Responsive New Grants
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2012 Schedule
Pre-application due: March 2
Full application due: May 24
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The 2012 Responsive Grants Process is open to all requests for organizational support and projects that serve our
twenty-town region. The three types of responsive new grants in 2012 include the following:
- General operating support (GOS)
- Project support
- Capacity building support
These grants are generally awarded to address an agency's operating, programmatic or capacity building needs. The full application review process for responsive new grants -- from pre-application to grant award or decline -- takes seven months. Notification of award or decline is sent by email within ten working days of the Board of Directors meeting in October. Upon notification of awards, grantees are asked to sign an agreement delineating the terms of condition of the grant and payment plan.
There is only one grantmaking cycle per year for Responsive New Grants from The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven & the Valley Community Foundation. This is a joint application process that occurs online and requires that a pre-application be submitted as the first step. The pre-application deadline for 2012 is Friday, March 2, by 5pm. Those organizations encouraged to take the second step of submitting a full application will be notified by the end of April. Below is a description of the three types of responsive new grants.
General Operating Support (GOS)
General operating support is defined as a grant made to further the general mission and work of an organization, rather than for a specific purpose or project. Only organizations that have been incorporated for at least five years AND have received a Responsive New Grant from either The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven or the Valley Community Foundation are eligible to apply for general operating support. General operating support gives nonprofits flexibility to direct their spending where it is needed most and allows greater focus on achieving an organization’s mission. Nonprofits demonstrating strong management and a good track record of accomplishments will be given priority consideration. Refer to the Guiding Principles for Nonprofits: Leadership, Evaluation and Sound Management.
To apply for general operating support, click here for the pre-application.
If you already started an application, click here.
Sample Pre-application Merit Score Sheet (used in the review process)
Project Support
Project support is defined as a grant made for a specific new or existing projects.
To apply for project support, click here for the pre-application.
If you already started an application, click here.
Sample Pre-application Merit Score Sheet (used in the review process)
Capacity Building Support
Capacity building support is defined as a grant for short term financial assistance to build the infrastructure of an organization for long term success. Requests for capacity building include but are not limited to board development, strategic planning, evaluation and capital expenditures including equipment, building renovations or relocation.
To apply for capacity building support, click here for the pre-application.
If you already started an application, click here.
Sample Pre-application Merit Score Sheet (used in the review process)
Read The Community Foundation's Guiding Principles for Nonprofits: Leadership, Evaluation and Sound Management
If you need guidance on which pre-application to submit, please call Denise Canning, Grants Manager, at 203-777-7076.
Grant recipients will be required to participate in several Leadership Workshops designed to educate participants about the process and elements of leadership; dates to be determined.
Applications for the 2012 grantmaking cycle are now being accepted and must be submitted by 12:00 pm on February 13, 2012.
To apply for a 2012 grant:
Click to download the Guidelines
Click to download the Application
For grantseekers who were unable to attend the orientation session about the New Haven Neighborhood Leadership Grant Program, please view the videos below which offer an introduction to the process and provide how to successfully complete the application:
Overview of the program
A step-by-step look at the Application
Visit The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven's Grants Awarded page for examples of past grant recipients. Contact Laura E. Falanga, Administrative Assistant, at lfalanga@cfgnh.org or 203-777-7084 for more information about the New Haven Neighborhood Leadership Grant program.
The following policy as to out-of-cycle grant consideration was adopted unanimously at the Feb 16, 2006 Board meeting. The Community Foundation generally considers applications for new, larger grants in one competitive round annually with the view that doing so maximizes our ability to compare grant applications to one another and thus to achieve maximum beneficial community impact from The Community Foundation's grants.
The Community Foundation recognizes the importance of having clear, transparent and well-understood grant making processes that provide a 'level playing field' to all potential applicants and that are perceived by the community as fair and as being applied in an even-handed fashion. At the same time, The Community Foundation recognizes the importance of being able to respond in a timely way to community needs and opportunities as they arise or to take a leadership position in important community activities, and understands that it needs to have processes that are sufficiently flexible to enable it to do so.
In considering any request to respond to a grant application in advance of the next comprehensive round of new competitive grant making, The Foundation will weigh the relative importance of these fairness and responsiveness considerations in the particular circumstances presented. In the exceptional circumstances in which the program or activity to be funded by the application could not or would not be undertaken or would otherwise be faced with an undue hardship if a decision was delayed until the date on which it would otherwise be considered, The Community Foundation may decide that a grant application merits expeditious consideration.
Procedurally, when a pre-application is received requesting out-of-cycle consideration, The Foundation will in a timely fashion analyze and score the pre-application. If, based on the score that it receives, the pre-application merits encouragement of a full application, the issue of whether or not to consider the full application on an accelerated out-of-cycle time frame will be referred to the appropriate Board committee, which will make the determination after receiving the recommendation of the staff. In circumstances in which The Community Foundation decides to consider a grant off-cycle, the full application will be encouraged with a schedule established that will enable the full Board to receive the recommendation of the staff and to make a decision as to the grant in a timely fashion.
Donor advised funds enable a donor, or a committee established by the donor, to make recommendations regarding grant distributions from the fund. Examples of donor advised funds that currently accept applications are:
Est. 1995 by an anonymous donor and gifts from the community to provide social and economic advancement for women and girls through strategic philanthropy, grants, advocacy and collaboration. Consideration is given to grant proposals that:
- Create and support opportunities for the economic, educational, physical, emotional, social, artistic, and personal growth of women and girls.
- Meet special needs of women and girls and the diverse populations of women in our region.
- Encourage the advancement and full participation of women and girls in the community and in philanthropy.
- Advance the status of women and girls in the core areas of economic security, health, violence, education and political participation.
There are two types of grants available from the Fund. Each type has a separate online application form. The first is a Program Grant; the maximum grant amount awarded is $5,000. The second is a Strategic Investment Grant of $10,000 intended to significantly address one of the core areas listed above. This category is highly competitive, with only one award made annually.
The deadline to submit an application was by 5 pm, January 13, 2012.
For more information, contact Gina Ackeifi at gackeifi@cfgnh.org or 203-777-7079.
Est. 1990 as a result of a settlement between the National Resources Defense Council, Connecticut Fund for the Environment, and the Upjohn Corporation to improve the environmental quality of Quinnipiac River, the New Haven Harbor, and their watersheds, and otherwise benefit the environment of these resources. Consideration given to grant proposals that:
- Research what pollutants are in the Quinnipiac River
- Research methods of reducing pollution, or otherwise improving the Quinnipiac River's environmental health
- Address means of reducing both non-point and point sources of pollution to the River
- Research the permitting process and look at the permits themselves
- Entail environmental advocacy, except litigation
- Study the ecology of the Quinnipiac River and the New Haven Harbor
- Provide public education about the Quinnipiac River and its watershed
- Purchase land on the Quinnipiac River for conservation purposes, or to reduce pollution and improve public access to the River.
The deadline to submit an application was by 5 pm, January 11, 2012. Contact Denise Canning at dcanning@cfgnh.org or 203-777-7076 for more information.
Any organization with an operating budget of $2 million or less is eligible to receive a grant provided through this process, and no organization shall be eligible to receive a grant under this process more often than once in any period of two calendar years.
Requests considered for funding through this process include:
- Emergencies: Defined as needs which are time-sensitive-where a quick response from The Foundation can make a significant difference in the outcome of a project.
- Access for Small Organizations: Defined as assistance for small non-profit organizations that would not normally be competitive in the responsive grant process.
Applications are accepted year-round. Contact Denise Canning at dcanning@cfgnh.org or (203) 777-7076 to request an application. If you are a current $5,000 and Under grant recipient, click on the link below to download report questions.
Grants $5,000 and Under Report Questions
Sponsorships are awarded throughout a calendar year, only for events and may not exceed $2,500 per event.
Review and Notification:
As sponsorships are awarded throughout a calendar year (January 1st – December 31st), a Committee within The Community Foundation meets on a regular basis throughout the year to review and approve sponsorship requests. The Community Foundation distributes checks for sponsorships twice monthly. Therefore, it is recommended that your organization
submit a sponsorship request at least 60 days in advance of the event. Nonprofits will be notified of sponsorship status via email within a few weeks of date of initial request.
Applications are accepted year-round. If there is an option of ad placement in marketing materials associated with your organization's event, please submit a
Sponsorship Ad Placement Form with your application.
Contact Leigh Higgins directly at
lhiggins@cfgnh.org or 203-777-7092 with questions.
Scholarships at The Community Foundation are distributed throughout year from more than 80 funds. Of the scholarships available, only four are managed by The Foundation's Education Sub-committee. This Sub-committee is made up of Community Foundation Board members, staff and community volunteers and determines scholarship recipients in the Spring of each year. Visit our
Scholarships page to access the online applications. For more scholarship availability information, contact Gina Ackeifi at
gackeifi@cfgnh.org or at 203-777-7079.
In addition to the grant opportunities from The Foundation (listed above), there is a Non-profit Philanthropic Resource Center (NPRC) at the New Haven Free Public Library. NPRC is a Cooperating Collection of the Foundation Center, which is the nation's leading authority on institutional philanthropy. NPRC is located on the first floor of the Main Library, 133 Elm Street, New Haven and is open during regular library hours. No appointment is necessary, but if you would like to arrange for an orientation of resources or instruction on one of the databases, please contact Seth Godfrey at nprc@nhfpl.org or (203) 946-7431.