Title: Community Alliance to Fight AIDS
Project Period: September 1, 2005 - August 31, 2008
Project Amount Funded (FY 2005): $278,250
Project Director: Mohan Sikka

The Community Alliance to Fight AIDS project seeks to enhance organizational development, improve HIV program development, facilitate community alliances, and foster systems change among 18-20 minority-serving community-based organizations each year. These organizations reach Black and Latino communities within New York City - specifically South Bronx, South and Central Brooklyn, and Upper Manhattan (Washington Heights and Harlem).

The organizational development capacity building component is aimed at improving efficacy and sustainability through enhanced infrastructure and management systems, as well as increasing fund raising capacity of CBOs. One-to-one technical assistance is tailored to meet specific needs such as board development, fiscal management, staff succession, strategic planning and fund raising. The HIV program development capacity building component enhances existing programs and fosters the development of new programs linked to HIV primary prevention and care, such as testing and prevention for positives. One-to-one technical assistance is provided by project staff and consultants, and at times, involves two or more organizations collaborating on HIV program development. Several series of training sessions are conducted in group settings for topics such as web design training, desktop publishing, and evaluation. Two community alliances are created in high incidence minority and immigrant neighborhoods to improve reach and access to community-wide services, develop new collaborative models of prevention and care, and increase referrals and client tracking. Each alliance works towards developing a community needs assessment, comprehensive work plan, planning for linkages and joint services, data collection and sharing, a social marketing plan, and fund raising skills. The systems change component facilitates public agencies’ collaboration on HIV and convenes focus groups to identify service needs, gaps and barriers in immigrant communities impacted by HIV/AIDS. Exit interviews performed as part of the evaluation process are intended to document long-term change within participating organizations as a result of services provided by the project.

Click here for a listing of all FY 2005-2007 grantees