PHOENIXVILLE COMMUNITY HEALTH FOUNDATION

Grant Distribution Guidelines | Grant Proposal Guidelines | Grant Guidelines and Forms

2010-2011 GRANT REQUEST DEADLINES
This fiscal year there will be THREE [3] grant making meetings.
These deadlines are:
7/16/2010 FOR September 2010
11/19/2010 for January 2011
2/18/2011 for April 2011

GRANT DISTRIBUTION GUIDELINES

Requests for funding support generally far exceed the funds available. For this reason, criteria have been established to assist the Directors and staff in deciding where the funds may be most effectively employed for the betterment of the community.

For its grant making program, the Foundation has adopted the same geographical area as served by the Phoenixville Hospital. This area is defined as follows:

CHESTER COUNTY

Charlestown Township		Phoenixville Borough
East Coventry Township		Schuylkill Township
East Nantmeal Township		Spring City Borough
East Vincent Township		South Coventry Township
East Pikeland Township		West Vincent Township
North Coventry Township		West Pikeland Township

MONTGOMERY COUNTY

Collegeville Borough		Royersford Borough
Limerick Township		Trappe Borough
Lower Pottsgrove Township		Upper Providence Township
Lower Providence Township

The impact of the Foundation’s grant making will be judged not only by the financial resources given to the community organizations, but also by the innovative and collaborative relationships the Foundation has with its grant recipients and the impact that the grants have had on the community-at-large.

2010-2011 FUNDING PRIORITIES

In an effort to deal efficiently and effectively with the large volume of requests presented to the Foundation, the Directors have established funding priorities. Consequently, grants generally are made within the following categories:

Level 1 - 55%
Direct Access to Healthcare

Level 2 - 35%
Access to Health & Human Services

Level 3 - 10%
Civic/Social/Economic/Technical Assistance

REQUEST PROCEDURES

All organizations [even those previously funded through the Foundation] interested in submitting a grant request must call or visit the Foundation’s office to discuss their funding proposal with Foundation staff. A grant request will be accepted if the proposed initiative fits within the Foundation’s guidelines.

The Grant Request Form and Proposal Budget Form must be completed and sent with the proposal. Proposals should be written according to the Grant Proposal Guidelines and submitted with the following attachments:

• IRS Section 501[c][3] Tax Determination Letter
• Pennsylvania Charitable Organizations Bureau Registration Certificate
• Current Annual Report
• Article of Incorporation and by-laws [one time only]
• List of current Board of Directors – with professional affiliation
• Current IRS Form 990
• Current independent financial audit and management letter
• Current operating budget
• List of public/private funding sources during the past fiscal year
• Strategic Plan
• Statement of no change in tax-exemption with the IRS certified by the Board Chairman/President

GRANTMAKING CONSIDERATIONS

For the 2010-2011 year the Foundation Board of Directors has made clear the annual grant-making distribution will , once again, be reduced due to the economic environment. Although the Foundation has opened up grant consideration for new organizations and Level Three services, the Board will give priority to funding those proposals with the most positive and widest community impact.

Likewise, with regard to types of grants and organizations supported, the Directors, as a rule, do not make awards for:

Direct scholarship support to individuals
Purchase of tickets or advertising for benefit purposes
Coverage of continuing operating deficits
Document publication
Pass-through grant support through a third party
Groups such as fraternal organizations, political parties or candidates, veterans, labor or local civic groups, and groups engaged in influencing legislation.

REVIEW PROCESS

The Board of Directors will meet three times during the 2010-2011 year: September 2010, January 2011 & April 2011

The Foundation accepts proposals year round and requests are generally addressed at the next available Board meeting.

The Foundation staff puts forth its best effort to prepare grant requests as comprehensively as possible for review at an upcoming Board meeting. At staff’s discretion, a site visit may be requested as part of the proposal evaluation process. Staff will contact the requesting organization during the proposal analysis process if it has any questions to be answered.

GRANT AWARD PROCEDURES

Upon making a grant, the staff, on behalf of the Board of Directors, will send a grant award packet to the grantee containing the following items:

• Grant Award Letter indicating the Board’s positive response to the request and the amount awarded
• Grant Agreement to be signed and returned promptly to the Foundation by the grantee. The Grant Agreement outlines the mutual responsibilities of both the grantor and the grantee. When the grantee returns a signed original Grant Agreement to the Foundation, the grant award check will be sent promptly to the grantee.
• Guidelines for Preparing Progress Reports. The Foundation requires grantees to file interim [six months] and a final report [twelve months] on the use of the grant award. These guidelines explain the programmatic and financial information that should be included in the reports.

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GRANT PROPOSAL GUIDELINES

The Phoenixville Community Health Foundation generally awards three types of grants: General Operations, Program-related Projects, and Capital Projects [ for equipment, construction and renovations].

Grants are awarded in three categories:

Level 1: Direct Health Care Access – 55% of grant awards Creating avenues for, or improving access to, direct health care services: physical health, mental health, dental health, vision health or health-related support services

Level 2: Health & Human Service Initiatives – 35% of grant awards
Services addressing health & quality of life issues for the fragile, disabled, and those at risk of falling further behind socially/economically. These include: food, shelter/housing, support services for families and children, public safety and educational services/opportunities

Level 3: Civic/Social/Economic/Technical Assistance – 10% of grant awards
Non-health & human service-oriented assistance/services: civic, recreation, community & economic development, and non-profit capacity building activities such as board training, strategic planning, endowment building, fund development, staff services, etc.

The following proposal format is designed to ensure that all of the necessary information will be included with your proposal. Submit all requested attachments as outlined on the grant application forms. Exclusive of these attachments, proposals need not be longer than 4 – 6 pages. Should you have questions, feel free to call or e-mail the Foundation office: 610-917-9890 or pchf1@pchf1.org.

OUTLINE FOR SUBMITTING GENERAL
OPERATING & PROJECT PROPOSALS

1. Summary
One to two paragraph summary of the major points of the proposal

2. Introduction
Describe overall organization: who are you and what to do you do
Mission
History
Goals & accomplishments of the organization
What makes the organization unique
What make the organization credible

3. Assessment of Need
Why are you seeking funding
What need does your organization/programs/special project address
Specific project? Describe it here
How do you know that your programs/specific project will address the stated need Support your assessments with evidence such as statistics, research studies, needs assessments, etc

4. Objectives
Indicate specific objectives and measurable outcomes your organization hopes to achieve over the next 12 months
Describe your action plan for accomplishing these objectives
For specific programs/projects indicate the problem-related outcomes to be achieved and describe population and geographic area served. These outcomes need to be specific, measurable, and time limited
What is the anticipated impact of meeting these objectives

5. Strategy
How do you intend to accomplish your stated objectives
Discuss your approach/method and how it relates to the needs and objectives you have set forth

6. Evaluation
How will you know that your organization is achieving the stated objectives
Your evaluation should include: qualitative information [anecdotal information about people and situations]; and quantitative information [statistics]; and examination of the approach used

7. Budget
Include a detailed budget following the format included with the Grant Application
Show how funding from PCHF will be used
Show dollar support from other funding sources and in-kind support
Include a brief budget narrative if there are items that you believe require explanation

8. Future Funding
Note other possible and realistic funding sources
How do you intend to continue funding the organization/project in upcoming years
Future funding may include: fees, contracts, grants, special events, etc. For special projects and programs include a detailed project budget noting current funding sources and describe your strategy for the on-going funding of the program/project



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OUTLINE FOR SUBMITTING CAPITAL RELATED PROPOSALS

1. Summary
Submit a one paragraph summary of the major points of the proposal

2. Introduction
Describe overall organization: who you are & what you do
How does the capital project fit into the work of the whole organization
Address: organizational history, mission, goals and accomplishments, what makes your organization unique, and what makes the organization credible

3. Capital Project Description
Describe the project and why it is needed
How does this capital project impact on the fulfillment of your mission

4. Objectives
Indicate the specific objectives and measurable outcomes you hope to achieve through this capital project

5. Preliminary Work
Describe what has been done so far on this capital project [e.g. began talking with architects, consultants, builders, bid process, etc.]
Address whether or not there is a corrective/preventative maintenance plan built into the project

6. Budget
Include a detailed capital project budget following the format included with the Grant Application
Indicate the portion the Foundation’s grant would cover
Show dollar support from other sources as well as in-kind support
Indicate the fund-raising strategy to fund the entire project noting funds already raised and from where the remaining funding will come

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GRANT GUIDELINES & FORMS



Before submitting a grant request please review:
Grant Deadlines (PDF 32k)

For a complete grant request application please download and complete the following forms. Application packets are also available at the Foundation office.

Required Information (PDF 56k)
Grant Request Application (MS Word .doc 168k)

Proposal Budget Form (PDF 52k)
Proposal Budget Form (MS Excel 28k)

Sample Budget Form (PDF 68k)
Sample Budget Form (MS Excel 44k)

If awarded a grant, your organization will need to sign a Grant Agreement and you will be required to submit an Interim and Final Progress Report:

Sample Grant Agreement (MS Word .doc 36k)
Progress Report Form (MS Word .doc 164k)

Please submit completed Grant Request packets to:
Phoenixville Community Health Foundation
821 Gay Street
Phoenixville, PA 19460


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