INFLUENCE OF FUNDING SOURCES
Organizations vary in their types of funding sources. Funding often depends on the type of organization: public or private, for-profit, or non-profit. With these various avenues of funding also comes various levels of influence the funding has on the agency. Many funds come with stipulations that dictate how they are used by the agency. For example, most government funding sources have very stringent demands that are accompanied by layers of complex regulations. Private funding sources may require less paperwork and stringent guidelines, but they may have ideological expectations that the agency upholds. It is a delicate balance to accept funding from sources while not compromising the agency mission statement and client services. In this Discussion, you critically assess funding sources and how they affect organizations receiving their support.
For this Discussion, review this week’s Learning Resources and how funding sources affect the agencies receiving the money as well as the noncash revenues of the agency.
LEARNING RESOURCES
· Netting, F. E., Kettner, P. M., McMurtry, S. L., & Thomas, M. L. (2017).
Social work macro practice (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.
· Chapter 8, “Assessing Human Service Organizations” (pp. 226–266)
·
Document:
Community Assessment: Social Concerns/Problems Category List (Word document)
Download Community Assessment: Social Concerns/Problems Category List (Word document)
·
Document:
Planned Change in the Generalist Intervention Model (Word document)
Download Planned Change in the Generalist Intervention Model (Word document)
·
Document:
Community Assessment: Program Development PowerPoint Outline (Word document)
Post the following:
· Identify one example of a funding source for an agency.
· Explain how this funding source could affect the services an agency provides for its clients.
Respond to at least two colleagues who identified different examples:
· Recommend one way in which your colleague’s agency example could better serve clients while still honoring funding source parameters.
RESPONSE1
·
Identify the client systems you used in your program development for the Week 7 Assignment.
·
Explain how these systems work together to create change.
Remember that systems frequently overlap, and individuals or groups can be part of more than one system.
My week seven program development’s client system consists of teenagers spanning the middle school and high school ages. This is the primary client system: the teenagers themselves. The local students of the many schools in our county make up the client system. The secondary client system that receives the benefits of my developed program are the siblings and parents of these teens.
The outreach I have imagined offers a safe place for teenagers to go after school to develop their creative identity while catching cultural awareness, as my initiative is for local universities, professionals, and artists to come and share their experiences and opportunities with the youth of my endearing surrounding towns, all with the flavor of a small cafe. Free Wi-Fi and coffee: The market I hope to draw is the youth looking for pockets in which to express individuality while doing it safely among the volunteering community.
Each system in the macro-level client system is much like the ecological system with an individual client; the micro-level system. It takes into account each helpful facet of the system as a whole:
initiator, change agent, client, support, controlling, host, implementing, target, and action (F Ellen Netting et al., 2017).
In some cases, it is possible that the target population and the client system are one in the same. Macro change efforts begin with the identification of a target population and a problem. The client system is always in some way linked to the target population for whom the specific change effort is being initiated (F Ellen Netting et al., 2017).
These systems work together organically to yield change. In my example: The graduation of the role of the initiators, who were the parents of the teenagers in need, this action defaults as we will need to gain help from the powers that be; the local government; they then relay me to more local influence for location and funding. Then, the client base will be targeted to carry out the development with action.
Each lends their application to the next level, with overlaps as human development is not a perfected science (
Social Work Case Management N a S W S T a N D a R D S F O R, n.d.).
F Ellen Netting, Kettner, P. M., Steven Lloyd Mcmurtry, & M Lori Thomas. (2017).
Social work macro practice (6th ed.). Pearson.
Social Work Case Management N A S W S t a n d a r d s f o r. (n.d.).
to an external site.
RESPONSE2
·
Identify one example of a funding source for an agency.
One example of a funding source for a social work agency could be
government grants. Many social work agencies receive funding from local, state, or federal government entities to support their programs and services. “Government agencies that depend on direct appropriations are likely to have most of their activities rigidly specified by public policy” (Netting, 2017, p. 241). Governments often allocate funds for social welfare initiatives, including funding for social work agencies that provide counseling, case management, community outreach, or advocacy. These grants may be awarded through a competitive application process, where social work agencies apply for the offered grant. Funding can be provided for a specific duration, typically one to several years, and agencies must meet particular criteria and evaluation requirements to demonstrate the impact of their work. “Among the most important mechanisms for dissemination are block grants (lump-sum federal appropriations in which specific allocations are left to state or local governments)” (Netting, 2017, p. 241). Government funding is a crucial source of support for many social work agencies, enabling them to reach and assist individuals and communities in need.
·
Explain how this funding source could affect the agency’s services for its clients.
The funding source for a social work agency, such as a government grant, significantly impacts the services provided to clients. The funding source dictates the range and extent of services that can be provided, specifying the target population and the expected intervention types. It also affects the agency’s service capacity, including staffing, resources, and the ability to reach a more extensive client base. Additionally, the accessibility of services can be influenced, as funding may be restricted to specific geographic areas or populations.
Resources
Netting, F. E., Kettner, P. M., McMurtry, S. L., & Thomas, M. L. (2017). Social work macro practice (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.
