Procedures for Submitting a Small Grant Request
In addition to the grant applications we initiate and solicit, the Carole Landis Foundation will also award up two additional unsolicited grants each year of $2,000 to $5,000, which will be awarded to a non-profit organization meeting our criteria.
To be considered, an applicant must be registered as an organizational identity with legal standing, along with an approved Equal Employment Opportunity Policy, signed by the agency executive director, including clear references, at minimum, to the following protected categories: race, color, religion, age, ancestry, disability, marital status, citizenship, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other characteristic protected by law.
- A grant request must be submitted in writing electronically or hard copy, twice a year - April 15 and October 1.
- An acknowledgment of a grantee's application interest will be sent by the Foundation within 8 days of receipt.
- All grantees must meet the following general requirements, in addition to the Content Guidelines:
- Demonstrated alignment with the Foundation's mission;
- Grantee is a registered nonprofit organization based in the United States;
- Grantee must have a minimum of three years in operation;
- Provide evidence of an organization's official equal opportunity policy or antidiscrimination policy inclusive of each class mentioned above
- Application requests are for funding small projects.
- The Foundation will award small grants annually, based on the evaluation criteria scoring and majority vote from the Board of Directors.
- When a grant has been awarded, the Foundation will monitor the application of funds against program goals.
- The Foundation will require successful grantee to submit an end of year report that tracks progress and outcome.
RFP/Proposal Criteria - Content Guidelines
- Organizational Background and Overview: Provide basic introduction of the organization. Has it run similar programs in the past? Does previous experience set them up for success with this new program?
- Program Plan / Project Design / Goals: This should be at least several paragraphs outlining objectives and goals. There should be additional paragraphs of how the program will be executed. What is the outcome? Explain how many will be served with this program. Identify the population that this program benefits: race, culture, ethnicity, religion. What is the title of the administrator who is responsible for this program? What are the hurdles?
- Assessment of Need / Problem Statement: Explain the need this fills? How many are affected by this problem? Is this need urgent and time-sensitive? What has already been done on this problem? Supply pertinent data, statistics, anecdotal evidence to substantiate.
- Program Timeline: General timeline of deliverables - when various parts of the program will be executed. What are milestone markers, so that the Foundation as grantor can monitor the progress of the grant.
- Measurement Plan: What are the measurable outcomes? What are success indicators? Do the staff tasked with tracking the results have the appropriate experience and time to do so?
- Program Partners: Are other funders contributing to the budget of this program or to the organization? Are there other grants for this program? Are others involved in government or academia that contribute to the success of this program (research, providing data, coordinating resources)?
- Budget: Provide a detailed line-item budget including personnel and program related expenses.
- Sustainability Plan: Has your organization specified a plan to obtain continued funding and/or an ability to self-sustain the program after the grant period has ended?
- Publicity: The Foundation appreciates when grantees publicly acknowledge their grants. In what ways will you publicize the Foundation grant? Where will it post or be listed?
Evaluation Scoring
Using a standard scoring system, "points" will be assigned to each criteria component according to the extent to which the proposed criteria meet the stated requirements.
- 5 points: Fully meets
- 4 points: Meets with minor gaps (no compromise required)
- 3 points: Meets with moderate gaps (some wiggle room needed)
- 2 points Partially meets with significant gaps
- 1 point: Does not meet
The Carole Landis Foundation does not discriminate on basis of race, color, religion, age, ancestry, disability, marital status, citizenship, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other characteristic protected by law in any of its activities or operations.
