grant guidelines


The Community Foundation of Dunn County’s mission is to connect people who care with causes that matter to enrich the quality of life in Dunn County, now and for future generations. Competitive grants are available to non-profit organizations and community groups for projects or programs that fulfill a community need in such areas as health, the arts, culture, heritage, the environment, recreation, education, humanitarian needs and other civic initiatives. These grants are provided by CFDC funds created by local families, philanthropists, corporations and private foundations for the betterment of Dunn County and to enrich the lives of those who live here.

The Community Foundation awards community grant funding through two competitive granting cycles each year, with deadlines on February 1 and August 1 annually. The average grant amount is $2,500 with typical award amounts ranging from $500 to $5,000, totaling approximately $70,000 or more in grant awards annually. For each grant cycle, an average of 20 applications are submitted, with 12-15 organizations receiving a grant for full or partial funding.

To save and or print the guidelines, download the PDF file here:  CFDC Grant Guidelines PDF

ELIGIBILITY

The Foundation welcomes grant requests from nonprofit organizations and civic groups that serve Dunn
County citizens. Eligible entities include:

  • Independent nonprofit organizations
  • Charitable organizations classified as 501(c)(3) under the Internal Revenue Code
  • Local units of state or national organizations
  • Groups of individuals or clubs organized to sponsor a charitable project

The Foundation will not normally make grants to private non-operating foundations. Grants may also be
made to units of government, including Native American tribal governments, for public purposes. Organizations must serve residents of the Foundation’s service area. Preference will be given to applications which have the potential to impact a broad range of Dunn County area residents. Applications should detail measurable and achievable outcomes and demonstrate other sources of support, collaboration and/or cooperation. Applications should also address the sustainability of the proposed
program or project for which funding is desired.

Evaluation criteria include but are not limited to the overall merit of the project, the ability of the organization to successfully complete the project, the clarity and measurability of the project’s goal, the feasibility of the time frame given for completion of the project and the number of people served.

RESTRICTIONS & LIMITATIONS

The Community Grant program is not a source of ongoing annual funding for an organization. Large, multi-year awards are not typically offered. \

The Foundation typically does not fund:

  • Repeat grants to the same project on an open-ended basis
  • Annual fundraising campaigns
  • Routine operating expenses
  • Religious or sectarian activities
  • Political activities
  • Existing obligations or debts/liabilities
  • Grants to individuals
  • Endowment funds
  • Travel for groups such as school classes, clubs or sports teams

Limitations

Units of Government (city, county, township, etc.): The Foundation does occasionally fund units of
government whose proposal extends beyond the traditional governmental functions that impact the
broader community or when the request for support is judged to be an effective means to address a
priority issue.

Schools: The Foundation will consider funding for public, charter and private/parochial Pre-K-12
schools and post-secondary educational institutions, when the request for support is judged to be an
effective means to address a priority issue, particularly when the issue addresses the needs of a substantial
or underserved portion of the population.

Faith-Based Funding: Requests will be considered from individual faith-based organizations only if the
program, services or initiatives do not promote that specific journey of faith or include activities such as
religious worship, instruction or preaching.

Capital Campaigns: Lower priority is given to capital campaigns for which a typical community grant
will have minimal impact. Capital campaigns for college campuses or medical centers are low priority
unless the project will have a direct impact by hosting community-based programs or providing
significant public access to meeting spaces and community services.

Indirect Costs: The Foundation does not typically fund indirect costs through the competitive
grantmaking process but will consider indirect costs of up to fifteen percent (15%) of a total grant
request. All indirect costs must be listed in the grant Project Budget in the grant application.

GRANT INITIATIVES

Community Grants enable nonprofits and charitable groups to better serve their local communities. In
setting priorities for making grants, we consider the needs of the Dunn County area, the programs of other
funding agencies, and our available resources. Projects which are supported generally fall under one of
the following broad categories:

Community Health & Wellbeing

Health and wellness are at the heart of our quality of life. That’s why the Community Foundation of Dunn
County invests in a spectrum of health programs and projects, mainly through the Healthy Futures Fund,
which is an endowed fund formerly managed by the Menomonie Health Foundation. These funds support
health-related initiatives that benefit the service area of the Red Cedar
Medical Center – Mayo Health System through a variety of initiatives that:

  • Enhance the health status of the community
  • Promote health education and healthy lifestyle choices for community residents
  • Improve community-based health services that includes oral, mental, and behavioral health.
  • Improve and expand healthcare delivery and integrate prevention efforts
  • Address human needs such as food security, housing, and safety
  • Improve intervention efforts and increase self-sufficiency of at-risk populations

Program Development or Expansion

Nonprofits play a vital role in providing opportunities and public services within the communities they
serve. Community grant funding can help organizations offer new, innovative programs to better meet
the changing needs of the community through projects or activities that:

  • Take an imaginative and innovative approach to deepen impact
  • Serve a broad and wide range of Dunn County citizens
  • Solve critical local problems or address critical local needs
  • Can be sustained without continued funding from the Community Foundation
  • Encourage collaboration and cooperation among charities and does not duplicate services
  • Have measurable impact on the community that can be evaluated and shared

Capacity Building

When used strategically, grant awards can increase an organization’s sustainability so it can better serve
the community today and into the future. It is not meant to simply sustain day-to-day activity – it is
meant to help an organization reach a new level of operating effectiveness. Capacity building grants are
broad and can support various improvement efforts to:

  • Form new partnerships or collaborations to improve services or eliminate duplication
  • Strengthen governance, leadership or staff expertise
  • Refine and improve communications and outreach
  • Improve volunteer recruitment, training and engagement
  • Acquire or improve impact measurement tools and evaluation capacity
  • Secure equipment/assets that allow the organization to operate more efficiently and effective