4.1: What Does it Cost to Run Powerhouse®?
Before looking for funding, understand what it will take to deliver the Powerhouse® model your organization is planning.
Costs extend beyond individual sessions and may include preparation, intake and registration, coordination, program delivery, evaluation, reporting, and organizational support. Some of these resources may already exist within your organization, while others may require additional funding.
Your Program Model Shapes Your Costs
Your Powerhouse® budget will reflect how you choose to deliver the program and the level of programming you plan to offer.
For example, a virtual support-group style program using existing staff and space may require fewer additional resources, while a structured multi-week in-person program may require greater investment in staffing, food, materials, activities, space, and other supports. Additional options such as transportation, specialized activities, additional staffing, or off-site programming will also affect your budget.
Choose a program model that works for your organization and community. Consider the resources needed to deliver it well and what your organization can realistically sustain over time.
Understanding the Costs of Your Model
When planning your Powerhouse® model, consider three areas:
|
Cost Type |
Consider |
|---|---|
|
🚀 Start-up costs |
Facilitator training, staff or volunteer screening, insurance review, policy preparation, and initial program materials or setup. |
|
🔁 Program Delivery |
Facilitator preparation and delivery time, intake and coordination, program supplies, food, space, evaluation, and transportation where offered. |
|
🧩 Organizational Support |
Administration, supervision, finance, HR, IT, record keeping, reporting, partnership development, and other organizational resources that support the program. |
Your organization may already have many of these resources in place. Identifying what is available and what will require additional investment will help you understand the true cost of your Powerhouse® model.
Where Does Your Program Fit?
Use this continuum to visualize how different Powerhouse® program models may require different levels of investment and organizational capacity.
Quick Activity: Map Your Powerhouse® Model
Before building your budget, take a few minutes to visualize the Powerhouse® program your organization is planning to deliver.
Use the Map Your Powerhouse® Model resource to think through the key decisions that will shape your program, including:
- Program format, frequency, and length.
- Group size and staffing.
- Location.
- Food, materials, and activities.
- Transportation or other access supports.
- Any additional features you want to include.
As you build your model, consider what your organization already has available, what choices will create additional costs, and where you may need additional funding or support. Keep your completed map. You’ll use it to help build your Powerhouse® budget and identify the resources needed to support your program.
Look at the Full Program Cycle
Build your budget around the full Powerhouse® cycle—not just individual sessions. Include the resources required from preparation and registration through delivery, follow-up, evaluation, and reporting. From there, you can identify your total cycle cost, cost per participant where useful, and the amount that still needs to be funded.
★ Powerhouse® Tip: Start with what you can sustain. Build a Powerhouse® model that fits your current capacity and resources, with room to grow as funding, partnerships, and community demand develop.