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1. What is Amplifund?

Amplifund is an external grant management software program that centralizes the grant process into one portal and program. All City of Everett Community Development grants will be managed through this program. 

2. What is the difference between Amplifund and the Amplifund ZenDesk?

Amplifund is the grant management system that supports the applicant portal and award. The Amplifund ZenDesk is a separate website that provides guides, FAQs, instructional videos, and more to help you use and get the most out of your Amplifund account.

3. Is the Applicant Portal different from the Applicant Amplifund Award Account?

Yes; the Applicant Portal is for open opportunities and applications only. Select information, such as the Performance Plan and Budget, will transfer from your application to your Award Account.

4. How do I translate the Amplifund website into my spoken language?

You can use the built-in functionality of browsers like Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge. For more details, see these links.

 https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/use-microsoft-translator-in-microsoft-edge-browser-4ad1c6cb-01a4-4227-be9d-a81e127fcb0b

 https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/173424?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform=Desktop 

5. The opportunity details mention application scoring. What does this mean?

Human Needs Applications are scored by the Citizen Advisory Committee on a scale from 1 to 5 for each question. 

• 1 - Insufficient Answer; Unable to Score

• 2 - Insufficient Answer; Additional Information Needed

• 3 - Adequate Answer; No Remarkable Details

• 4 - Slightly Above Adequate Answer; No Remarkable Details, Answer Thoughtfully Prepared

• 5 - Outstanding Answer; No Additional Information Needed, Remarkable Details Included and Answer Thoughtfully Prepared

"Remarkable Details" can include information pulled from partnering agencies to show community need, collaboration with partners on funding opportunities, aggressive agency improvement in community regarding addressing priority need, or other details that display agency's ability to go above-and-beyond to address the need.

Scores are split into 3 categories: how the program addresses a community need; organizational capacity to fully execute the program; and community engagement (such as partnerships, equitable practices etc.). 

Scores are not shared between Committee members or applicants until the public hearing for award allocations. 

6. The budget asks for a ‘match’. What does this mean?

In order to capture information for the entire program budget (not just the portion requested by City funds), Amplifund asks for your agency’s ‘match’ to the grant award dollars. There is no threshold requirement. Staff and the Citizen Advisory Committee will use this information to look at the entirety of the program budget and evaluate award risk and leverage of city funds.

In your application for the 2022 Human Needs opportunity, the match is listed at 0%. This indicates the match threshold is 0% for performance metrics, however your budget will track the matching/in-kind funds you will be using to support implementation of the program and related services. 

7. Why can’t I create my own budget categories?

Amplifund budget categories are ‘master’ categories that carry across fund sources. Staff have provided a thorough list of categories submitted for the City’s funding sources. If you require a budget category that is otherwise not listed, please reach out to staff to discuss.

8. What is the "Designation of Authorized Official" in the required Attachments?

The "Designation of Authorized Official" (DAO) is a standard document for federal and state applications that declares authorization of signature for the organization. This may or may not be applicable to your organization based on your agency's Bylaws and/or Articles of Incorporation. 

The DAO is typically provided when the Executive Director and/or their designee, who hold the common powers to sign on behalf of the organization, are either unavailable or otherwise need someone else to sign on behalf of the agency. A letter from the agency's executive authority (typically the Board of Directors) on letterhead attesting the authorization is acceptable for this required document. 

For funding sources that do not require Designation of Authorized Official, such as the City of Everett's Human Needs application, may use this document for submission for the required attachment.

For questions, please reach out to Community Development staff at [email protected]. 

9. What is the "Authorization to Request Funds" in the required Attachments?

Board authorization to apply for the funding source is a requirement for City of Everett federal and state applications. Supporting documentation for this attachment requirement may be a copy of Board meeting minutes giving such approval or a letter on agency letterhead from the Board's Executive authority stating approval. 

For funding sources that do not require Designation of Authorized Official, such as the City of Everett's Human Needs application, may use this document for submission for the required attachment.

For questions, please reach out to Community Development staff at [email protected]. 

10. What happens if I notice a mistake on my application after it has been submitted?

Please contact staff as soon as possible. Staff will open the opportunity for corrections to applications only one time during the application process. Failure to meet this deadline may result in an incomplete application that is unable to move forward for Committee review and possible award.