to projects that are able to demonstrate a long-lasting impact on making the healthy choice the easy choice and improving overall community health and wellness. 

    

2. Eligibility.  The applicant (“entrant”) for the grant must meet all these requirements: 
   1. Must be for a project located in Iowa or South Dakota. 
   2. Must be an organization located within the state of either Iowa or South Dakota.
   3. Must be classified as a section 501(c)(3) or a 501(c)(4) organization under Internal Revenue Code or be a governmental entity.
   4. Cannot be a private foundation under Section 509(a) of the Internal Revenue Code.
   5. Cannot be used to meet match grant requirements under The Wellmark Foundation MATCH Grant program. 
   6. Cannot be used to fund salaries.

       

3. Two Phases of the grant program.  The Community Kickstarter grant will operate under two phases:  Proposal Submission and Public Voting.  The timeline for these phases are as follows:
   1. Proposal Submission – Begins on Aug. 17, 2015, at 12:00 a.m. CDT; ends on Sept. 20, 2015, at 11:59 p.m. CDT.
   2. Public Voting – Begins on Sept. 23, 2015, at 12:00 a.m. CDT; ends on Oct. 7, 2015, at 11:59 p.m. CDT. 
   3. Grants will be announced Nov. 9. 2015.
4. Proposals. Proposals must be made via the entry form located at http://www.wellmark.com/Foundation. Entrants must complete all of the required information and follow all posted instructions on the “Enter Your Project” page. Information about each project must include (per the entry form): the purpose of the project and the intended outcome, the target population for the project and how they will benefit, why the project deserves the grant funds, project timing (when project will be started and anticipated completion date).  While it is optional for entries to include a short video or photo with the entry, it is recommended because it will aid the entrant in promoting the project during the public voting phase.  The entrant’s computer must accept cookies, or any successor or similar technology, which may be used for the purpose of entry tracking. Ad blocking software on the entrant’s computer needs to be disabled so that it doesn’t interfere with processing the entry. Complete the entry form and any other required fields and then submit the entry by clicking on the “SUBMIT” button. By entering, the entrant agrees to the terms of the Wellmark Foundation Community Kickstarter Program.

   
   Maximum one (1) entry per EIN numbered 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(4) organization. If multiple entries are received by the same organization, The Wellmark Foundation will reach out to the organization to clarify which project is being entered.  Multiple entries by means of software generated or other automated processes will be disregarded. 
   
   The Wellmark Foundation will not be responsible for failure to receive entries due to transmission failures or technical failures of any kind, including, without limitation, malfunctioning of any network, hardware or software, whether originating with sender or The Wellmark Foundation.  In the event of a dispute, all online entries will be deemed to have been submitted by the owner of the ISP account from which they were sent.  For these purposes, an ISP account holder shall mean the natural person or organization assigned to such ISP account by the Internet access provider, online service provider or other organization responsible for assigning ISP addresses for the domain associated with such ISP account. All entries become property of The Wellmark Foundation and none will be returned.  Any questions regarding the number of entries submitted or the owner of an ISP account shall be determined by The Wellmark Foundation in its sole discretion, and The Wellmark Foundation reserves the right to disqualify any entries by persons or organizations determined to be tampering with or abusing any aspect of the grant program. 
   
   

5. Public Voting. The Wellmark Foundation wants to hear from the public regarding which projects they feel are most worthy of receiving the grants. Public votes will be used as one factor The Wellmark Foundation will use in determining winners.  (For other factors, see Section 7.) Projects that meet the eligibility requirements described here will be published for public voting on http://www.wellmark.com/Foundation. A project gallery will be created on the website that includes the description of the project and a photo or video of the project (if included). If a photo or video was not included with the project entry, the thumbnail photo that will be included with the project description will be The Wellmark Foundation’s logo.  All projects submitted during the entry period will be reviewed by The Wellmark Foundation to ensure the projects published for public voting: 1) meet the basic eligibility requirements listed under Section 3 of these rules; 2) entered all the required fields on the “Enter Your Project” entry form located at http://www.wellmark.com/Foundation; and 3) clearly demonstrate in the entry that the project will have a long-lasting, sustainable impact on the community it will serve and that the intended outcome is to improve a specific aspect of community health and wellness in Iowa or South Dakota.  Only projects meeting these basic requirements, reviewed and determined at the sole discretion of The Wellmark Foundation will be published for public voting.  If a project is determined as not meeting these basic requirements, The Wellmark Foundation will notify the contact person submitting the project via email by the time the public voting period begins.  Revisions to project entries will not be allowed. Organizations entering projects that have been published for public voting are encouraged to share their project and promote voting for their project. During the public voting period, only one vote per ISP address per day will be allowed. The Wellmark Foundation reserves the right to disqualify any entries by persons or organizations determined to be tampering with or abusing any aspect of the grant program. 
6. Grant Selection. When the public voting period ends, The Wellmark Foundation will consider the following criteria, along with the information in the original project entry (with no particular weight given to any criterion or factor), in deciding the projects to be funded:
   1. Public Votes - The total number of votes cast for a project indicating popular support balanced by the population of the community the project serves.  The population of the community impacted by a project will be used to create a ratio of votes to community size to ensure a level playing field for possible votes is created. It is the responsibility of the entrant to ensure the community impacted by the project being entered is represented accurately in their entry form. 
   2. Timeliness - Projects that have a more immediate impact on the community may be given priority so that The Wellmark Foundation and organization entering the project can begin to demonstrate and share project successes within 12 months of funds being awarded. 
   3. Geography - The geographic location of the community impacted by a project will be taken into consideration during the selection process. The Wellmark Foundation wishes to ensure funds are distributed broadly across both Iowa and South Dakota.
   4. Other Funds - The Wellmark Foundation is looking to spread grant funds among a broad variety of organizations and communities. Although not a disqualifier, The Wellmark Foundation will take into consideration previous grants made to project, organization or community from The Wellmark Foundation’s other grant programs.
7. Grant Announcement. Once the projects have been selected, The Wellmark Foundation will notify the contact person entering the project.  The Wellmark Foundation will work with the project contact person to coordinate all of the details for the grant disbursement in November 2015, including media relations. Projects that are not awarded funding will receive notification from The Wellmark Foundation. The list of grant awards will also be made available after 11/9/2015 on http://www.wellmark.com/Foundation

    

8. Grant Acceptance. By accepting the grant, grantees give consent and permission to The Wellmark Foundation to:
   1. use project or organization name, logo, associated images and other intellectual property for purposes associated with communicating activities to promote both the grant and the project for an indefinite period of time,
   2. contact organization or project primary contact at any time to receive progress updates on status of projects, and
   3. request repayment of the grant awarded should the grantee be unable to substantially complete the grant as described in the application.
   4. The grantee agrees to participate in media interviews to promote the grant project along with The Wellmark Foundation.
9. Participation.  By participating, entrants agree to be bound by these Official Rules and the decisions of The Wellmark Foundation.  The Wellmark Foundation reserves the right to disqualify entrants found tampering with or otherwise abusing any aspect of this grant program as solely determined by The Wellmark Foundation.  The Wellmark Foundation reserves the right in its sole discretion to suspend, modify or terminate the grant program for any reason or no reason.  Should the grant program be terminated prior to the stated expiration date, The Wellmark Foundation reserves the right, but is not obligated to, award grants based on the entries received before the termination date.