The Valley Community Foundation 2011 grant season has opened — and applications to pay for anything from boiler malfunctions to small neighborhood events for non-profits will be welcomed.
“We want to assure you there is a place for everyone in our program,” Carla Sullivan, community relations officer for the Valley Community Foundation, told a group of about 30 representatives from Valley non-profits.
Sullivan and foundation President James Cohen discussed the foundation’s “brave new world of grant making” during an information session at the Derby Public Library Thursday evening.
Grant applications to the Valley Community Foundation will be handled a little differently this year, after the group signed a new seven-year agreement with the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven in September.
One of the new types of grants available are “revolving response” grants, which will be awarded on a quarterly basis to help Valley non-profits, including requests for emergency funding.
“Let’s say the boiler blows up and you have an immediate need,” Sullivan said. “This is what is designed to respond to those immediate needs and requests.”
Background
The Valley foundation is affiliated the New Haven foundation.
The new agreement gives more decision-making power to the Valley Community Foundation for grants awarded to groups serving the lower Naugatuck Valley.
That includes money distributed from the Gates Fund, a trust named for the wealthy Derby Gates family in 1938.
Click here to read a past article about the new agreement.
The Valley Community Foundation has been awarding grants since 2007. Cohen said in that time, the foundation has doubled the number of funds it has.
It has also doubled the amount of money it distributes — from $257,000 in 2007 to $530,000 $874,000 in 2010. This year, Cohen said, the group will give out more than $1 million.
Click here to read an article about the latest grants awarded by the foundation.
New Process
Applicants for grants will have one application process for both the Valley Community Foundation and Community Foundation for Greater New Haven grants.
Those applications will be divided into four groups, based on type.
- Small Grants: From $100 to $3,000, awarded to small or all-volunteer organizations
- Revolving Response Grants: From $200 to $5,000, these grants will support non-profits, including requests for emergency needs. The grants will be awarded on a quarterly basis.
- Sponsorships: Up to $2,500, these grants are used for events hosted by non-profits in the Valley.
- Responsive Grants: Grants to help Valley non-profits with general operating expenses or specific projects or programs. Dollar mounts vary, and can be awarded over more than one year.
The foundation also gives out grants through “donor advised” funds, which are awarded based on the donor’s interests.
To apply and to find out more about the funds and grants, visit the foundation’s website at www.valleyfoundation.org.
