Deadline: 28-Sep-21
The Alaska Community Foundation (ACF) is offering Strengthening Organizations Grant Program with the goal of helping Alaska nonprofits become better equipped to meet their missions.
This program supports projects that strengthen the applicant organization, ensuring it has well-organized systems in place and skilled employees who have the training and resources to successfully provide services.
Priorities
- Due to limited budgeted funds for each grant program year, preference will be given to small, rural organizations or projects that result in stronger outreach or programming to rural communities; demonstrate accountability, cultural sensitivity, and unify communities; are politically neutral and environmentally sound; empower the disadvantaged or underserved; are collaborative and show community support.
- Applications that include research into the real and estimated costs of the proposed project will be more competitive.
- Applicants are highly encouraged to include in their grant proposal estimates and bids for contracted services and/or significant purchases for the project.
Funding Information
- Grant requests may be for up to $10,000; typically awards are funded in the $4,000 to $6,000 range.
- All awarded projects are required to be completed within one calendar year from the date grant funds are received.
- Prior Strengthening Organizations grant award recipients may apply for additional capacity building support once all grant reporting requirements have been completed on the previous grant award.
Activities
This list provides examples of activities under specific categories of capacity building that have been approved for funding through this program. Proposals must include funding requests for only one activity at a time.
Examples include board trainings or consultation with experts in the field of board engagement.
- Staff/Volunteer Training & Leadership Development: Planning for staffing or volunteers or leadership training.
- Financial Management: An example of financial management might include purchase and installation of accounting software to improve the financial record keeping of your organization.
- Strategic or Business Planning: Organizations could engage in strategic planning with a professional consultant to develop a strategic, communication, human resource or business plan.
- Community Planning: Examples include attending an event or conference where professional networks can be developed to encourage collaboration with other nonprofits or assessing needs in a community which your organization can serve.
- Technology Infrastructure: One-time costs for installation of a new donor tracking system or an update to your website that is capacity building in nature would be eligible. Annual memberships or subscription fees are not eligible costs.
- Executive Director Recruitment or Coaching: Hiring an executive coach to train for stronger organizational leadership is an example of an eligible project.
- Fundraising Plans: Eligible expenses include creating and implementing a fundraising or donor development plan.
Eligible projects
Applicants may select only one capacity building activity to be accomplished at a time with Strengthening Organizations grant funding, from the following categories:
- Board training and/or board related consultants
- Staff/volunteer training and leadership development
- Financial management (e.g., accounting software or consultation)
- Strategic or business planning (e.g., strategic planning, program evaluation, communications or business plans, policy creation, etc.)
- Community building (e.g., events/conferences to build professional networks, community needs assessment)
- Technology infrastructure (non-capital costs, e.g., donor tracking systems, website upgrades, etc.
- Executive director recruitment or coaching
- Fundraising plans (e.g., creating and implementing a fundraising or donor development plan)
Eligibility Criteria
Eligible applicants include 501(c)(3) nonprofit or equivalent organizations located in the state of Alaska. Equivalent organizations may include tribes, churches, or local government agencies and programs.
For more information, visit https://alaskacf.org/blog/funds/strengthening-organizations/