PRESS RELEASE

Long Beach, CA - The City of Long Beach is seeking proposals for youth-serving nonprofit organizations to deliver supportive services for young people disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Eligible organizations are encouraged to apply through the City of Long Beach’s Vendor Portal, PlanetBids, by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 8.

“COVID-19 has required so many people to step up and fill roles they might not have imagined before the pandemic,” said Mayor Robert Garcia. “Our city’s youth have been instrumental in the community response, helping to educate folks on safety, grant opportunities and so much more.”

The City received $40 million in Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act funding to support community relief, recovery and resiliency, and has allocated $170,000 in funding specifically for youth services and leadership development. The City seeks to partner with multiple nonprofit agencies that serve youth and emerging adults, ages 10 to 24, to provide services focused on the following:

• Increasing awareness and education on COVID-19 and youth-centered supportive services.
• Enhancing knowledge of and testing for COVID-19 and its linkage to improving social, emotional and physical health. 
• Increasing social connectedness and spaces (either physical or online) such as mentoring programs.
• Increasing opportunities for youth to connect with each other and/or with adult mentors for coaching and developing life skills during these challenging times.
• Increasing access to mental health and well-being supportive services.   

Services will be focused on serving communities of color and others who have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. Organizations should have demonstrated experience with working with the following groups:

• Black/African American residents 
• Cambodian residents 
• Filipino residents 
• Pacific Islander residents
• Latinx residents 
• LGBTQ+ residents
• Limited and non-English speaking communities 
• Low-income communities

The selected organizations will be awarded up to $25,000 each in CARES Act funding. Details related to scope areas, eligibility requirements and submission instructions are available at PlanetBids. The City has also developed a video with instructions on how organizations can submit a proposal.

The Health and Human Services Department continues to develop strategies to support segments of the community affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and will release additional RFPs funded by the CARES Act to further these efforts.

For the latest information on COVID-19, with details on all that the City of Long Beach is doing to keep our residents safe, visit longbeach.gov/COVID19 and follow @LongBeachCity on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.  

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