Grants
The mission of the Union County Community Foundation is to inspire philanthropy and strengthen our community by supporting initiatives that address local needs and providing quality services to donors and constituents.
The Board of Trustees meets their mission of supporting local initiatives through the annual competitive grantmaking program. The Foundation is an investor in the community and is interested in creating the highest possible levels of community gain, focused on improving the lives of Union County citizens.
Grant dollars are available through the Union County Community Foundation's endowment fund, as well as the Henry S. & Carolyn Adams Endowment Fund and Clyde L. and Martha S. Richardson Memorial Fund. The Community Investment Guidelines more clearly reflect how the board makes grant award decisions.
Click here to learn more about scholarships that are awarded from the Henry S. & Carolyn Adams Endowment Fund.
Community Investment GuidelinesTo decide how to invest the limited dollars of the Foundation, the Board will look for effective programs and strategies that strive to support the funding priorities listed below. The success of a grant is predicted by reviewing the expected results of the proposal and results tracking approaches. Programs that are capable of attaining measureable results receive higher consideration. In that mode, grant requests are reviewed with the following questions in mind:
- What results are we buying?
- What are the chances we will get results?
- Is this the best possible use of money?
Funding Priorities
- Broad charitable purposes
- Programs that support professional development for Union County public school teachers
- Programs that support those who are mentally disadvantaged or physically handicapped as a result of visual and hearing impairments
Grant Size
Grant awards vary depending on the scope and type of project.
Duration and Tracking of grant:
Grants are typically one year in duration. All grant recipients are expected to provide an interim written report evaluating the project and accounting for grant expenses 9 months after the grant award date. If grant funds are not fully expended at 9 months, an additional final evaluation report will be required no later than 14 months after the grant award.
Funds are to be spent for the approved purposes and within 12 months. Reallocation of the funds or extension of expenditures beyond 12 months requires a written request to be approved by the Union County Community Foundation Board of Trustees.
Deadline
The 2010 grant cycle is closed.
Eligibility
Grants are limited to eligible organizations recognized as tax exempt through IRS (nonprofit, governmental or educational institutions) for projects that will serve the residents of Union County.
Areas Not Generally Funded:
- Capital Campaigns
- Debt retirement/deficit funding
- Direct support of individuals
- Endowment funds
- Travel to conferences
- Publication of books
- Projects promoting political or religious views
- Foundations for regranting purposes
Conflict of Interest
To conduct a fair and ethical grants program, the Foundation follows a conflict of interest policy, which states that volunteers and/or staff not participate in the grant process for an organization with which they are affiliated. Please do not lobby board or grant committee members on behalf of your organization. If an individual or organization wishes to express support for your project’s application, please have them contact the Community Philanthropy department at Foundation For The Carolinas.
If a member is contacted on behalf of a grantee, the following will take place:
- Board/committee members will disclose the contact during discussion of the application
- Board/committee members will remove themselves from the deliberation process if they feel their objectivity has been compromised by the contact
For more information about the grants process, contact:
Karen Coppadge, Grants Specialist, at kcoppadge@fftc.org or 704.973.4559.
|