Questions About the Application Process
Q: Do you have an overview of the process?
Click Here to view a presentation which will help Non-Profits learn about the Grant Process.
Q: What is the deadline for grant application?
The deadline for the 2012 Grant is: February 15, 2012.
Q: What are some of the reasons applications are rejected?
-Agency requested less than $100,000.
-More than one application came from an organization.
-Service is redundant because it is offered by other agencies.
Q: If we are not a winner will someone let us know how we can improve our application?
It is our policy to not give direct feedback. Committee members change every year so advice other than general information presented on our website or at our Information Session for non-profits would be misleading.
Q: We are a small NFP and very new, will we still be considered?
You may want to consider collaborating with another non-profit that has a proven financially stable track record. However, we have had start-up organizations win our grant independently. If you have not had an audit, your 990 will serve as some of the financial documentation required.
Q: Can our organization submit different grant applications in different categories?
No, each organization may submit only one grant application each year.
Q: Will Impact 100 decide which Grant Review Committee will review an application?
No, every agency must make that decision independently.
Q: If we submit a proposal this year that is not funded, how soon can we resubmit the proposal?
You may apply again the following year.
Q: If we submit a proposal and are awarded a grant, how soon can we apply again?
You must wait 3 years to reapply.
Q: Which committee gets the most applications?
In a recent Wall Street Journal article, there was a chart that showed 52% of non-profits in the United States deal with Health & Welfare issues and 19% focused on Education. It is predictable that we would see a clustering of applications in those categories; however, we have had winners in every category.
Q: What does it mean that you don’t cover “indigent care subsidies?”
It is not our intention to try to replicate services that are provided by the government such as, Food Stamps, WIC, and Medicaid.
Q: Can we include our brochures, annual reports and videos about our organization?
When we do site visits we are interested in all this information; however, in the initial steps of our review of the applications, these things are not taken into account so we will not accept these with the original application.
Q: How does Impact 100 pay out the grant money?
Impact 100 pays the grant money as a one-time payment or as a milestone payment (installments). A grant applicant may request either type of payment in the application. However, Impact 100 reserves the right to pay the grant in milestone payments if Impact 100 determines it is more fiscally responsible to do so.
Q: What is the period of time the money must be spent?
The period of time the money must be spent correlates directly with the project's intended . Our milestone payment policy requires that the recipient provide Impact 100 with regular interim reports detailing the progress of both the project and its budget while milestone payments are being received. Impact 100 does not have a maximum for when the money must be spent. However, our past grant recipients who have received milestone payments have not exceeded three years.
Q: If the project is a multi-agency collaboration, do we submit the financial information from all the collaborating partners?
If a project application is a multi-agency collaboration, Impact 100 requires financial information from all collaborating partners. Please note each partner should submit complete financial data for three years as outlined in the grant application checklist.
Q: Who can I contact for more information?
Any questions or comments regarding the grant application process are welcome. Please contact our Non-Profit Coordinator: Outreach@Impact 100.org
Q: Are there any online tools that could help me with grant writing?
• Basic Grant Writing from Merrimack Valley Food Bank, Inc. includes practical tips for researching grants and writing a proposal, including what actions to take when the grant has been received or denied.
• Grantwriting: Basics for Beginners, from grant writing expert Carol Geisbauer is invaluable for people who are new to grant writing.
• University of Kansas's Community Tool Box contains information on almost every aspect of nonprofits, including a guide for writing a grant that includes an outline of the important components of a grant proposal.
Check out these resources for more in-depth information and guidance on specific components of a grant proposal:
• The Center for Nonprofit Excellence, United Way of Central New Mexico, has shared how-to guides about the specific components that most grant proposals should include.
◦ Grant Writing Toolkit—Needs Statement will help you draft a needs statement, one of the first and most important components of any proposal.
◦ Grant Writing Toolkit—Program Plan will guide you through writing a program plan for your proposal.
• Grantwriting—Program Development, from Carol Geisbauer Grantwriting, addresses program development—an important first step that can, when done right, facilitate the process of grant writing.
• Samples of Grant Proposal Components contains a compilation of samples for each of the 11 components of a grant proposal. It was assembled with permission from successfully funded grant proposals shared on IdeaEncore for a series that appeared in GrantStation.
If You Evaluate It, They Will Fund: Program Evaluation Essentials, a presentation from Cecilia Harris on Nonprofit Webinars, discusses the importance of program evaluation in attracting grants and foundation funding.
Provided by IdeaEncore