Two types of grants would be offered in the initial round: community small grants that could be made year-round with a $5,000 maximum per individual request with a ceiling of $50,000 to a group per year, and larger program grants that could be applied for and given in a longer time period.

The community small grants program would be aimed at helping groups get matching money from other foundations and funding sources.

The Authority also agreed to narrow down its focus for its initial grant cycle to its first tier areas of need: primary care access/health clinics, health screenings and prevention, youth health and wellness. Other areas for later cycles include active senior programs and wellness, health professional education and behavioral health.

In a presentation Tuesday night summing up the Authority's decisions and progress so far, David Whalen, a consultant with Stroudwater Associates, which was hired to help guide the setup and to survey the community's health needs, said the Authority would have about $328,000 of interest a year coming in from its current investments. If the Authority wanted to stay within a 20 percent overhead figure, that would give them about $65,000 for running the program, not including rent.

"We're going for simple and lean," said Whalen.

The board members decided not to hire an executive director at this time, opting instead to continue with the board's volunteer efforts and an administrative assistant...

See the Saturday, Feb. 27 edition of The Rockdale News for the full story or check back to www.rockdalenews.com.