Howard County Youth Engagement Programming Grants 2025

Howard County’s Youth Engagement Programming (YEP!) Grants aim to foster youth activities and engagement within Howard County by supporting free, accessible, and supportive programming developed by nonprofit and community organizations. This initiative aligns with the foundation's mission to empower community organizations with resources to create impactful programs for young people, particularly during non-school hours. The grant's strategic priority is to enhance youth well-being and development through structured engagement, reflecting a theory of change that posits increased access to supportive out-of-school programs leads to improved social-emotional learning, mental health, and overall youth development. The primary target beneficiaries of the YEP! Grants are young people in Howard County. The program's impact goals include providing community organizations with the means to develop and expand programs that focus on social-emotional learning, mental health and wellness, and general activities for youth. By offering these programs outside of traditional school hours, the grants seek to address critical periods when young people may most benefit from engagement and support, thereby contributing to their holistic development and reducing potential negative outcomes associated with unstructured free time. The grants prioritize programming that occurs at least monthly over a 12-month period, engaging youth during weekends, after-school hours, and the summer. A key focus is on ensuring programs are either free or low-cost, with proposals needing to demonstrate how cost barriers are minimized for participants. Additionally, proposals are encouraged to leverage partnerships with other community organizations in Howard County, fostering a collaborative approach to youth development and maximizing resource utilization across the community. Expected outcomes include an increase in the number of young people served by engaging activities, a broader geographic impact of programs within Howard County, and successful engagement of youth across various age groups. Grant recipients are required to track performance data, including the number of young people served, geographic reach, and age of youth served, and submit quarterly reports to the Office of the County Executive. This rigorous reporting mechanism ensures accountability and provides measurable results, allowing the Howard County Government to assess the effectiveness of the YEP! grants in achieving their objectives and continually refine their strategic approach to youth engagement.