The Colorado Consortium for Prescription Drug Misuse Prevention, part of the University of Colorado Anschutz Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, is launching a new round of its highly successful Grant Writing Assistance Program with funding from the Colorado Opioid Abatement Council (COAC). The Consortium, a leader in Colorado’s opioid response, will connect accepted applicants with its own pool of qualified grant writers, who are paid through the COAC funding. There is no cost for program participants.
"One of the biggest barriers many community organizations face isn't a lack of ideas or commitment; it's having the capacity to pursue funding opportunities," said Jennifer Place, assistant director of the Consortium. "Through this program, we're helping remove that barrier so organizations can access the resources they need to expand prevention, treatment, recovery, and harm reduction efforts in communities across Colorado."
According to Consortium Director Rob Valuck, PhD, RPh, in 2019, the Colorado General Assembly approved funding for the Consortium to establish a grant writing assistance program “to aid local communities in need of help applying for grants to access state and federal money to address the opioid crisis and substance use disorders in their communities.” (CO SB19-228)
“By the time funds were exhausted in 2023, 56 organizations in 105 unique Colorado zip codes received grants totaling $31.6 million, a 49:1 return on investment,” Dr. Valuck said. “These funds supported community-based nonprofit and small government agencies to provide vital prevention, harm reduction, intervention, treatment, and recovery services across the State.”
"The results from our previous grant writing assistance programs demonstrated what is possible when communities have the right support," said Place. "We're excited to launch this new round and help even more organizations secure critical funding to address the opioid crisis and support people affected by substance use disorders."
Once approved, grant writing assistance is on a first-come, first-served basis until the funds are exhausted, with a maximum cap of $5K for any one grant and $8K per applicant over the lifetime of this COAC funding source. A comprehensive list of eligibility and application instructions can be found on the Consortium website, https://corxconsortium.org/grant-assistance/.