Difference between revisions of "Hardware Grants"

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Free Geek has a hardware grants program in which we give hardware to community service/change organizations who request it. Our emphasis is on computers, but we are able to grant out many other things as well. Hardware grants is overseen by Public Services.

The Hardware Grants Process (from request to resolution)

Please refer to Processing Hardware Grants for specific instructions on the new system for Grants.

Incoming requests

Grant request comes in to RT (or ToDo)
- Grant look too complicated? Ask the Hardware Grants Coordinator or leave it in the queue if they're not available.
Determine if grantees are eligible using the How to approve/deny grants page.
- Use the "Comment link" to input non-profit status into RT after checking Business registrars, Melissa Data or the IRS website, if appropriate.
- Determine if requester is an approved contact by checking email address, publicly-available information or personal contact with organization.
Determine if we are able to grant out the requested items by using the Hardware Grants What We Can Give Out List.
If request is simple and fulfillable, update Custom Fields inputs including GrantStatus, FG-PDX_Elegibility and Needed fields.
- If you require further information (on the items requested, status of the organization or grant contact), choose "Requested" in the GrantsStatus field and set the ticket status to Open.
Click "Reply" in the original application and use Hardware Grants Responses to generate an appropriate response.
- If conversation occurs via email (outside of RT), input any relevant details in RT.
If items are not readily available please request them using established methods for Requesting Items for Hardware Grants
- Your RT ticket should be updated when waitlisted items are available.

After clarification and approval

Monitor ticket and wait for any necessary system production and all requested items to be available before proceeding.
When items are ready, ask them to sign up for pickup at https://freegeek.youcanbook.me/. This service will automatically add their appointment to the Google calendar and send confirmation email with all necessary pickup information.
When they come in to pickup the item, follow the How To Disburse A Grant guide.
- You must:
  - Get the name of the person picking up materials;
  - Take all paper PRINTMEs on systems;
  - Provide a Using your Free Geek computer! handout if they are receiving any computers.
- Consider asking them to take a picture with their granted hardware in front of Free Geek or the painting in front of the Monkey House.
After disbursement, ensure you:
- Update the Custom Fields inputs in RT;
- Indicate what you disbursed and to whom in RT;
- Input disbursement information in the database.
  - If the contact doesn't currently exist in the system, create a new contact. Check the "organization" box and ensure you put in the correct address.
Click "Resolve" if you have successfully fulfilled the grant request.
High-five anyone nearby for a job well done (or pat yourself on the back) and continue on to the next HG request.

Pages related to hardware grants

Processing Hardware Grants
How to approve/deny grants
How To Disburse A Grant
Hardware Grants Responses: Cut-and-paste responses for requesters

http://www.freegeek.org/grants/: Hardware Grants page on website, including application

What We Can Grant Master List: Comprehensive list of what we can (and can't) grant out
Requesting Items for Hardware Grants
Build Specs

Business registrars (OR or WA): For verifying non-profit status
Federal Exempt Organizations Select Check: To check status at a federal level
Melissa Data: Another non-profit lookup

Using your Free Geek computer!: Given to requesters who get systems

Hardware Grants Summary
Hardware Grants Volunteer Intern: Job description
Training Guide for HG Internship: Checklist for beginning volunteers/interns

Due to IRS considerations we are not able to provide an approximate or exact value for any of our disbursed hardware. Those who require this information should consult an accountant, tax software or look for equivalents for comparison prices.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-=Overview=
+{{Migrated}}
-Free Geek has a Hardware Grants program!  What does this mean?  Free Geek, as you may or may not already know, receives a lot of computer junk that eventually gets turned into computer funk (the good kind, not the bad) by our awesome volunteers.  However, we have and make so much stuff that we can't possibly sell it all in our thrift store or give it away to our volunteers.  What could we possibly do with all these computers we are slowly burying ourselves with?  Easy: give them to folks in need via our Hardware Grants program!
+[https://docs.google.com/document/d/1G7J_3-ElRrvvPLdOT1Naz9KGS8hRelFSH7U_Ywv6TEk/edit?usp=sharing Link]
-==Who receives hardware grants?==
+__NOTOC__
-What types of organizations does Free Geek grant hardware to?  From the [http://freegeek.org/grants Grants page]:
-*Grants are made to organizations, specifically not-for-profit organizations, and not to individuals. We grant hardware to non-profit and social change organizations local to Portland, Oregon; we cannot provide for any kind of shipping to other locations. You must be able to come to Free Geek and pick up the granted hardware.
+Free Geek has a hardware grants program in which we give hardware to community service/change organizations who request it. Our emphasis is on computers, but we are able to grant out many other things as well. Hardware grants is overseen by Public Services.
-To be more specific, Free Geek grants hardware to:
+{|cellspacing="1px" style="background-color:#f8fcff"
-*Non-profit organizations
-*Schools
-*Churches
-*Community centers
-*Social change organizations
-*Worker collectives
-Free Geek does not give out hardware grants to individuals.  Here's why: we used to give out what we call "passthrough" grants (which are essentially
+| width="70%" style="border: 1px solid #6688AA; background-color:#FFFFFF; padding:1em;" valign="top"|
-grants that we give to organizations so they can in turn give them to someone else) but stopped doing so because of the technical support issues involved with providing people computers when they hadn't been adequately taught to use the operating system that we provide with them.  We instead focus our grants program on providing infrastructure for organizations (computers for an office, for example, or for a public lab setting). Additionally, we feel that giving individuals the opportunity to earn their computers, rather than simply giving them computers, can provide them with a sense of empowerment and responsible ownership that is oftentimes infinitely more valuable than the physical product itself.
-==What types of hardware does Free Geek give out?==
+==The Hardware Grants Process (from request to resolution)==
-We can give out a lot of different stuff.  The list on the [http://freegeek.org/grants Grants page] is a bit out of date.  The following list is by no means complete, but we can readily give out:
+'''Please refer to [[Processing Hardware Grants]] for specific instructions on the new system for Grants.'''
-*GrantBoxen
+===Incoming requests===
-*CRT Monitors
+# Grant request comes in to [http://todo.freegeek.org/ RT (or ToDo)]
-*64MB - 512MB sticks of SDRAM (quantity becomes limited as module size increases)
+#* Grant look too complicated? Ask the Hardware Grants Coordinator or leave it in the queue if they're not available.
-*Keyboards
+# Determine if grantees are eligible using the [[How to approve/deny grants]] page.
-*Mice
+#* Use the "Comment link" to input non-profit status into RT after checking [[Business registrars]], [http://www.melissadata.com/lookups/index.htm Melissa Data] or the [http://www.irs.gov/app/pub-78/ IRS website], if appropriate.
-*Computer cases
+#* Determine if requester is an approved contact by checking email address, publicly-available information or personal contact with organization.
-*Floppy, CDROM or Zip drives
+# Determine if we are able to grant out the requested items by using the [[Hardware Grants What We Can Give Out List]].
-*Small (~4-10GB) hard drives
+# If request is simple and fulfillable, update Custom Fields inputs including GrantStatus, FG-PDX_Elegibility and Needed fields.
-*Ethernet, sound or video cards
+#* If you require further information (on the items requested, status of the organization or grant contact), choose "Requested" in the GrantsStatus field and set the ticket status to Open.
-*Short to medium length networking cable
+# Click "Reply" in the original application and use [[Hardware Grants Responses]] to generate an appropriate response.
+#* If conversation occurs via email (outside of RT), input any relevant details in RT.
+# If items are not readily available please request them using established methods for [[Requesting Items for Hardware Grants]]
+#* Your RT ticket should be updated when waitlisted items are available.
-Essentially, if we've got lots of it, we're willing to grant it out.  We do grant out rarer things when they are available, such as:
+===After clarification and approval===
-*Laptops
+# Monitor ticket and wait for any necessary system production and all requested items to be available before proceeding.
-*Projectors
+# When items are ready, ask them to sign up for pickup at https://freegeek.youcanbook.me/. This service will automatically add their appointment to the Google calendar and send confirmation email with all necessary pickup information.
-*LCD Monitors
+# When they come in to pickup the item, follow the [[How To Disburse A Grant]] guide.
-*Enterprise-level equipment
+#* You '''must''':
+#** Get the name of the person picking up materials;
+#** Take all paper PRINTMEs on systems;
+#** Provide a [[Using your Free Geek computer!]] handout if they are receiving any computers.
+#* Consider asking them to take a picture with their granted hardware in front of Free Geek or the painting in front of the Monkey House.
+# After disbursement, ensure you:
+#* Update the Custom Fields inputs in RT;
+#* Indicate what you disbursed and to whom in RT;
+#* [http://wiki.freegeek.org/index.php/Data_Entry Input disbursement information] in the [http://data/ database].
+#** If the contact doesn't currently exist in the system, create a new contact.  Check the "organization" box and ensure you put in the correct address.
+# Click "Resolve" if you have successfully fulfilled the grant request.
+# High-five anyone nearby for a job well done (or pat yourself on the back) and continue on to the next HG request.
-Keep in mind that, overall, the amount of equipment we can give out per grant is limited by what we have on hand.  At the moment, we can give an organization up to six GrantBoxen per month.  Laptops are limited to two per year.
-==Does the organization's location matter?==
+|width="30%" align="left" style="border: 1px solid #6688AA; background-color:#efefef;padding:1em;" valign="top" |
-Yes and no.  We simply don't have the means to ship the types of hardware typically requested in grants, so we are limited to providing hardware grants to organizations that are able to pick up grants from us.  However, we are more than willing to provide hardware to organizations in any location of the world as long as they can provide a local contact that can pick up hardware from us and handle the rest.
-==How are grants approved/denied?==
+==Pages related to hardware grants==
-At the moment, grant approval/denial is at the discretion of the grant shepherd.  In general, if an organization does not fit into one of the types listed above (e.g. an average for-profit business), its grant request will be denied.  However, sometimes we receive grant requests from qualifying organizations that ask for more than we can provide in a given month, or have a need on an ongoing basis.  In that case, it is necessary to contact the requestor to discuss the details of the request and bring down the amount of requested hardware to a reasonable level.  It helps to stress that:
+;[[Processing Hardware Grants]]
-* We can only provide so much equipment per month (or year in the case of laptops)
+;[[How to approve/deny grants]]
-* It is very difficult to find rare equipment (e.g. projectors) in working order, so they shouldn't expect us to be able to provide it
+;[[How To Disburse A Grant]]
-* The equipment we provide is intended for infrastructure, so it shouldn't be given away
+;[[Hardware Grants Responses]]
+:Cut-and-paste responses for requesters
+;[http://www.freegeek.org/grants/ http://www.freegeek.org/grants/]
+:Hardware Grants page on website, including application
+;[[Hardware Grants What We Can Give Out List|What We Can Grant Master List]]
+:Comprehensive list of what we can (and can't) grant out
+;[[Requesting Items for Hardware Grants]]
+;[[Build Specs]]
+;[[Business registrars]] ([http://egov.sos.state.or.us/br/pkg_web_name_srch_inq.login OR] or  [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/corps/search.aspx WA])
+:For verifying non-profit status
+;[http://apps.irs.gov/app/eos/ Federal Exempt Organizations Select Check]
+:To check status at a federal level
+;[http://www.melissadata.com/lookups/np.asp Melissa Data]
+:Another non-profit lookup
+;[[Using your Free Geek computer!]]
+:Given to requesters who get systems
+;[[Hardware Grants Summary]]
+;[[Hardware Grants Volunteer Intern]]
+:Job description
+;[[Template:Training Guide for Hardware Grants Internship|Training Guide for HG Internship]]
+:Checklist for beginning volunteers/interns
+''Due to IRS considerations we are not able to provide an approximate or exact value for any of our disbursed hardware. Those who require this information should consult an accountant, tax software or look for equivalents for comparison prices.''
+|}
+{|cellspacing="1px" style="background-color:#f8fcff"
+|}
-==Can I get involved?==
-Yes!  Free Geek is always looking for reliable volunteers interested in facilitating hardware grants.  You will play the role of grant shepherd.  Essentially, you will:
-* Participate in approving or denying grants
-* Determine if we have all the information we need to proceed with the grant, and ask for more if we need it
-* Update the status of the grant via RT
-* Arrange appointments with requestors to have them come in and pick up equipment
-* Give requestors the equipment approved for the grant
-* Give the grantee outreach documents (located near the finished grantboxen). These will most likely include: brochures, tear-off sheets, FAQs, and contact sheets for how to contact us if the organization's staff would like a 10-minute talk on how Free Geek can help them and their clients.
-* Fill out paperwork appropriately for data entry (or disburse the equipment yourself in the database, if you have access to it)
-It might sound like a lot of work, but it really isn't.  Plus, you can't beat that warm, fuzzy feeling you get when you give an organization something they can definitely use.  It's like being Santa Claus plus the Easter Bunny rolled into one everyday!  If you'd like to get involved, simply let a staff member know so they can take create a [[RT]] account for you.  Once you have one, read this page: [[Using RT for Hardware Grants]].  That's about it!
-[[Category:Hardware Grants]]
 [[Category:Structure]]
 [[Category:Programs]]
+[[Category:Hardware Grants]]