We have moved all our application processes online using our grants portal.
If you are responding to a specific Request for Proposals (RFP) or call for Letters of Intent (LOI) (i.e., the Heisman Youth Development RFP, the NYC Workforce Development Fund LOI, or the Van Lier Fellowship Program RFP) download the appropriate application instructions, and—once your application is ready—click Apply.
For applications to The Trust’s ongoing competitive grants program, please use the “Apply” button for the “NYCT Ongoing Competitive Grants”.
Application Checklist
- A narrative proposal (no more than 10 pages) that includes:
- A description of your agency’s background (mission, major activities, and credentials for carrying out the project);
- A brief statement of the problem you seek to address;
- A description of your plans to address the problem, including the project’s:
- goals and objectives;
- planned activities, including who will be served; and
- expected outcomes and plan for measuring results.
- An itemized project budget that reflects the full costs of carrying out the project (as opposed to just the amount requested) and income;**
- Your annual operating budget and, for arts and culture groups only, actual income and expenses for the most recently completed fiscal year;
- A list of your board of directors, including affiliations. The Trust generally requires that a board should have at least 4 members; all board members should be unrelated; and no more than one board member should be paid, typically the Chief Executive Officer; and
- A cover letter on the organization’s letterhead signed by the paid staff head or designee officially submitting the proposal.
**Note: For grants to universities, hospitals, academic medical centers, and affiliated nonprofit fiscal sponsors (e.g. research foundations affiliated with fundraising vehicles of government agencies), overhead costs for grant administration may not exceed five percent of the total project budget. Administrative costs related to carrying out the proposed grant activities, including space, supplies, and technology for project staff, are not subject to the five percent limit, and should be identified separately in the proposed budget. For additional information, please contact Liza Lagunoff.
You may submit a proposal anytime to our competitive grants program. (This does not include the national and international environment program).*
We build in a long lead time to review proposals and prepare grant recommendations for five board meetings each year. Program staff weigh many considerations in preparing grant recommendations and cannot promise that any proposal will be considered at a particular board meeting. The dates in the table below indicate when applicants can expect a decision on their grant application. Please note that these are NOT due dates.
Grant applications received by: Decision notification sent no later than:
Second Tuesday in February End of October of the same year
Second Tuesday in May End of December of the same year
Second Tuesday in September End of March of the following year
*Note: Grantseekers interested in seeking support through the national and international environment program start the process with a Letter of Interest (LOI), which can be submitted through the Grants Portal during three-week windows each fall (late September) and winter (late February). A small percentage of those LOIs will result in an invitation to submit a full proposal.We also issue RFPs for certain programs (such as our capacity-building program for arts groups, and many of our collaborative funds); each has its own rules and timeline.