Grants

As Chair of the Foundation’s Grants Committee and member of the Board of Directors, I am pleased to welcome you to our Grants Home Page.  Here, you will find everything you need to understand the Foundation’s grantmaking philosophy, process and recent grant history. 

The mission of the Community Foundation of Greater New Britain is to improve the quality of life in Berlin, New Britain, Plainville and Southington. One way we accomplish our mission is by investing in organizations and programs that achieve clear human gains for those in our region.  We view ourselves as investors focused on ensuring the greatest possible improvement in quality of life with the funds we have available.

For 2011, the Board of Directors has approved two adjustments to our investment guidelines that potential grantees should be aware of.  

The first adjustment relates to the number of consecutive years of funding a grantee may receive.   This amendment, which will become fully effective in 2014, requires a one-year hiatus following three consecutive years of foundation funding.  This will give grantees three full years, until 2014, to prepare to take a ‘year off’ from CFGNB funding, assuming funding is received consecutively in 2011, 2012 and 2013.  This policy would not apply to organizations that receive funding through a Foundation-initiated funding emphasis, such as First Years First.  Any other exemptions from the application of this policy will be treated on a case-by-case basis.  Such exemptions might include cases of fiscal sponsorship or acting as lead grantee for a collaborative. 

The rationale behind this amendment is multi-faceted: to encourage grantee agencies to continuously seek greater diversity in their funding; to provide the Foundation with greater flexibility in its year-to-year discretionary grantmaking; and finally, to demonstrate the Foundation’s adherence to IRS requirements that discretionary funds not become de-facto “designated funds” by the provision of unending annual grants to select organizations.  In making this change, our Grants Committee studied the current policies of a dozen or more Northeast & New England community foundations.  It was found that the vast majority already had such “hiatus” policies long in place.  They – and we – believe that such policies are fair, reasonable, and encourage organizations to constantly seek to diversify their various funding streams, so as to lessen their dependence on any one source, such as the Community Foundation.  

The second adjustment relates to our  support of capital campaigns.  The Foundation will still consider funding capital campaigns but with the following conditions:

• Capital campaign requests will be considered once an agency has reached 75% of its funding goal in gifts and pledges, so as to assure the project’s initial planning & funding assumptions are substantially met;
• CFGNB prefers that if capital campaign grants are awarded, they be made on a “challenge match” basis to ensure that our funding leverages other dollars needed;
• In general, capital campaign grants will not exceed our history of funding at the level of up to $50,000.  Exceptions to that level may be reviewed on a case-by-case basis with regard to the size, scope and overall community benefit of the project;
• Grants will be paid once matching and/or other conditions are met and confirmation is received that work has begun and the proposed capital project is underway.   
  

I invite you to review our information carefully, and to feel free to contact Joeline Wruck, Director of Program, at 860.229.6018, x307, or by e-mail should you have any questions.  In the meantime, please click here to learn more about applying for a grant.