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Congratulations to the
2024/25 applicants!
Congratulations to the
2024/25 applicants!
20 projects were approved
December 4, 2024!
20 projects were approved
December 4, 2024!
Image courtesy of Foxglove Hollow, which is teaching online painting classes this spring to NIDES students across BC as an extracurricular activity!
Did you Know that You Can Apply to the PAC to Fund Students' Extracurricular Activities?
Did you Know that You Can Apply to the PAC to Fund Students' Extracurricular Activities?
Navigate/NIDES PAC receives a Province British Columbia Gaming Grant to financially support extracurricular projects, programs and events that benefit Navigate/NIDES students. Check back for information about our next deadline.
"PAC grant funding is intended to benefit all students by enhancing the extracurricular opportunities of students who currently attend the school(s) represented by the PAC. Purchases should primarily be intended to support extracurricular activities. Funding cannot be used for curriculum-based activities or items and should not be used to cover costs for things that the school is responsible for covering.
What Kinds of Extracurricular Activities are Eligible?
What Kinds of Extracurricular Activities are Eligible?
We want to see these funds used in ways that benefit as many Navigate/NIDES students as possible, giving them opportunities to explore things they wouldn't otherwise. Here are a few examples of programs, projects, and events, as well as costs that the PAC funds could be used to pay for.
An ongoing program e.g., a marine biology club, a chess club, or choir
You might apply for funds to use toward room rental and/or professional fees for a coach.
A specific project e.g., building a robot, or painting a community mural
You might apply for materials, a pre-designed kit/teaching module that can be volunteer-led, or fees for a professional who can work organically with the students.
A special event e.g. a camping trip, movie night, tour, or day on a horse ranch
You might apply for entrance fees, transportation costs, insurance, and/or guide fees.
Who can Apply for Gaming Grant Funds?
Who can Apply for Gaming Grant Funds?
Any parent or guardian with a student currently enrolled with Navigate/NIDES, in other words a Navigate/NIDES PAC Member.
Any staff person with Navigate/NIDES can be a Project Sponsor, but they must collaborate with a Navigate/NIDES PAC Member. It is a requirement of the Gaming Grant.
Any Navigate/NIDES teen or the Student Leadership can submit an application, with the support of a PAC Member parent.
Pro Tip: Collaborate and communicate with other parents in your program before starting your application to ensure you come up with an extracurricular program, project or event that will best serve your student community.
Parents should understand the activity being proposed. Specifically, they should understand the time commitment, location, and any requirements of learners' participation.
Parents should understand that there would likely be a cost to participate. The PAC rarely provides 100% funding for a program.
By the time you submit the application, a good number of parents should be willing to commit to registering their students in the program so that you can be assured of a successful program, if funding is approved.
Can I apply for funds for an activity that just my student is doing?
Can I apply for funds for an activity that just my student is doing?
No. PAC funds can not be used for one student.
Spending Priorities and Decision-Making
Spending Priorities and Decision-Making
We value STEM, arts, and outdoor activities. We love programs that move our bodies, encourage high-level thinking, and nurture community-mindedness! We look forward to reading the great ideas you have for extracurriculars.
When deciding whether or not to fund any given proposal, we have to look at various things:
Does the application meet the funding eligibility requirements? Most importantly, it MUST be for an extracurricular program, project or event for Navigate/NIDES students.
Has this applicant been supported recently? The demand for PAC funding is growing. We have to look at equity over time. If an applicant receives significant funding one year, we may not be able to fund the applicant again the next year. That said, there is no way to know how many applications we will receive. Successful applicants from the last year are welcome to apply again and they may be successful if funds have not been exhausted by grants awarded to new applicants, or applicants who are returning after a time.
Does the application clearly demonstrate benefits to a group of Navigate/NIDES students? We want to see in the application that your well-thought-out program, project or event isn't exclusively for the benefit of two or three friends or siblings. PAC funds should support as many students as possible to participate in inclusive and accessible opportunities.
We will be voting to approve the first round of projects on December 4th, 2024 at the PAC meeting. Applicants will be notified of the PAC's decisions shortly after the Dec 4th meeting.
If we are successful, when would we be able to use the funds?
If we are successful, when would we be able to use the funds?
We aim to make funding decisions at a PAC meeting within a month of the deadline, e.g., the November 13, 2024 applications will be decided in the December 4, 2024 PAC meeting. It will take some time to communicate next steps with all successful applicants, please remember this is all done by volunteers, but once your project has been approved you can begin your project. (See Issuing Reimbursements below for how funds can be transferred.)
Would you Like To Make An Application?
Would you Like To Make An Application?
What is the First Thing You Shoud Do?
What is the First Thing You Shoud Do?
Before submitting an application, applicants are strongly encouraged to attend a PAC member meeting or a grant information session to ensure you understand what the funding can be used for. (These will start again in fall 2025.)
The dates, times and Zoom links for meetings are posted on our home page. Or contact our Gaming Grant Project Mentor: NavigatePACGrants@gmail.com
Top Eligibility Requirements To Think About
Top Eligibility Requirements To Think About
Extracurricular: The program, project or event MUST be extracurricular. This can be a funny thing for the homeschooling community to picture since everything we do is learning, and for many of our students, most of their learning is outside of a school.
The key distinction for funding is that your program, project or event must NOT be part of your students' curriculum. Therefore, it should not be something that your students would report on for school. It should NOT be for things in your students' Student Learning Plans, SeeSaw, Canvas, MySite, Portfolio. Likewise, students' Student Learning Funds can NOT be used as an additional funding source for your application.Benefits Students Directly: Classroom equipment, books and resources are NOT eligible, however, materials necessary for the students to run the specific extracurricular program, project or event are eligible.
Funding Supports Student Fees: We recognize that parents often need to accompany students on trips and activities however, BC Gaming Grant guidelines require that funding be used for the students' admission fees ONLY. Adult admissions can not be paid by the grant.
Navigate/NIDES PAC Organized Programs VS. Community Organized Programs: Sometimes parents find programs in their community and ask if they can apply to register a group of students to participate together. Unfortunately, it isn't always an easy yes or no to this question. It depends on the program. If it is a community program that already receives Gaming funding, and many community centre-based programs do, then they would not be eligible for PAC funding because it would be considered "double funding".
For example, skating lessons in community centres are usually NOT eligible for PAC funding because community centre programs are eligible for, and receive other streams of Gaming Grant funds
However, if a Navigate/NIDES PAC parent organizes a skating club, meaning the applicant sets the date, time, and location, and coordinates the coach, then that new program would be eligible because it isn't already funded by Gaming.
See Section 4 of the BC Gaming Requirements for a full list of eligible and prohibited expenses.
Not sure if Your Idea Is eligible?
Not sure if Your Idea Is eligible?
Ask us! Send an email to NavigatePACGrants@gmail.com with your idea and we can have someone from the Executive Committee work with you!
Ready to Apply?
Ready to Apply?
Step 1: Make a copy of our Application Form Google Doc.
Step 2: Rename Google Doc like this: Location_ProgramName_ProjectName_FY2025
e.g. Victoria West_Heartwood_WildlifeConservation_FY2025
Step 3: Complete every section of the Application. If it does not apply to you, just write NA. Do not leave it blank.
Step 4: Share YOUR copy of the Application Google Doc with "NavigatePAC@gmail.com" AND "NavigatePACGrants@gmail.com" with editing privileges.
Step 5: Someone from the PAC Executive Committee will be in contact with you with any follow-up questions and to explain what you can expect at the Dec PAC meeting.
MAking Your Program, Project or Event Happen
MAking Your Program, Project or Event Happen
Insurance
Insurance
If your program or field trip will require insurance, please note the PAC executive is not able to provide insurance. It is the responsibility of the applicant. The cost of insurance can be included in your total project cost. If you have included a cost for insurance in your application, that cost is eligible to be reimbursed by the grant.
Be sure to collect proof of insurance, a receipt, when you run your program, project or event as you will require it for reimbursement.
Reimbursement Requests
Reimbursement Requests
Plan for approved project costs to be reimbursed in 2 phases. In most cases, 50% will be reimbursed when receipts are submitted and 50% will be reimbursed when the final report for the grant has been submitted. Each time, allow 2 weeks for processing. Please plan your cashflow for this repayment schedule.
Always get receipts for project expenses. No PAC funds are issued without a receipt (provided by the adult who made the payment) or an invoice (made out to the PAC Treasurer for Approved Pre-payment). The most efficient process is for a person in your community to pay upfront, and have our PAC Treasurer issue the reimbursement via eTransfer.
For larger expenses, we understand that may be difficult. We can make arrangements with the school to make a payment and we reimburse the school, or make arrangements for an invoice that we can pay directly to a vendor. This process can take longer than a reimbursement.
Only expenses included in the approved application will be reimbursed. E.g., if you applied for 20 admissions to an event, and no other expenses, but only 14 students attended, you can not add in receipts for snacks in an attempt to be reimbursed for the full approved amount on your application. This is the case even if the receipts come to the same total dollar value because the committee didn't approve a snacks expense. Ensure your application includes all likely expenses.
To request reimbursement complete this form: Reimbursement Requests, and allow 2 weeks for our volunteers to process the request. No funds can be released from the PAC until receipts are submitted.
You will need your receipts ready as a .pdf, .jpg, or .png. to upload.
For follow-up questions, please email our Treasurer: NavigatePACTreasurer@gmail.com.
Submit Your Final Report
Submit Your Final Report
When you have completed your program, project or event, in addition to submitting your receipts for reimbursement, you are required to submit a short grant report to tell us how it went. We collect:
a bit of data for our records and for our funder, BC Gaming.
what worked well and what was a challenge so we can share that learning to improve the program and help others
and 5 pictures that we can use to help share your story with others too!
Remember, your final reimbursement will be held back until you submit this report. It should not be to time consuming but it is important that you plan for this step.
Any Last Questions Ask?
Any Last Questions Ask?
Where does the grant money come from?
The BC Gaming Grant Branch distributes funds to the school PAC based on the number of students enrolled in Navigate/NIDES in September. With the influx of students interested in alternatives to a brick & mortar program, we are thankful to receive this generous amount.
When do we need to spend it?
At a maximum, the PAC has 3 years to spend the funds issued. Each year, we endeavour to spend that year's money on that year's students, but if we have some left over we can distribute the overage the following year.
I need help! I've never written a grant before! What if I don't get it right the first time?
We have Grant Writing Orientations on Zoom, as well as a dedicated PAC Executive Member to act as an Application Mentor. We want your ideas to be successful. Once you've submitted your proposal, our team will look at it and ask for clarification if it needs help to get "PAC Meeting Ready." If you think you will need help, please reach out more than 10 days prior to the application deadline. We are volunteers and need time to reply.
What is a realistic number for program participation?
One of the challenges of our school, Navigate/NIDES, is that even though we are one of the largest schools in British Columbia, most of us don't see each other face-to-face. With that challenge comes that the *only* way we reach each other is through emails and Facebook, which is not nearly as engaging as being in a physical setting with people or being able to send home a flyer.
What we've found so far (year 2020-2021) is that 20 students participating in a Zoom activity is a wild success. For in-person opportunities, we've found that limit to be in the 10+ range. Remember, Home Learners are busy folks with lots of schedules made well in advance.
Is funding available for gear? Is there a central repository for gear?
There can be funding available for gear, if the proposal meets eligibility requirements and is approved. There can also be a central repository for gear, but we recommend local storage as often as possible. The Gaming Grant cannot pay for the postage for the transportation from one location to another.
Who owns equipment that is purchased?
The equipment purchased for a program that lasts over-time (for example, VEX Robotics, Popcorn Machine) belongs to the PAC. We are beginning to catalog the equipment that we own and decisions can be made in consultation with the PAC as to where equipment will be stored. Consumable supplies purchased for a club belong to the students (for example, the books from a book club).
Can groups fundraise too?
Yes. Groups can do fundraising and channel that through the PAC, and have those raised funds earmarked for the group who did the fundraising. These raised dollars do NOT have the same limitations and criteria as the Gaming Grant.
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