The Innovation Fund
County Executive Dr. Calvin Ball has announced a $225,000 Innovation Fund! The Innovation Fund will be used to improve our county as we look forward to the future. We will be helping to fund projects with our partners across Howard County. Projects should foster innovation for the public good. You are encouraged to submit your project ideas through our grant application process.
Ideas should:
- Be Innovative and Original - Does the idea demonstrate how it keeps Howard County ahead of the curve and promotes the creativity that is the hallmark of our County?
- Support Greater Efficiencies - Does the idea improve a process, save time, increase collaboration among partners, provide the potential for long-term benefits, or generate revenue and/or cost savings?
- Emphasize Priority Outcomes and Quality of Life - Does the idea help create a prosperous community, a livable and sustainable community, a safe community, and/or a well-run government?
- Be Feasible and Measurable - Can the idea begin within 12 months of being funded? Does the idea need funding year after year or only one time? A one-time award from the Innovation Fund should be sufficient to implement your great idea. Prior to award, each project should have clear metrics for evaluating the impact of the idea.
We will support projects designed to help in the following priority areas. For a better idea of these priority areas, visit Howard County Data Analytics and Statistics Hub (HoCo DASH).
Note that all projects may not directly align with the specific outcomes that are measured through HoCo DASH. However, the project will be considered if there is a strong justification that the project will contribute to any of these areas.
Priority Areas
- Ready and Successful Students
- Safe and Engaged Communities
- Clean and Sustainable Environment
- Thriving and Healthy Residents
- Reliable and Accessible Infrastructure
- Strong and Prosperous Businesses
The deadline for submitting an application to the Innovation Fund is Friday, December 6, 2019 (11:59 p.m.). Awardees will be announced in January 2020.
Information Gathering and Learning More
There were two information sessions to ask questions regarding the application process. One session was recorded and will be available for those who cannot make either date. The live sessions were on:
Friday, October 18th
- Government Information Session 10:00 to 10:30 a.m.
- Community Information Session 10:30 to 11:30 a.m.
To view the recorded information session, please click on the link. Session Video
Please visit the website for updates.
Application
This application requires a more detailed description of your innovation and plan, team composition, including supporting research/evidence with quantitative estimates. We will also ask for detailed budgetary projections and financial plans.
Funding Agreement
Should your project be funded, you will be asked to sign a funding agreement.
Though this is an exciting first step for Howard County Government to launch this funding, it is still in a pilot year. There are two types of grants that you can apply for:
Non-Profit Community Innovation Grant
Grants will range from $5,000 to $50,000. Grants must be submitted through an established nonprofit. However, we encourage any sector to partner with a nonprofit on an idea. Greater collaboration and partnership will be scored higher.
Government Innovation Grant
Grants will range from $5,000 to $50,000. These should be projects that are implemented within government and are designed to have an immediate return on investment once completed. Only Howard County government employees may apply for this grant.
The Innovation Fund is designed to be a one-time infusion to help accelerate or implement a project. We will NOT fund projects that
- Are not new or innovative to Howard County.
- Are designed to supplement operations only.
- Rely on ongoing funding that has not been identified.
- Pay for personnel costs without a plan to absorb those costs later.
- Do not align with the County’s priorities.
- Will not be executed in 2020.
To receive Innovation Funds, all applicants must meet the following eligibility requirements:
- Be an employee of Howard County government or be a nonprofit organization with 501(c)(3) IRS tax exempt status,
- Be seeking funding for services provided to the residents of Howard County, Maryland (if the agency serves a larger geographic area, funding may only be requested for those services that are offered within Howard County, Maryland),
- Be in compliance with all Federal, State and local housing and human rights laws
Frequently Asked Questions
We’ll score projects based on our funding criteria. Priority will be given to ideas that can be developed with clearly defined one-time start-up costs and to projects that clearly demonstrate the potential for successful results. The following criteria will be used.
The deadline for submitting an application to the Innovation Fund is Friday, December 6, 2019 (11:59 p.m.). Awardees will be announced in January 2020.
There’s no specific number of projects that will be funded. The number will depend on the number of applications received and the amount of money needed. We anticipate funding approximately 10 projects, but this may increase or decrease.
We hope to have projects ready to announce and begin work by early 2020.
We will support projects designed to help in these priority areas. For a better idea of these priority areas, visit Howard County Data Analytics and Statistics Hub (HoCo DASH).
Note that all projects may not directly align with the specific outcomes that are measured through HoCo DASH. However, the project will be considered if there is a strong justification that the project will contribute to any of these areas.
- Ready and Successful Students
- Safe and Engaged Communities
- Clean and Sustainable Environment
- Thriving and Healthy Residents
- Reliable and Accessible Infrastructure
- Strong and Prosperous Businesses
The current size of the Innovation Fund is $225,000. However there is no requirement that we spend that entire amount during the first year of the program. Only quality projects that score highly on our criteria will be funded.
County Executive Ball has made this Fund a priority and allocated funding in the FY20 budget.