Grant Seeker FAQs

No. Trust staff meet weekly to review all the proposals that have come in since the last meeting. If a proposal clearly does not meet our guidelines, the organization is informed within two weeks. Otherwise, it is assigned to a program officer for review and the organization is so notified.

We first check to see if we have funds available in the particular category. The review assesses the quality of the proposed project, the capability of the organization, and its relevance to our grantmaking guidelines. We often check out the organization with other funders and nonprofits and sometimes request a meeting. We also visit a program we are seriously considering funding. Finally the staff makes a recommendation to our board.

No. All proposals received go through the same process.

No. We need to have something in writing first. If we think a meeting is necessary, we'll call you to set one up.

There are thousands of nonprofits in the City that could use operating and capital grants. Project grants allow us to select those that advance the goals our board has set for each grantmaking program.

No.

Yes, although our general practice is to make grants for one year. You should be sure to make the case for multi-year funding in your proposal.

Yes.

We do not make our donors' names and addresses available. Our Grants Newsletter, which is published five times a year after each board meeting, lists all the grants made at the meeting, and is distributed to a broad community of donors, grantees, elected officials, and others. We also encourage donors to call us for more information about grantees featured in this newsletter and on our Web site.

Generally, no. We have several funds, however, that use a request for proposal (RFP) process for grantmaking. RFPs are generally sent to a closed list, i.e., only those who receive the RFP can apply, but open RFPs are posted here.

Our grants usually range from $5,000 to $200,000; an average grant is around $60,000. Often, a grant from The Trust cannot fully support a project, so we will want to know where the rest of the money will come from.

Yes. Each proposal is considered on its own merits.

The grant review process takes from two to six months.

Please send it to us by regular mail. E-mailed or faxed proposals are not accepted.