Line-Item Budget
ZionSphere Open Doors Program
Submitted to Lilly Endowment Inc. — Exploring Christian Practices Initiative
Five-Year Grant Request: $1,875,000
Budget Line ItemYr 1Yr 2Yr 3Yr 4Yr 55-Yr Total
A. PERSONNEL & STAFFING
A1. Founder / Executive Director — Starkey Roberson$25,000$32,000$40,000$44,000$44,000$185,000
Partial FTE grant allocation · phased from pilot through national scale · strategic leadership, partner development, grant oversight
A2. Program Director$40,000$47,000$50,000$54,000$54,000$245,000
100% FTE · day-to-day program execution, partner onboarding, deployment scheduling, multi-site coordination
A3. Curriculum & Formation Development$30,000$25,000$22,000$20,000$18,000$115,000
Contract theologians, ministry educators, and curriculum consultants phasing to part-time staff · facilitator guides, debrief frameworks, theological review
A4. Technology & Operations Support$12,500$18,000$22,000$22,000$18,000$92,500
Contract/part-time tech ops Yr1 → expanded staffing Yr2+ · deployment logistics, hardware config, inventory, platform maintenance
A5. Research & Evaluation Coordination$10,000$12,000$16,000$16,000$16,000$70,000
Phased support function · survey administration, data collection, academic partnership support, reporting
A6. Payroll Taxes & Benefits$15,000$19,000$24,000$24,500$22,500$105,000
Employer payroll taxes, FICA, health insurance contributions, contractor burden — conservative phased structure
Subtotal — PERSONNEL & STAFFING$132,500$153,000$174,000$180,500$172,500$812,500
B. HARDWARE & TECHNOLOGY INFRASTRUCTURE
B1. VR Headsets & Deployment Kits$80,000$70,000$50,000$25,000$15,000$240,000
Meta Quest deployment kits (4–6 headsets each) · rotational group usage model · includes cases, sanitization, charging systems · ZionSphere retains ownership
B2. Platform Hosting & Cloud Infrastructure$10,000$12,000$15,000$17,000$16,000$70,000
Cloud hosting, CDN, VR app management, storage, platform security, user management — scales with deployment volume
B3. Hardware Replacement & Repair Reserve$5,000$8,000$13,000$15,000$14,000$55,000
Covers damaged equipment, battery degradation, device failure, shipping losses, and periodic refresh across 5-year deployment period
Subtotal — HARDWARE & TECHNOLOGY INFRASTRUCTURE$95,000$90,000$78,000$57,000$45,000$365,000
C. PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT & CONTENT EXPANSION
C1. Curriculum Development & Printing$20,000$15,000$10,000$5,000$5,000$55,000
Facilitator guides, youth discussion materials, parent resources, debrief frameworks, graphic design, printing and distribution
C2. Additional Scripture Experience Development—$50,000$45,000$15,000$10,000$120,000
3D environment production, voice acting, audio, original scoring, narrative scripting, software integration, QA testing, interaction design
C3. Partner Training & Onboarding$10,000$15,000$15,000$12,000$8,000$60,000
Virtual onboarding workshops, facilitator training, training videos, implementation support, peer-learning cohorts, deployment orientation materials
Subtotal — PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT & CONTENT EXPANSION$30,000$80,000$70,000$32,000$23,000$235,000
D. EVALUATION, RESEARCH & IMPACT DOCUMENTATION
D1. Survey Design & Outcome Measurement$12,500$7,500$5,000$4,000$3,500$32,500
Youth outcome surveys, facilitator assessment tools, reflection instruments, longitudinal follow-up systems — measures Scripture engagement, spiritual curiosity, community participation
D2. Academic Collaboration & Research Support$8,000$10,000$12,000$12,500$10,000$52,500
University partnership support, consultation fees, IRB coordination, research assistance, publication-related costs — theology, embodied cognition, adolescent faith formation
D3. Annual Reporting & Impact Documentation$3,000$5,000$6,000$6,000$5,000$25,000
Annual public impact reports, program documentation, data visualization, dissemination materials for funders, partners, and researchers
D4. Five-Year Impact Study Preparation——$5,000$10,000$10,000$25,000
Comprehensive long-term impact study and publication effort at conclusion of grant period
Subtotal — EVALUATION, RESEARCH & IMPACT DOCUMENTATION$23,500$22,500$28,000$32,500$28,500$135,000
E. TRAVEL, DEPLOYMENT & PARTNER CONVENINGS
E1. Partner Site Visits$7,500$10,000$12,500$12,500$10,000$52,500
Air/ground travel, lodging, per diem · pilot deployments, on-site onboarding, troubleshooting, partner relationship management — priority on rural and urban underserved communities
E2. Regional Gatherings & Training Events$5,000$7,500$10,000$8,000$7,000$37,500
Regional convenings, cohort gatherings, training events · venue, virtual infrastructure, facilitation, participant travel stipends, workshop materials
E3. Conference Representation & Outreach$2,500$4,000$5,000$4,500$4,000$20,000
Ministry, nonprofit, youth development, and faith-technology conferences · partner recruitment, knowledge sharing, sustainability development
Subtotal — TRAVEL, DEPLOYMENT & PARTNER CONVENINGS$15,000$21,500$27,500$25,000$21,000$110,000
F. GENERAL & ADMINISTRATIVE
F1. Office Operations & Software$6,000$7,000$7,500$7,500$7,000$35,000
Shared workspace, office supplies, communication systems, productivity software, project management platforms, data storage
F2. Legal, Accounting & Audit$8,500$6,500$6,000$6,000$5,500$32,500
Nonprofit legal counsel, CPA fees, annual financial audit, grant compliance, contract review, independent financial review
F3. Insurance$3,000$3,500$3,500$3,750$3,750$17,500
General liability, equipment coverage, cyber liability protection, organizational coverage for youth-serving operations
F4. Communications & Public Information$3,500$4,000$4,500$4,000$4,000$20,000
Website maintenance, program communications, partner materials, public reporting assets, media support, outreach collateral
Subtotal — GENERAL & ADMINISTRATIVE$21,000$21,000$21,500$21,250$20,250$105,000
G. CMA FISCAL SPONSORSHIP & ADMINISTRATIVE OVERSIGHT
G1. CMA Fiscal Sponsorship Fee (6%)$18,450$23,850$25,050$23,400$21,750$112,500
6% of total grant request ($1,875,000 × 6% = $112,500) · grant administration, financial oversight, compliance management, payroll administration, accounting infrastructure, reporting, governance supervision — below standard sector rates
Subtotal — CMA FISCAL SPONSORSHIP & ADMINISTRATIVE OVERSIGHT$18,450$23,850$25,050$23,400$21,750$112,500
TOTAL GRANT REQUEST$335,450$411,850$424,050$371,650$332,000$1,875,000
All hardware costs based on current retail pricing and are subject to market fluctuation. CMA fiscal sponsorship fee = 6% of total grant request ($1,875,000 × 6% = $112,500). Earned revenue projections (beginning Year 4) are not reflected in this budget; the full five-year request represents 100% grant funding. See Budget Narrative for full justification of each line item.