I. Project Review : Pooja, Prasad, Siddarth (temporary), Dinesh, X, ( X, X, X - HBP), Mokshay

The projects review team's primary objective is to ensure that due diligence is done when reviewing a proposal to be taken up by the chapter.

1. It is the duty of the projects review team to come up with an estimate of number of projects the chapter can support annually, relative to the financial status and volunteer resources in the chapter. The recommended philosophy for projects in a chapter is to re-enforce quality over quantity:

"Do as few or as many projects as we can, but Do them - ALL - well ". In the necessary haste to support a large number of projects in a chapter, without the proper resources in place to ensure due diligence, AID reverts to a "Funding agency" model rather than a "Partnership" model for projects. We should be clear that money is just one component - by focusing just on that, we lose the opportunity to investigate other ways to engage the NGO and help them with projects. For example, helping the NGO publize their work in the media in India and internationally, being an enabler to network different NGOs together etc. are valid ways we can add value for an NGO besides sending them a check.
2. New projects come to us in various ways - through AID-wide lists, personal contacts or sources of volunteers, and by NGO's directly approaching AID Boston with a proposal. The first step is for the chapter to decide whether or not to take up the project for "serious review". This decision has to be made in CSH, and most of the time can be made immediately.(*) It is important to note that the input of the Project Review team based on #1 would be a crucial factor in the decision... and therefore any suggested new projects should be brought to the attention of the Projects Review team at least 1 week BEFORE the first CSH discussion on it.

[ (*) In some special cases, even the decision of whether to seriously review a project may need some advance analysis (eg: if too many projects flood the chapter at one time). In this case, the Projects Review team will perform this analysis taking into account factors like funds availability, goals for the year (see #1), past experience of AID with the NGO (may need to collect this information), regional or target group distribution etc. The team will be responsible for :
a. Posting the proposal on the list for volunteers to express any preliminary concerns about the project to the team.
b. Doing the required analysis within a period of 2 weeks from the submission of the proposal to the team, and preparing a recommendation for the first CSH where the project will be discussed (on whether it should be taken up for serious review) ]

If the CSH decision is to go ahead with the review, the team is responsible for assigning one of its own members to the project AND finding a (preferably different) project coordinator for the project. The assigned team member ensures that the project coordinator (PC) performs his/her job
of doing the following (and is expected to take on the tasks himself/herself if the PC is not doing them) :

a. All questions and concerns raised by volunteers at CSH discussions of the project are addressed - either through getting answers from the NGO or through supplementary research.
b. An analysis of Strengths/Weaknesses of both the NGO and Project is prepared. Quantitative comparisons of budget against other similar projects AID wide is done.
c. A recommendation 'for' or 'against' the project is proposed at CSH, within one month of last CSH discussion on Q&A for the project, and a "for" recommendation is accompanied by a set of funding options with clear justifications for each option
d. If the project is approved at CSH, transfer of knowledge to the Project Admin team is done promptly.
e. If the project is rejected at CSH, the decision is recorded on the AID projects database.
3. Persons in the projects review team 'actively' try to analyze 'past' projects both from our chapter as well as other chapters to sharpen their skills in reviewing projects to provide valuable feedback in their analysis and help us become more decisive when we need to.


II. Project Administration : Madhu, Swarupa, X, X, Suresh

The projects administration team's primary objective is to ensure that due diligence is maintained for all ongoing projects in our chapter.

1. Once a project is approved, it is the project admins duty to ensure that :
:
a. All relevant project related documents are uploaded into the projects database. - within 2 days from approval
b. The online check request has been sent promptly to the treasurer. - within 3 days from approval date.
c. The NGO has received the check, and check number and receipt date is captured in the projects database.
2. After project funds have reached the NGO, it is the project admins duty to ensure that :

a. Project Coords. maintain contact (phone, email, mail) with the NGO on a regular basis. - min. of 2 times a month.
b. Project Coords. update and document relevant project related files in the projects database. - min. of 2 times a month.
c. Project Coords. inform the Admin if/when future installments of the approved amount need to be sent.
d. Project Coords. prepare a brief summary of milestones, accomplishments, issues on the project that the Projects Admin will present at CSH on a regular basis. These summaries must be uploaded into the
projects database.
e. Relevant project related news is submitted to be potentially published in the TMIA/Dishaa.
3. It is the duty of the projects admin to flag ( to office bearers : president/s, secretary/s ) when regular information on the status of a project is unavailable either due to the lack of availability or interest from the current projects coord. so that another volunteer can be assigned promptly to the project. In the case, where a new project coordinator cannot be assigned in a timely fashion, it is the duty of the projects admin. to take 'ownership' of the project till a substitute project coordinator can be assigned. Ownership means taking responsibility of tasks of the project coord. for a short-time.
4. It is the duty of the projects admin. to maintain summaries of all on-going projects. The projects admin is expected to know the amount, description of project and latest news about every ongoing project. The
Project Admin will also serve as the primary contact for our chapter when issues about chapter level projects are raised.



III. Project Grant Proposals : Vidisha, Dinesh, X, X, X, Rajmohan

1. Our funding capacity today is limited by many factors. Grant Proposals are a very realistic way in which we can expand our scope of funding a project. And perhaps, this is one of the most tangible ways we can pool our efforts to raising money for projects being in the US. The responsibilities
of the grant proposal team include :

a. Create an up to date list of all relevant foundations here in the US and in India w/ deadlines for submission, mailing address, contacts, profiles of what these foundations look for and typical funding amounts etc.
b. Create a document explaining the guidelines for writing a proposal - the do's and don'ts.
c. Create templates so new volunteers can get right on it, i.e. put standard information on AID, any common info. etc. in the template.
d. Interact with the projects review team to figure out the best candidates for grants.
e. Write and submit the proposal to the grant foundation. Followup on decision and inform volunteers at CSH
f. Provide updates in CSH of proposals in pipeline, budget proposed etc.