Apply for out-of-province travel funding

Foothills Orienteering (FWOC) actively encourages our members to further their orienteering skills development, knowledge, and networking by participating in orienteering events hosted by other clubs. Every year, we dedicate a small portion of our budget to support out-of-province travel and/or Team Canada program fees for our member volunteers. FWOC also donates funds directly to the Team Canada training program.

FWOC is now accepting applications from club members (that have been active volunteers) for partial reimbursement of Out-of-Province travel expenses and Team Canada (formerly known as HPP) fees. FWOC has allocated a total of $5000 for Team Canada and non-Team Canada FWOC member funding per year. Successful applicants will receive a portion of these funds up to the maximums stated in the policy below.

The deadline for receiving applications and supporting documentation is Dec 1st for travel expenses and HPP fees incurred during the previous 12 months. Applications will be reviewed annually shortly after the deadline.

Application instructions and eligibility criteria are found in the policy below (note that the High Performance Program has been renamed the Team Canada Program):

Competitive Development and Participation Travel Expense Reimbursement Policy

Latest Revision Sep. 2022 – Updates dollar limits per Board Motion of August 2, 2022 and September 5, 2022 and added a footnote that the HPP program is now known as the Team Canada program.

Overview:

The objectives and benefits of this policy are:

  1. to support High Performance Program* (HPP) athletes and team leaders who are also active FWOC members, volunteers, mentors, and coaches to travel to and represent FWOC and Canada at internationally-ranking orienteering races. HPP athletes are those athletes selected by Orienteering Canada to participate in the Canadian Youth or Adult Programs for the dates covered in the reimbursement application. The club benefits when its actively engaged HPP members and team leaders represent the club while strengthening their skills and relationships with the broader orienteering community at international orienteering events.
  2. to encourage all other FWOC members to strengthen their orienteering skills, relationships, and contributions to the club through participation in orienteering events outside of the province. The club benefits when its actively engaged members strengthen their skills and relationships with the broader orienteering community at high-quality orienteering events and increase their engagement with the sport of orienteering and club events.

Accordingly, there are two categories of expense reimbursements awarded under this policy

  1. HPP Out-of-Province Travel Expense reimbursements
  2. Non-HPP Out-of-Province Travel Expense reimbursements

Note that the Alberta Orienteering Association (AOA) may also provide grants to support HPP and non-HPP attendance at orienteering events or workshops. All FWOC club members are also AOA members and are encouraged to apply directly to the AOA for these grants. At the time of drafting this policy, the AOA Grant Policy and documents could be found at https://www.orienteeringalberta.ca/policy--documen....

Eligibility for Travel Expense Reimbursements:

All active FWOC members are eligible to apply and be considered for partial travel expense reimbursement if they either:

a) have volunteered at five or more club events (or equivalent as determined by the committee) in the 12 months preceding the annual application deadline, or

b) have been employed by FWOC to help deliver FWOC programs.

To be considered for an award, applicants must have represented FWOC during the time covered in the application including registering as a FWOC member at the events included in the application. HPP members are expected to wear FWOC, AOA, or Orienteering Canada clothing during competitive events.

Expense Reimbursement Amounts:

The total amount of funds available for HPP and non-HPP expense reimbursement categories are set in the club’s annual budget and are shown on the annual application forms at https://orienteeringcalgary.ca/pages/resources.

The amount which can be reimbursed for each application is shown below may be reduced depending on club budget, number of applications, and the relative contributions of the applicants to club events or training during the previous year:

  1. HPP Out-of-Province Travel Expense Reimbursements: up to $1200 per HPP athlete or $500 for HPP team official
  2. Non-HPP Out-of-Province Travel Expense Reimbursements: up to $200 per member

The expense reimbursement applications may include requests for reimbursement of travel, accommodation (not including meals), event registration, and HPP application fees.

Normally, only one application per member will be reimbursed per year, however, the committee will consider reimbursing more than one application per member if there are sufficient funds remaining and the applicant has made exceptional contributions to the club during the period covered in the applications.

Travel Expense Reimbursement Application Procedure:

All travel expense reimbursement applications must be received by the application deadline (normally October 1st) and must be for an event during the 12 months preceding the application deadline. Applicants must submit the following:

  1. Travel expense reimbursement application form (available at https://orienteeringcalgary.ca/pages/resources);
  2. Evidence of travel expenses paid (including HPP application fee if applicable); and
  3. Evidence of event participation and website of the event(s) covered by the application.

HPP members should only submit a HPP travel expense reimbursement as their application will automatically be considered for non-HPP travel expense reimbursement if the HPP application is not fully reimbursed.

As part of the application submission, applicants will be required to agree to the following statement on the application form:

“By submitting this application, I agree that the information is accurate and may be made publicly available for marketing and promotion purposes. I agree that I have read and understood the Competitive Development and Participation Travel Expense Reimbursement Policy at https://orienteeringcalgary.ca/pages/resources I understand that: 1) to be considered for reimbursement, evidence of the expenses paid and events attended must be submitted to [email protected]; 2) I may not include expenses that have been or will be reimbursed by another source; and 3) any inability to verify the expenses or contributions claimed in this application may result in this and future applications to be rejected.”

Travel Expense Reimbursement Application Review Process:

Travel expense reimbursement applications will be evaluated by the FWOC board (or a board-appointed committee) shortly after the application deadline, based on the following criteria:

  1. Completeness of the application and supporting documentation; and
  2. Evidence of applicant’s contributions to the club during the period covered in the application (the 12 months preceding application deadline).

For HPP FWOC members, the application form is at https://forms.gle/3TiVB3a48UeowzVm6

For non-HPP FWOC members, the application form is at https://forms.gle/2x4RpzrDwx9ZH8Fh7

*HPP refers to Team Canada members and non-HPP means all other FWOC members.