Funding Opportunities - Charles Stewart Mott Foundation

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Neighborhood Networks provides potential funding sources to help centers develop and improve programs and services. Featured here is a funding opportunity from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation.

The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation is a private, grantmaking foundation based in Flint, Michigan. Established in 1926, the foundation seeks to enhance the capacity of individuals, families, or institutions at the local level and beyond. In 2009, the foundation awarded 469 grants, totaling more than $109 million.

Program Areas: The foundation seeks to fulfill its mission of supporting efforts that promote a just, equitable, and sustainable society by supporting four program areas. The area most relevant to Neighborhood Networks centers is Pathways Out of Poverty. In 2009, the foundation awarded more than $34 million in Pathways Out of Poverty grants to 162 organizations. Through this program area, the foundation funds programs and organizations that identify, test, and help sustain pathways out of poverty for low-income people and communities. It does this by:

Improving Community Education. The foundation strives to ensure that community education serves as a pathway out of poverty for children in low-income communities. The foundation does this by funding:   Community-Driven Reform. Effective community-driven reform strategies that increase student achievement across entire school districts and at the state or regional level.   Educational Opportunities for Vulnerable Youth. Policies and practices that ensure that vulnerable youth are prepared for college and careers.   Learning Beyond the Classroom. High-quality learning beyond the classroom initiatives that increase student success by providing students with multiple ways of learning, anchored to high standards and aligned with educational resources throughout a community.

Expanding Economic Opportunity. The foundation seeks to expand opportunity for those in, or at risk of, persistent poverty by promoting policies and programs that increase income and assets, help people connect to the labor market, and enable them to advance into better-quality, higher-paying jobs. The foundation achieves this by funding programs aimed at:   Income Security. A social safety net that augments families' efforts to escape poverty.   Reducing Barriers to Employment. Innovative strategies that enable low-skill, low-income job seekers to enter the labor market.   Retention and Wage Progression. Workforce development policies and practices that help low-income workers stay in the labor market and increase their earnings over time.

Target Area: National.

Eligibility: The Mott Foundation makes grants in the United States to tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organizations. The foundation observes the following limitations: " No grants or loans to individuals.

	No grants (except in the Flint area) for capital development, research, project replication, or endowment, unless these activities grow out of work already being funded by Mott.
	No grants for religious activities or programs serving specific religious groups or denominations. However, faith-based organizations may submit inquiries if the project falls within our guidelines and serves a broad segment of the population.
	No grants (except in the Flint area) for local projects unless they are part of a Mott-planned national demonstration or network of grants.
	No grants for projects that duplicate, or significantly overlap, the work of federal, state, or local governmental agencies.
	Film and video projects, books, scholarships, and fellowships rarely are funded.

Both general-purpose and project-specific requests are considered. In addition, both single- and multi-year proposals are acceptable.

Award Amount: The median grant size is in the $100,000 range. The majority of the foundation's grants are between $15,000 and $250,000 annually.

Application Process: All prospective applicants should review the mission, program areas, geographic range, and available funding for the foundation's programs before making initial contact. The foundation's grantmaking is carried out in three ways:

	The foundation requests proposals from organizations with which it has been in contact.
	The foundation sends out occasional requests for proposals (RFPs) that address a specific issue or area of interest.
	The foundation accepts unsolicited requests for projects that fall within its program priorities and guidelines.

Because available funding is limited, letters of inquiry are strongly preferred for unsolicited ideas or projects. The letter should describe the purpose and objectives of the project, general methodology, and total cost of the project. The foundation's Web site includes an online letter of inquiry tool. A letter of inquiry enables the foundation program staff to determine the relevance of the proposed project to the foundation's programs and to provide advice on whether to submit a full proposal.

Applicants may submit a letter of inquiry electronically by accessing the online letter of inquiry form.

Applicants may also mail a letter of inquiry or a formal proposal. Please mark the envelope LETTER OF INQUIRY or GRANT PROPOSAL and mail to:

Office of Proposal Entry
C.S. Mott Foundation
Mott Foundation Building
503 S. Saginaw St., Suite 1200
Flint, MI 48502-1851

If a letter of inquiry receives a favorable response, the formal proposal should include:

	A cover letter, detailing the amount of money requested and the grant period, signed by the individual responsible for signing grant contracts on behalf of the grant applicant.
	A project description, including an explanation of why the project is needed, who will be served and what will be accomplished.
	A documented line-item expense budget and a revenue budget, showing all projected sources of funds for the project over the proposed grant period. (A budget template is available in the foundation's Grants Resource section on its Web site.)
	A plan for financial and programmatic sustainability of the project.
	A plan for evaluation and dissemination of the project's results.
	Information about the organization seeking funds, including names and titles for key staff, names and professional affiliations for members of the board of directors, legal classification, history, and recent accomplishments. For U.S. organizations, proof of tax-exempt 501(c)(3) status by the Internal Revenue Service is required.

Applicants must submit copies of their organization's published annual report and audited financial statements before a grant is made. If these are not available, a U.S. organization will be required to submit a copy of its latest IRS Form 990 return.

Videotapes should not be included with the application as they will not be returned.

Deadline: Proposals should be submitted at least four months before the start of the proposed grant period. Program budgets are allocated on a calendar-year basis. Beginning in the fourth quarter of each year, staff will earmark funds for projects to be recommended for the next calendar year. Staff must finalize all grant recommendations for any calendar year by August 31 of that year. Applications are accepted year-round, but those received between September 1 and December 31 will be considered only for the following calendar year.

Requests are reviewed by program and compliance staff, and recommendations are forwarded to senior management. A proposal may be approved at the management level by delegated authority throughout the year or referred to our Board of Trustees, which meets quarterly, for action.

Contact: For more information, contact:

Charles Stewart Mott Foundation
Mott Foundation Building
503 S. Saginaw Street, Suite 1200
Flint, MI 48502-1851
(810) 238-5651