the need for amplifying the voices of our community is more important than ever and video is one of the most powerful tools for engaging and connecting people it's a medium that can show impact tell stories and educate and for over 20 years the Mount Hood cable Regulatory Commission or mhcrc has provided funds to non-profits Educators libraries and local governments to help these organizations produce video content that supports the public benefit since 1999 through the Community Technology gran
ts program the mhcrc has given out 207 grants totaling more than 20 million dollars in grant funding these grants are meant to have a positive impact on the community and so Grant projects must fulfill a public benefit in one of these four areas reducing disparities breaking down barriers for underrepresented groups improving Community involvement to strengthen local life cost reduction for example modernizing streamlining or improving efficiency of workflows improving Service delivery increasin
g the effectiveness of services to the public the commission uses Equity focused metrics throughout the review process as an ally to those who've lived their lives in an environment of systemic oppression and racism we want to make sure Grant dollars are supporting programs that ensure our most vulnerable residents are not left behind so who should apply there are specific eligibility requirements and projects must follow certain guidelines to be considered for funding a few of these requirement
s include applicants must serve residents within Multnomah County Oregon these projects must produce video content to share on community Media Center channels Grant funds can only be used for Capital costs such as equipment and training costs there are additional requirements so please see the website for a complete list of Eligibility criteria but money doesn't just grow on trees so where do these Grant funds come from well the mhcrc regulates cable communications franchising and receives dedic
ated funds from local cable companies through the Community Technology grants program it distributes These funds for video projects to community organizations so how big are these grants anyway in the past Grant sizes have ranged from two thousand dollars to three hundred and fifty thousand dollars the average award size is around one hundred thousand dollars grants are scaled up or down depending on Project goals so whether your project is big or small if you qualify you should apply in the las
t 20 years the Community Technology grants program has supported a diverse selection of community organizations curious comedy has used this grant to help promote women in comedy and these marginalized voices share a perspective and insights and talents and styles that are so different and so exciting women in comedy say the hardest thing for them is to get a great video which they need to further their careers this grants allowed us to provide these women with professional quality videos the bi
g up show is a video series made for kids by kids and we really feel that we're empowering youth by giving them access to state-of-the-art video and audio technology that they're learning to a certain level of proficiency and sharing that content out through the world it's a really joyful experience I find when they see themselves and it's work that they've done with their own hands our families face many barriers especially our our multilingual families and our immigrant families it's critical
to learn to navigate technology in order for them to better support their children and with this grant we complemented the workshops with video tutorials we knew that we could have a greater impact across David Douglas and not just support one Community but support multiple communities because you know there are a lot of those language barrier cultural barriers a lot of times our voice is missing in those places that could make a big difference with these videos when we highlight these stories I
feel like it encourages all of the community members to be able to just kind of like make a change make a difference so you're interested in applying what's next our goal is to make this a highly collaborative process so please get in touch mhcrc staff are available to consult on project ideas and help with the application process don't hesitate to reach out and contact us [Music]
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