GrantStation Insider: August 20, 2020

COVID-19 | National | Regional | Federal | Tracks to Success | PathFinder | Online Education | Announcements | Subscribe

COVID-19 Related Funding
Opportunities Related to the COVID-19 Pandemic

Association of American Educators Foundation: COVID-19 Relief Scholarship and Grant Program
The Association of American Educators Foundation: COVID-19 Relief Scholarship and Grant Program provides awards of up to $500 for educators who have been affected by school closures or other impacts of the pandemic. Awards may be used for professional development costs related to obtaining new skills; costs related to the implementation of distance learning during school closures; materials, programs, or projects related to the reopening of schools after the pandemic; projects that integrate new ideas, knowledge, or resources into the classroom once schools reopen; or materials, programs, or professional development related to maximizing student learning and minimizing student learning loss. The application deadline is August 31, 2020.

The Enterline Foundation: COVID-19 Emergency Grant
The Enterline Foundation's COVID-19 Emergency Grant program provides emergency funding to support nonprofit organizations in the United States that serve the intellectually and developmentally disabled (IDD) community and are responding to the COVID-19 crisis. The purpose of this grant is to fund innovative, yet necessary, adaptations to service delivery to ensure the organization's long-term viability. Grants will range from $5,000 to $15,000. The application deadline is August 31, 2020.

Ohio Collaborative for Educating Remotely and Transforming Schools
The Ohio Collaborative for Educating Remotely and Transforming Schools request for proposals is offering grants to Ohio schools that are working to improve remote learning practices and outcomes. The priority is to support immediate and effective work that addresses inequitable circumstances related to delivering quality education remotely during the COVID-19 crisis. Grants of up to $125,000 will be provided. The application deadline is September 4, 2020.

For more grant opportunities, visit our COVID-19 Related Funding page.

National Funding
Opportunities Throughout the U.S.

Support for Community Groups Addressing Local Healthcare Issues
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: Community Solutions for Health Equity
Community Solutions for Health Equity, a program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, is focused on elevating the voices of communities of color and other communities left out of discussions when local healthcare systems in the United States and its territories are creating policy. Grants will focus on providing community-based organizations with the financial support to increase the ability to organize members, build partnership with other constituencies, and develop effective communications. The goal of this program is to make local healthcare systems more responsive to the needs of the community. This includes helping systems work with other stakeholders in the healthcare ecosystem—such as housing organizations, food security programs, childcare supports, etc.—to address consumer needs. Nine grants of $300,000 each over three years will be awarded. The Foundation is interested in engaging diverse groups and organizations, including those that have limited experience receiving grants of this size. The deadline for letters of intent is October 7, 2020; full proposals will be due January 18, 2021. Information about the call for proposals may be downloaded from the Foundation's website.

Fundraising Challenge for Community Improvement Projects
A Community Thrives
A Community Thrives, a grantmaking and crowdfunding program of USA TODAY NETWORK with funding from the Gannett Foundation, invests in community-building initiatives across the country. The program is a way to share community improvement ideas on the national stage, gain support through donations and local connections, and get a chance at receiving a portion of an additional $2,000,000 in grants to help projects succeed. During the campaign, nonprofit organizations have the chance to raise funds for their charities on their official A Community Thrives challenge page. At the end of the crowdfunding period, the Gannett Foundation will award grants ranging from $2,500 to $100,000 to selected organizations. Nonprofit organizations and municipal programs such as libraries and schools are encouraged to apply by September 11, 2020. To learn more about how to participate in the program visit the A Community Thrives website.

Grants Promote Basic Freedoms and Government Accountability
The Herb Block Foundation: Defending Basic Freedoms
The Herb Block Foundation is committed to defending the basic freedoms guaranteed all Americans, combating all forms of discrimination and prejudice, and improving the conditions of the poor and underprivileged. The Foundation's Defending Basic Freedoms grant program provides support to nonprofit organizations nationwide that seek to safeguard the basic freedoms guaranteed in the Bill of Rights, to help eliminate prejudice and discrimination, and to assist government agencies to be more accountable to the public. The Foundation also considers support for contemporary societal issues that may arise. Grants range from $5,000 to $25,000. Letters of inquiry must be submitted by October 6, 2020; invited full proposals will be due December 15, 2020. Visit the Foundation's website to review the application guidelines.

Book Donations for Rural Libraries Nationwide
The Pilcrow Foundation: Children's Book Project
The mission of the Pilcrow Foundation is to provide new, quality, hardcover children's books to rural public libraries across the United States. The Foundation's Children's Book Project supports libraries located in a rural area within the 50 United States that have a limited operating budget and an active children's department. Through the program, a library's local sponsors can contribute from $200 to $400, which the Foundation matches on a 2-to-1 ratio. Thus, a library can receive up to $1,200 worth of children's books. The Foundation provides a list of over 500 quality hardcover children's books from which grant recipients can select books best suited for their community. The Foundation accepts applications from independent rural public libraries and Native American Tribal libraries as well as libraries that are part of a county, regional, or cooperative system. The application deadlines are April 1 and October 1, annually. Visit the Foundation's website for more information about the Children's Book Project.

Regional Funding
Opportunities for Specific Areas

Funds for Historic Preservation Efforts in Hawaii
Historic Hawaii Foundation: Historic Preservation Grants
Historic Hawaii Foundation (HHF) encourages the preservation of historic buildings, sites, and communities relating to the history of Hawaii. HHF's Historic Preservation Grants support historic preservation as a mechanism for building community, enhancing Hawaii's sense of place, and improving societal relationships. Nonprofit organizations and public agencies throughout the state may request grants ranging from $10,000 to $100,000 for rehabilitation or restoration construction projects that preserve the character-defining features of a historic building or site. Following completion of the preservation project, the site or building should be used for a public or community purpose. Grant requests for projects on neighbor islands and in rural communities are strongly encouraged. Requests are reviewed three times per year; the upcoming application deadline is October 1, 2020. Visit the HHF website to download the Historic Preservation Grants application form.

Grants Benefit Vermont Youth-Serving Organizations
The George W. Mergens Foundation
The George W. Mergens Foundation supports nonprofit organizations that serve the youth of Vermont. The goal of the Foundation is to foster a sense of well-being, curiosity, and empowerment in the lives of youth so that they are best equipped to meet the challenges of the future. The Foundation's grant categories include the following: Education and Training, Enrichment Activities, Recreation, and Health and Wellness. Youth-serving nonprofit organizations based in Vermont may submit grant applications throughout the year. Visit the Foundation's website to take the eligibility quiz and review the FAQs before submitting an application.

Support for Nonprofit Organizations in Washington State
Safeco Insurance Fund
The Safeco Insurance Fund supports nonprofit organizations that serve the residents of the state of Washington. The Fund's grants program focuses on educational opportunity for underprivileged youth; ensuring security through life-saving basic services to homeless men, women, and children; and promoting accessibility for individuals of all abilities. Grants are provided for operating and program support. Requests for grants may be submitted throughout the year. Visit the Safeco website to learn more about the Fund's focus areas and application procedure.

Local Organizations in Company Communities Funded
Duke Energy Foundation: Local Impact Grants
The Duke Energy Foundation seeks to improve the quality of life in communities served by the company in the Carolinas, Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, and Tennessee. The Foundation provides Local Impact Grants of up to $10,000 to nonprofit organizations whose programs focus on one of the Foundation's investment priorities: K-12 Education, Workforce, Nature, and State Strategic Impact. In addition, Power for Students Grants work to improve extracurricular activities and programs for students in underserved communities. Applications for Local Impact Grants and Power for Students Grants may be submitted throughout the year. Visit the Foundation's website to review the funding guidelines and take the online eligibility quiz.

Federal Funding
Opportunities from the U.S. Government

Grants Available for Medical Reserve Corps Units
Department of Health and Human Services
The Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) Small Grant Program seeks to build the capabilities of MRC units to respond to and meet their communities' public health and medical needs in emergencies. Priorities include medical screening and care in emergencies; points of dispensing, mass vaccination, and other mass dispensing efforts; the use of MRC units outside of local jurisdictions, for example, across city or county lines; and training community members to respond. The application deadline is September 21, 2020.

Program Strengthens Libraries
Institute of Museum and Library Services
The National Leadership Grants for Libraries program supports projects that enhance the quality of library and archive services nationwide by advancing theory and practice. Successful proposals will generate results such as new tools, research findings, models, services, practices, or collaborative approaches that will be widely used, adapted, scaled, or replicated to extend the benefits of federal investment. Project categories include lifelong learning, community catalysts, and national digital infrastructures and initiatives. Phase I applications are due October 2, 2020. The deadline for invited Phase II applications is March 26, 2021.

Tracks to Success
Feature articles focused on a particular grantmaker or philanthropic trend.

What Is a Qualified Charitable Distribution?

How to make the most of the fastest-growing type of philanthropy
by Patrick Schmitt and Simone Kovacs
Right now, Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs) from IRA accounts are the fastest growing area of philanthropy. From 2017 to 2019, nonprofits saw an almost 3X growth in the number of QCD gifts they received from donors.

But if you're new to this powerful form of giving, you might be wondering what a "QCD" is. A QCD, also known as an IRA charitable rollover, is money that donors can give directly from their IRA accounts to your nonprofit. Why are QCD gifts on the rise? How have they changed during COVID-19? And how can your nonprofit tap into these gifts?

PathFinder: Featured Resource
A library of quality resources designed to help you develop your career path as a grants professional.

Review Your Existing Data During COVID-19
During the current pandemic, organizations are looking for useful data to help make tough decisions and communicate well with staff, volunteers, partners, and funders. Inspiring Impact's tool "Review Your Existing Data During COVID-19" is a worksheet that outlines a step-by-step process to help decide what information an organization does or does not have about its people, what information is useful at the moment, and what information is missing and needed right now to make an effective decision.

Upcoming Online Education Trainings
Live Webinars

Unless otherwise noted, all Online Education Trainings are webinars,
are 90 minutes in duration, and are scheduled to begin at 2 PM Eastern Time.

LIVE Workshop: Great Graphs—Tell Your Nonprofit's Story With Engaging Data Visualization
Are your takeaway findings getting lost? Bad graphs can slow down the viewer's comprehension, increase cognitive load, and fail to inform decision-making processes. Dusty shelf reports aren't inevitable. With intentional editing, you can design visualizations that inform and inspire. Data visualization isn't supposed to feel daunting. In this 90-minute live webinar, Ann K. Emery will walk you through a step-by-step design process so you can apply critical thinking skills to your own projects. You'll learn how to customize your visualization for your audience, choose the right chart for your message, go beyond the bar chart, declutter your visuals so that the viewer's attention is focused on the data, reinforce your branding with custom color palettes and typography, increase accessibility by ensuring that your visuals are legible for people with color vision deficiencies, and explain your takeaway findings with explicit titles and annotations. Who said data has to be boring? The webinar will be held on Wednesday, August 26, 2020.

Strategic Planning 101 (NEW)
This course offers a step-by-step guide on how to develop a strategic plan for a nonprofit organization. Discover how to pull the right team together, brainstorm effectively, develop the vision, and articulate a plan that can be implemented over time. Mindy Muller, President/CEO of Community Development Professionals, LLC, will review the key concepts of external and internal vision, mission, and core values and how those concepts set the foundation for identifying activities for the next three to five years. Participants will be challenged to develop action items to apply learned concepts within their respective organizations. During this webinar, participants will 1) understand the need for planning for long-term sustainability; 2) identify concepts of vision, mission, core values, and strategic plan and application toward long-term growth and sustainability; 3) acquire knowledge of methodology to develop a long-term strategy for organization; and 4) recognize the value of the planning team and how to convene the right team for the organization. The webinar will be held on Thursday, August 27, 2020.

FREE Tour of the GrantStation Website
Join Jeremy Smith, Communications and Technology Director, and Kerry Glauser, Research Specialist, for a quick tour of the GrantStation website. This tour will cover all of the features in GrantStation.com, including navigation, search interfaces, and charitable database search criteria. This tour will provide tips on the most effective way to use all of the valuable resources the website offers, including the extensive funder databases that can help you identify the grantmakers most likely to fund your programs or projects. By using GrantStation's databases and resource tools, you can begin to develop a successful grantseeking strategy for the next 12 to 18 months. The webinar will be held on Thursday, September 10, 2020.

GrantStation Announcements
The latest updates from GrantStation.

Funding Alerts
Want to stay on top of upcoming deadlines? Check out the weekly Funding Alerts on the GrantStation homepage.

Information contained in the GrantStation Insider may not be
posted, reprinted, redistributed, or sold without permission.

Editor: Julie Kaufman
Copy Editor: Ashlyn Simmons
Contributing Writer: Kevin Peters