Grants Administration

The City of Miami Office of Grant Administration Mission is to assist City departments and staff in securing grants and external funding opportunities to implement, expand, and enhance services and activities that advance key priority areas identified in the Strategic Plan.

Our department also oversees certain initiatives secured from external sources that benefit residents of The City of Miami.

 

Department Head

Lillian Blondet

Grant Research, Writing & Execution

The Office of Grants Administration (OGA) identifies funding and partnership (grant) opportunities for all City departments from federal, state, local governments, foundations, and private funding sources to maximize revenue generating opportunities on behalf of the departments. We meet with The City's various departments and work together to decide what grants might be appropriate for them, then help them apply.

Contributing to the Administration’s Priority of Quality of Life, OGA coordinates and oversees all aspects related to the writing, preparation, and submission of grant applications and funding applications for all City departments. In addition, OGA provides technical support to City Departments to ensure the implementation of policies and practices in compliance with applicable federal, state, and local laws, regulations, and contract stipulations. OGA also provides expertise in assessing changes, regulatory compliance, and grant management that may impact funding. 

Additionally, OGA manages and administers grants and programs for Citywide initiatives, including the Summer Youth Employment and Financial Empowerment Initiatives, Education Initiatives, and the Anti-Poverty Initiative (API) Program.  Contributing to the Pathway to Prosperity priority, OGA administers and implements the Miami Summer Jobs Connect Program, the Families First Parenting Program, and the Anti-Poverty Initiative.

 Learn more about the monetary achievements of the Grants team, by month, Fiscal Year, and dollar amounts.

View Secured Grants

Educational Initiatives

The City of Miami’s Education Initiatives is a division that works closely with Miami-Dade County Public Schools (MDCPS), The Children’s Trust (TCT), and other agencies identifying gaps of services/programs which will prepare children and youths for their future.  The program is a city-wide initiative managed by the Office of Grants Administration. 

Education Initiatives identifies and promotes large-scale programs that help educate and empower children, youth, and/or families within our community.  We develop a wide variety of presentation materials and resources to help inform eligible residents and families about the various beneficial programs they may be able to participate in.

Families First Program

The Families First Parenting Program is a year round program funded by The Children’s Trust. The program is comprised of a free, 16-session, two-cycle workshop series for parents/caregivers of children ages 3-6 years old using the Incredible Years evidenced-based curriculum. Since 2010, this program has been serving 100 disadvantaged parents/caregivers, and supportive family members of children ages 3 to 6, in Overtown, Coconut Grove, Wynwood, Little Haiti, Allapattah and Little Havana.  

The City of Miami partners with established childcare centers to create convenient accessible sites to promote social, emotional, and academic competence for these families. The Families First program provides materials in child development awareness; and developing positive interactions between parents and children. The program builds up parenting competencies and encourages involvement in children’s school experiences to strengthen parenting skills and foster more tolerant communities.

The Children’s Trust

The Children’s Trust is a dedicated source of revenue established by voter referendum to improve the lives of children and families in Miami-Dade County. https://www.thechildrenstrust.org/

Miami-Dade County Public Schools

Miami-Dade County Public Schools is the fourth largest school district in the United States, comprised of 392 schools, 345,000 students and over 40,000 employees. Located at the southern end of the Florida peninsula, the school district stretches over 2,000 square miles of diverse and vibrant communities ranging from rural and suburban to urban cities and municipalities. A truly global community, district students speak 56 different languages and represent 160 countries. http://dadeschools.net/

Miami Summer Jobs Connect

Summer Youth Financial Empowerment & Employment Program

Continuing the financial education legacy under ACCESS Miami, a successful youth financial empowerment & employment program was made possible by multi-year funding through the Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund employed over 100 high school aged youth and exposed them to financial education, direct deposit and the power of savings.

Learn about Summer Jobs Connect

AmeriCorps VISTA Program

AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) members bring passion and perseverance where the need is greatest: to organizations that help eradicate poverty. The City of Miami works with AmeriCorps to place and supervise VISTA members, who serve as a catalyst for change, living and working alongside community members to meet our nation’s most pressing challenges and advance local solutions.

Learn about AmeriCorps Vista Program

Contact:

Malissa T. Sutherland MPA
Office of Grants Administration
444 SW 2nd Ave., 5th Floor, Miami, FL 33130
T: 305-416-1005, email: mtrevino@miamigov.com

On September 23, 2014, the Miami City Commission approved Resolution No. 14-0362 establishing the Anti-Poverty Initiative (“API”) program, with funds divided by commission district. Each commission office utilizes their funds to aid local entities serving City of Miami residents.  The entities in turn must enter into an agreement prior to the funds being disbursed.  

The Anti-Poverty Initiative guidelines were updated and passed on May 23, 2019, to ensure that the accountability and utilization of the program funds meets the intent of initial resolutions as well as anti-poverty related Sunshine meetings held in 2014. 

Funding:

The $2.6 million funding allocation is divided among the commission districts based on the poverty census rates for each commission district.  The purpose of the Anti-Poverty Initiative is to reduce poverty within the City of Miami communities and funding shall be utilized to meet the needs of poor residents.

To date, the funds have assisted with college scholarships, allowing local small businesses time in a kitchen incubator, work and life skills training, business and finance training for new entrepreneurs, a home painting program for senior citizens, youth sport sponsorship, college campus tours for high school students, much more.   

Existing Projects:

View Existing API projects by district

Strategy:

The City of Miami created the Anti-Poverty Initiative to address poverty based on a strategy of focusing the provision of support towards the City’s residents achieving self-sufficiency.  

This initiative focuses on projects and programs providing services directly benefitting disadvantaged City of Miami residents in the following priority areas:

  • Educational Programs for children, youth and adults
  • Crime Prevention
  • Elderly meals, transportation, recreational and health/wellness related activities
  • At-risk youth or youth summer job programs
  • Transportation services andprograms
  • Job development, retention and training programs
  • Homeless Services