Grant Process Frequently Asked Questions
In 2022, we partnered with Barnes Dennig to bring “Financial Management 101 for NFP Leaders Who Do It All”. You can find the recording and slides as well as a Q&A wiki on Barnes Dennig’s website.
We are looking for the metrics used for determining the level of achievement of goals/objections and the methods used to measure those metrics and how you define success. We also want to understand how the people served will be involved in the evaluation process as well as how the results will be used and disseminated.
For a detailed timeline of the entire Impact 100 grant cycle, please see the timeline sidebar on the Application Process page.
– Agency requested less than $100,000.
– More than one application came from an organization.
– Service is redundant because it is offered by other agencies.
– Program proposed or agency is not viable or transformational.
It is our policy to not give direct feedback. Committee members change every year so advice other than general information presented on our website or at our Information Session for nonprofits would be misleading.
Yes, if you meet all the criteria for consideration. We have had start-up organizations receive Impact 100 funding. You may want to consider collaborating with another nonprofit to have a greater impact.
No, each organization may submit only one grant application each year.
No, every agency must make that decision independently.
You may apply again the following year.
When a nonprofit is awarded a grant, then the organization must wait three years before reapplying to Impact 100 for another grant. The 3 year period for grant recipients to re-apply begins the year that the grant is awarded no matter if the grant money is distributed lump sum or via installment payments according to the terms of the grant agreement.
(Example: Nonprofit X received grant in 2018. Nonprofit X would be able to re-apply for the 2022 grant cycle. Year 1 = 19, Year 2 = 20, Year 3 = 21).
It is not our intention to try to replicate services that are provided by the government such as, Food Stamps, WIC, and Medicaid.
When we do site visits, we are interested in all this information; however, in the initial steps of our review of the applications, these things are not taken into account so we will not accept these with the original application.
Impact 100 invests the grant money based on the project/program needs in installment payments.
The period of time the money must be spent correlates directly with the project’s intended implementation timeline, but must not exceed three years. Our milestone payment policy requires that the recipient provide Impact 100 with regular interim reports detailing the progress of both the project and its budget while milestone payments are being received.
What are the 10 counties from which Impact 100 will accept Letters of Intent and Grant Applications?
Indiana – Dearborn
Kentucky – Boone, Campbell, Kenton
Ohio – Adams, Brown, Butler, Clermont, Hamilton, Warren
Yes. Collaborating proposals should meet the following criteria:
a) Two or more 501(c)(3) or 509(a) nonprofit organizations;
b) Be aware and submit letters of support for the collaboration (Common Grant Application stage)
c) Engage one of the partners as a lead fiscal agent through which all Impact 100 business is conducted.
If a project application is a multi-agency collaboration, Impact 100 requires financial information from all collaborating partners during the “Grant Application” stage of our process. Please note each partner should submit complete financial data for three years as outlined in the grant application checklist.
Yes! Nonprofits may spread out their award, and in fact it is preferred (but not required). The distribution timetable does not impact your likelihood of receiving a grant one way or another.
No, Impact 100 grants are meant to be transformational. While the definition of transformational varies among members, we will not fund an organization initiative unless it expands programming or delivers services in a new way. An appropriate funding request for Impact 100 would be for services performed in a new way (innovation), more services of the same kind provided more often to their current population (deepening), or expanding their current service to a new population (expansion). Impact 100 would expect the budget to reflect such, which could include additional staff & their resultant operating costs or other capital requests. Please also see FAQ on “new impacts.”
Because grant finalists are put forth for membership voting without focus area designation (effective 2015), this information is not available publicly.
Our current membership structure allows women to either join as a full member by donating $1,000, contributing $500 (and consequently receiving a half vote at the Annual Awards Celebration), or being selected for the Young Philanthropist Program.
We also welcome “Friends of Impact 100” and are thrilled when an individual or a foundation wants to help us with our annual expenses (which are held to a minimum since we are an “all-volunteer board.”). Although focus area committees are reserved for Impact 100 members, we welcome volunteers on operating committees such as marketing, PR, web development, nonprofit outreach, and communication.
Impact 100 welcomes LOI’s that are programmatic, capital, start-up, or technical assistance from valid 501(c)3 or 509(a) organizations. We do not fund overhead requests. Our funding cannot be used to advance faith-based programs (e.g. build a chapel) but can be used by a faith-based organization to address social issues.
All grants are for $100,000. Each time we accumulate 100 donations of $1,000, we are able to grant a $100,000 award.
Yes! Your Letter of Intent and/or Grant Application will be emailed to the Primary Contact and Executive Director contact information provided in the application.
A Wall Street Journal article featured a chart that revealed 52% of nonprofits in the United States have a Health & Welfare concentration and 19% are focused on Education. It is predictable that we would see a clustering of applications in those same categories; however, we have had grant recipients in every focus area.
Our members are advised to look at the impact of a request. That includes both breadth and depth. What resonates with one committee may not resonate with another. We ask you to speak from the heart (and back it up with data) what the true impact will be to those you serve.
Yes. For the Letter of Intent, Impact 100 is interested in your project budget and even though it is not officially approved, it must still be a realistic budget. Please note that the final question on the LOI asks you to confirm that your Executive Director and/or Board President is aware of the application. For the Grant Application, the budget must include realistic quotes.
Impact 100 encourages all types of applications and if your program will change lives, we encourage you to submit it for consideration. Our committees have full control over who they choose as their finalist. See also Impact 100’s funding of overhead connected to new, expansion, and/or deepening of services.
Impact 100 prides itself on its ability to maintain a level playing field amongst all applicants. In addition, due to the ever-changing makeup of membership and committee involvement, any advice given might actually be invalid and misleading into the next year. Therefore we do not offer subjective feedback. Nonprofits are invited to attend information sessions hosted at the beginning of each grant cycle.
The best way to answer this question is to ask you to investigate this with your staff. We are not well versed enough to answer specific questions that pertain to the over 7,700 nonprofits in the Tri-State region. But please note, only one application per 501(c)3 is allowed in any given year with the exception of group ruling. In these instances, further documentation might be requested.
We have, many times. If you review our website (See Our Impact), you’ll see that Impact 100 was the catalyst for many capital programs.
Any questions or comments regarding the grant application process are welcome. Please contact us at grants@impact100.org or npcoordinator@impact100.org or Administration@Impact100.org
(Applicable for the Common Grant stage of the application process)
Impact 100.
We recommend that you connect with an American Fundraising Professional or The Grant Professionals Association. We also suggest listening to the presentation provided by GrantsPlus. A link can be found on our website under “Apply for Grants”.