twentieth
anniversary

Announcing the 2010 Project Prize

Enter for a chance to win $3,000 in research and information services

Would you like better data to support your strategic plans? Do you work for a nonprofit organization that needs more information about your clients, your neighborhood or your resources?

Project Examples

A small, municipal government wanted to know if it was allocating its communications budget most effectively. Did residents appreciate the quarterly newsletter, or was there a different mode of communication that they would prefer that would be less costly to produce? MCIC partnered with the municipality to design a survey that asked residents about their communication preferences. MCIC’s analysis helped the municipality to make decisions about how to best allocate financial resources.
A local advocacy organization is designing a strategy for redistricting, to occur in 2011. MCIC created a series of electronic maps that showed the location of racial and ethnic minorities within federal, state, and city political boundaries. MCIC also prepared a database that included a detailed breakdown of race and ethnicity categories by ward so this information is easily accessible and searchable to the nonprofit.
For a local chapter of a national service provider, MCIC mapped the density of the residences of their clients and the location of their service centers. The maps revealed a mismatch: a high density of client residences did not always correlate to the location of the organization’s facilities. The data visualization informed the nonprofit’s strategic planning process and suggested that there may be some interventions the nonprofit should undertake in order to address the mismatch.

MCIC is giving away $3,000 in services to one lucky 501(c)(3) organization! The winner will be announced September 15, 2010 at the MCIC 20th Anniversary/Data Innovation Awards event.

To enter, download and complete the MCIC Project Prize application form. Submit the completed form, including proof of 501(c)(3) status and the $20.00 application fee, by August 9, 2010.

Contest participants also receive complimentary admission to the MCIC 20th Anniversary/Data Innovation Awards, Wednesday, September 15, 2010.

The winner will receive $3,000 worth of services that may include (but are not limited to): maps, key informant interviews, facilitated focus group with summary findings, targeted program evaluation, survey implementation and analysis, collection and analysis of census data for a specific geography, or cleaning of an internal data file with analysis.

Applications must be received at MCIC offices no later than 10 a.m. August 9, 2010.

What happens after I submit my application?

MCIC staff will collect and review the responses. Based on alignment with MCIC’s services, capacity and anticipated benefit to the nonprofit and its constituents, MCIC will select three finalists who will be featured at MCIC’s 20th Anniversary Celebration on September 15th. Finalists will be asked to set up a booth to share information about their organization and the nature of their request. Attendees at the event will vote, based on the information shared at the booth, for the organization they feel is most deserving of the MCIC Project Prize. The winning project will be announced at the event, and the organization will receive a certificate for MCIC services.

To apply

Complete the PDF application and submit via email to news@mcic.org, fax to 312.580.2879, or mail to 17 N. State Street, Suite 1600, Chicago, IL 60602-3294.