Outlining goals and responsibilities in a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) is one best practice for organizational partnerships. Check out a sample MOU here, used to facilitate the Boston Summer Learning Community citywide coalition.

 

Some items to consider including in an MOU:

  • Name of participating organizations, the date, and the partnership’s outcome goals
  • Responsibilities of each organization (examples: collaborate with teachers, paraprofessional and other school employees; staff of the nonprofit partner; and other relevant individuals in the design and delivery of summer programming; implement common program quality measurement tools and participate in a year-round learning community)
  • Acknowledgement of planning guides, work plans, program documentation, etc. (these items should also be attached to the MOU as exhibits)
  • Signature page
  • If applicable:
    • Data sharing and publication (i.e. what, if any, data is shared, which party owns the data, and which party has authority to publish the data)
    • Funding (including disbursement amounts, distribution calendar, and benchmark requirements that must be fulfilled to receive the funding)
    • Indemnification and limited liability