Community Enrichment Grants Program for Designated Organizations
The Joy McCann Foundation sponsors a Community Enrichment Grants Program for organizations designated by the Foundation’s founders as those entities they “wish to continue to support.” Only these organizations are eligible to apply.
Purpose
The community Enrichment Grants Program is designed to assist the designated organizations to develop and/or deliver the programs or services that meet the needs of their primary stakeholders and thereby enrich the community they serve. This guideline—which is purposely broad—allows the designated organizations to be creative in:
proposing innovative ideas and
defining emerging needs.
Community Enrichment Grants will not be made in support of
Debt reduction
Organizational operating budgets
Endowments
Special events
Administrative staff salaries
Capital construction
Fundraising
Political efforts
The Community Enrichment Grants Program is designed to support programs and projects with identifiable outcome, not pay indirect costs. While the grant program does allow the support of ongoing programs, this is an ideal grant opprtunity for special projects.
The Community Enrichment Grants Program operates on a semi-annual giving cycle; each designated organization can apply during either or both cycles, but may receive an award only once a year.
The maximum grant award in any calendar year will be $25,000.
No multi-year awards will be made through this grant program. Community Enrichment Grants are intended to act as a catalyst in allowing organizations to achieve greater capacity to fulfill their long-term goals. This grant program is not designed as a means of long-term support. Renewal grants are generally discouraged, although under exceptional circumstances they may be approved.
Grantees are permitted to reapply in the next calendar year for the same program, but unless there are extraordinary circumstances, renewal grants are generally discouraged.
Deadlines for the semi-annual grant cycles:
Spring Cycle: Grant Proposals due February 1
Notification of Funding by March 15
Grant start date: April 1
Fall Cycle: Grants due August 1
Notification of Funding by September 15
Grant start date: October 1
The Foundation appreciates clarity and brevity in applications; applications must include:
Proposal cover sheet (containing only the following)
Name of the organization
Program/Project Title
Title, Address, e-mail and phone number of the organization’s contact person for the proposal
Date of submission
Supporting Letter(s) (Not to exceed 3 pages)
Each proposal must be accompanied by a letter of endorsement signed by the chair of the organization’s governing board; this letter must outline how the proposal meets the institution’s mission and strategic goals and how it serves the organization’s stakeholders.
Additional support letters may be included at the discretion of the applicant.
Description of the Organization
Organization's mission, vision and goals, and a summary of the organization's strategies for reaching stated goals (Not to exceed 1 page)
Update on the organization, including any recent staff, management or mission changes.
List of the organization’s current board members and their professional affiliation
Short profiles of key staff members, particularly those related to the proposed program/project
Narrative (Not to exceed 5 pages)
Description of the proposed program/project, short- and long- term goals and an explanation of how the program/project furthers the organization’s mission
Description of the people the proposed program/project serves
Outline of the evaluation process to be used in measuring the program’s/project’s effectiveness
Description of staff committed to the program/project and their percentage of effort
Description of project/program timeline
If the program/project will extend beyond the period for which funding is requested, include an explanation of the organization’s strategy for continued funding.
Financial Information
One-year budget for the proposed program/project
Budget justification
If requesting partial funding for a program with an overall budget over $25,000, include a full budget with an explanation of which components the grant would support.
Title and contact information for the staff person who will be responsible for financial management of the program/project
Renewal Applications
Note: Renewal grants are generally discouraged, although under exceptional circumstances they may be approved.
All applications requestiong renewal of a previous grant should address within each of the appropriate above components the progress made during the grant period, changes to the program/project and any other relevant updates.
Grant renewal requests also must include a financial report for the current grant with expenditures and fund balances, along with the projected budget for the grant being requested.
Optional Appendices (Not to exceed 5 pages)
Additional publications, news articles, resumes of key personnel or program materials may be included if relevant to the proposed program or project.
The original application packet and two copies should be sent to the address below. No faxed or electronically submitted applications will be accepted.
Applicants will receive acknowledgement of their submission by electronic mail.
Applicants will be notified by mail of the Foundation’s funding decisions. Organizations receiving grants will be required to sign a grant agreement letter outlining the terms of the grant before grant funds are disbursed.
All grant recipients are required to submit both an interim progress report at the mid point of the grant period and a final progress report within 30 days of the close of the grant. The reporting schedule for each grant will be set out in the grant agreement letter.
Interim Reporting: The interim report should not exceed one page and should include a progress update and very brief update on expenditures.
Final Reporting: The final report should not exceed three pages and should include progress made towards the goals stated in the proposal, an explanation of achieved program/project outcomes and a closing financial report.
Financial reporting will be done in compliance with all applicable federal grants management guidelines. Grantees must be able to demonstrate the capacity to administer grants and are expected to provide financial accounts of expenditures to assure that funds are used for their intended purposes.
The Joy McCann Foundation views required grant reporting as serving dual purposes:
To encourage grant recipients to reflect on the success of their program/project and to undertake self-assessment in a manner most useful to their organizational growth
To allow the Foundation to examine grant outcomes to guide continued strategic grantmaking and to assure due diligence regarding the use of grant funds
