---

Grants Process and Timetable

---

Today's Date:  

---

MCCF offers one competitive grant cycle per year.
Timetable for the 2010 grant cycle

Middlesex County Community Foundation
is accepting Funding LOI Applications
July 16, 2010 to September 10, 2010

Middlesex County Community Foundation is now using an application form for “Letters of Intent” for the 2010-2011 Competitive Grants program.

The application is a PDF file and can be completed using Adobe Reader.
If you do not have Adobe Reader, you can download the program here.

PLEASE READ ALL INSTRUCTIONS BEFORE COMPLETING THE APPLICATION!

How To Save The Application:
	When you open the Application PDF file on our website,
		Click File,
		Click Save As,
		Save to your computer. This will allow you to complete the application
		electronically, save your work, and print your application.

If you are requesting funding for more than one program,
an individual application must be submitted for each.

TIPS For Completing The Application:
	Complete all fields in the application.
	Certain fields require a specific selection from a drop down box or have a
	character limit:
		Question V requires a selection from the drop-down menus initiated by
		clicking the arrows on the right of each response block;
		Question VII, please select only those responses served by the
		program/project for which you are requesting funding;
		Questions IXa, IXb, X, and XI have maximum character limits:
			Maximum character limits include letters, numbers and spaces
			the form will not allow further text to be entered into the field when
			you reach the maximum character limit;
			we recommend you draft your responses in your document
			program (such as Microsoft Word) which allows you to calculate the
			characters within a piece of text;
			text can then be copied from a document program and pasted
			into the field.
	Final Applications for submission must be signed, stapled, and submitted
	as hard-copy.
		Please provide a physical signature to your original application form;
		Be sure to include one original and seventeen (17) copies.

Help Us Speed Processing and Reduce Waste:
Grant applications and attachments should be copied double-sided, whenever possible, and submitted without covers, folders or other packaging or collateral.

Easy Checklist of What to Include in Your Submission Packet:

ITEM	ONE ORIGINAL	17 COPIES
Completed Letter of Intent Application Form, printed and signed.
Current Operating Budget: one-page summary of the organization’s current operating budget.
Project Budget Summary: include amount requested, anticipated sources of income, and expenses for this project.
Nonprofit Documentation: one copy of your 501(c)(3) determination letter or evidence of 170(c)(1).
Collaborations between two or more agencies must include a Letter of Support from the executives of the partnering organizations.
School-based Projects must include a Letter of Support from the principal(s) of the participating school(s).

All Submissions must be received at the Foundation Office
by Friday, September 10, 2010 at 4:00 PM.

Interim status reports or final evaluations from previous MCCF grants
are required prior to September 10th.

Jump to the Application Now

Important Information:
	Grants are awarded to 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organizations and 170(c)(1)
	governmental agencies serving the various communities of Middlesex County.
	Grants will be awarded to organizations that provide positive impact on the
	community within the focus areas identified below and will be a minimum of
	$500.
	Applications from previous grantees are welcome; continued funding will be
	considered by the Grants Committee, but is not guaranteed.
	The Community Foundation is instituting a “three-year-grant/one-year-off”
	requirement Beginning with grants awarded during the 2009-2010
	Competitive Grants Cycle; agencies receiving grant awards for three
	consecutive years will not be eligible to a grant award in the fourth year.

Letters may be mailed to the Middlesex County Community Foundation, 211 South Main Street, Middletown, CT 06457, or delivered to the Foundation Office in Citizens Bank, Ground Floor, 211 South Main Street, Middletown but must be received by the 4 PM deadline on September 10th. All Letters of Intent will be acknowledged.

Organizations selected to submit a full proposal will be notified by mid-October. Notification of final grant decisions will be made by December 31, 2010 with grant awards distributed in 2011.

---

The Foundation is particularly looking for grants that add value to, and have a positive impact on, the health and vitality of the Middlesex County community. Grant proposals should address a need within the focus area and demonstrate impact on the organization, project, community or persons served. The Foundation seeks Letters of Intent [and proposals, when requested] for projects that possess some of the following elements:
	address a documented need or concern of the focus area;
	recognize and build on a community’s or organization’s strengths and assets;
	build the capacity of community organizations and/or individuals to help
	themselves over the long term;
	foster cooperative approaches to community issues through collaborations
	based on shared visions and mutual responsibility; and
	serve as a catalyst for attracting other resources, such as matching gifts;
	build infrastructure within the organization in order to meet its mission.

---

Normally, the Foundation will not award grants to:
		endowments
		capital campaigns
		building programs
		fund debt reduction
		lobbying
		individuals
		political organizations and campaigns

---

FOCUS AREAS have been established by donors and the Foundation’s Board of Directors.  Grants are available across the various focus areas which include:
1.	Animal Welfare: Grants to this focus area provide for the needs (food, health
	and shelter), services (training, rescue and adoption) and educational
	programs provided by organizations dedicated to helping animals and their
	human friends.
2.	Arts: Grants will help enrich the county’s quality of life with participatory and/or
	audience-oriented artistic activities. Grants may include, but are not limited to,
	special projects, productions or activities.
3.	Education: Education is an essential part of the overall vitality of the
	community.  Grants are awarded to support opportunities both within and
	outside the formal education system to promote learning at any age, creating
	possibilities for self-sufficiency, personal growth and discovery, and better
	preparing our workforce for the future.
4.	Environment: Grants to this focus area will enhance, protect or increase
	appreciation for the quality of the environment, including botanical
	beautification, of a specific area, the Connecticut River Estuary or the whole
	of Middlesex County.
5.	Heritage Enhancement: Grants to this focus area will increase public
	understanding of the rich heritage of communities in our county. Desirable
	projects would help the public develop a better sense of where we came from
	and broaden appreciation of our local stories and history.
6.	Human Services: Grants to this focus area provide for basic human needs
	(food, clothing and shelter), and opportunities for self-improvement for
	persons in need.
7.	Women and Girls: The Foundation’s Fund for Women and Girls Committee is
	seeking proposals that empower women and girls to be self reliant and to
	reach their potential. Programs should be models in providing meaningful
	opportunities and services to women and girls.

Questions?
Call Thayer Talbott at 860-347-0025 x203
or email Thayer@MiddlesexCountyCF.org.

---

We strongly encourage you to take time to review all the
information on this page before completing the application.

2010 MCCF LOI Application Information (PDF) 2010 MCCF LOI Application (PDF)

Back to Important Information

---

Adobe Reader software must be installed on your computer to open PDF files.
If you don't have it, you can click here and download it for free.

---