Improving Your Likelihood of Success

Here are tips to help you submit the strongest possible application.

1. Before you call us, read all of the sections on this website

Most of what you need to know about us is on this website.

2. If you have any questions, call us

Because we don't have a Letter of Intent (LOI) process, we encourage you to call us if you have any questions before submitting a full proposal. This will help us discover whether or not your proposal is a good fit with our funding interests. In the Lowcountry of South Carolina the contact person is John Sands (843-651-3793). In the Chicago region, it’s Arthur Pearson (312-977-2709). If you have questions about the application process, online forms, or grant requirements, contact our Grants Manager Susan Clark (312-977-2705).

3. We take evaluation seriously

We understand that evaluation is not easy. However, organizations that make the biggest difference are those that effectively measure their results. We are happy to discuss the challenges and opportunities of evaluation in your situation. In some cases, we are willing to support evaluation costs.

4. You have a strategy for sustainability

How is your project or organization going to be sustainable in the long term? Tell us.

5. Beware of pitfalls

Some of the most common reasons we decline grant applications are:

  • Organizations don’t have the capacity or resources to successfully carry out the projects they propose. Recurring financial deficits, inadequate fundraising, or unrealistic plans are red flags.
  • Organizations are unstable. For example, frequent changes in board and staff leadership, mission, or goals.
  • Project or organizational goals are vague or overly broad.
  • Outcomes are weak, vague, or not oriented to results.
  • Leadership structures do not adhere to best practices. For example, a paid executive director who also serves as an officer of the board creates an inherent conflict of interest. 

From the Blog

Sewee to Santee eyes smart growth through regional branding

For rural communities suffering from poverty, development can seem like a no-brainer: if you build it, they will come, bringing jobs and opportunities with them. But as sprawl across the country has shown, development can come at the expense of a rural community’s own character and sense of place, and can leave areas ravaged when companies that built there leave for cheaper pastures. In the Sewee to Santee region of South Carolina, a vision is forming: a better quality of life for its residents built on the belief that a rich rural landscape is an opportunity, rather than an obstacle to be overcome. Read More »

A new way forward for South Carolina’s rural communities

South Carolina’s beautiful rural landscape belies an unfortunate reality of poverty. How can the state's rural communities take advantage of existing assets to achieve long-term prosperity? Read More »

Celebrate National Park Week at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore

National Park Week is April 21-29, 2012. You don't have to go all the way to Yellowstone or the Everglades to participate: Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore is just an hour outside of Chicago. Learn more about what the National Lakeshore has to offer. Read More »

Recent Tweets

16 May
In Charleston, @puretheatre and Holy City Shakespeare collaborate on a casual, refreshing "Twelfth Night" http://t.co/cRAQAznD

14 May
Neat to see collaboration among Chicago's dance companies-- in this case Muntu and DanceWorks: http://t.co/ZpRvYhqS

14 May
In case you missed it: on Friday we posted this story about regional branding efforts in #rural SC: http://t.co/1insWBMl #Sewee #Santee

11 May
Thx, happily aboard! RT @chiwilderness #FF newest members of the Chicago Wilderness alliance: @GDDonnelley, @willconserve, @WaukeganPrkDist