U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

DVP Project Spotlights

Two middle school kids walking down a school hallway.

Project Spotlights, or success stories, serve as a tool for engaging current and future participants, partners and funders. A success story can be powerful tool to spread your story and promote your program.

Each spotlight will include a simple description of the program's progress, achievements, activities, and lessons learned. If your DVP/FHC program is interested in creating a project spotlight, contact your Area Project Officer.

How to Create Your Project Spotlight

Telling Your Program’s Story

A success story serves as an instrument for engaging current and potential participants, partners and funders. A success story can become a powerful tool to spread the word and promote your program. After all, isn't the purpose of your program to change participants lives for the better? Basically, a simple description of the program’s progress, achievements, activities, or lessons learned is a success story.

Download the Project Spotlight Template. [DOCx - 123 KB]

Why Do You Want to Highlight Your Program and Write a Success Story?

A success story is a tool used to tell your story because essentially you are “selling” your program when seeking new partners, stakeholders, funders, and participants. Collecting these stories allows for the opportunity to regularly step back and celebrate your program's achievements both big and small. Also, success stories are an effective means to move beyond the numbers and connect with your community by highlighting a cause they can both relate to and want to join. In a nutshell, success stories can be used:

In response to public inquiries about the program.
To demonstrate accountability that funds are well spent.
To educate decision makers.
To share successes so individuals in and out of the program can learn from your results.
To make the target population aware of your program.
To show movement in program progress when planned outcomes will not be realized until the distant future.
To help mobilize and get needed resources.
To reflect and learn from your work.

Choosing the Format

Elevator Story: A short description (2-sentence, 15-second story) of your program that explains the purpose and expected outcomes.
Paragraph Spotlight: A description or spotlight of the program that would fit into a newsletter or other similar media source.
One-pager: A polished document that speaks to the heart of the program that incorporates pictures, etc.
Two-page Success Story: A two-page story provides more detail than a one-page story and can be used to present a more complete picture of your program.
Digital Storytelling: Digital Storytelling uses multimedia tools to bring program narratives to life. Often incorporating audio, images and video clips and are typically around three minutes long.
Published Article: Typically, in journals whereas others can learn from your program and replicate it in their communities.