Nonprofits

Grant Application Process

Impact100 Southern Connecticut awards grants to nonprofits in our community that address the focus area stipulated in our Eligibility Criteria. Eligible nonprofits may submit a Letter of Intent to apply for grant funding of up to $100,000. We recommend reading our eligibility criteria before proceeding.

Member volunteers review and score Letters of Intent based on standard criteria before selecting a subset of organizations to complete a full grant application:

  1. Overall mission, vision of organization
  2. Meeting unique need in the community
  3. Proposed use of grant dollars
  4. Shows clear programming specific to the focus area identified each year.

Important Dates

Grant Writing Workshop

Open Call for Letter of Intent Submissions

Grant Applications Open for Selected Organizations

Grant Review and Site Visits

Voting Event for Finalists

All stages of the grant review process are conducted entirely by current members of Impact100 Southern Connecticut.

Focus Areas

  • Paint brush icon

    Arts & Culture

    Cultural programs, participation in the arts, arts education

  • Graduates cap icon

    Education

    Educational opportunities for children and/or adults, especially those that address lingering educational disparities affecting our community

  • Parents and child icon

    Family

    Strengthening and enhancing the lives of children and families, including seniors

  • Medical bag icon

    Health & Wellness

    Improvement of people’s mental and/or physical well-being

  • Planet icon

    Environment, Preservation & Recreation

    Conservation and preservation of natural resources; environmental justice; parks and recreation; agricultural sustainability; environmental education and climate action

Apply for a Grant

Our Focus Area Grant Committees ultimately select five finalists, one in each focus area, to compete for the available Impact Grants at our Annual Meeting.

Eligibility Criteria

Organizations eligible to apply for an Impact100 Southern Connecticut grant must:

  • Be tax exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, independent of a financial sponsor (local affiliates may apply under the 501(c)(3) of the national organization).
  • Serve residents of the counties in the Southern Connecticut area (define)
  • Be in possession of at least three full years (36 months) of audited financial statements.

Projects eligible for the Impact100 grant must:

  • Serve residents of, and expend funds fully in the Southern Connecticut region (define)
  • Be a transformational project for the organization in fulfilling its mission and providing its services
  • Be a capital project, new program, expansion of an existing program, or a new or expanded collaborative effort of multiple nonprofit organizations
  • Have a total project budget for the full Impact100 grant amount
  • Expend funds within 25 months of the award date
  • Be designated by the applying nonprofit organization for one of the following Focus Areas:
    • Arts & Culture: Initiatives that cultivate, develop, and enhance the cultural, artistic and historic climate of the Southern Connecticut Area.
    • Education: Initiatives that further the educational process or improve access to education for children and/or adults in the Southern Connecticut Area.
    • Environment, Preservation & Recreation: Initiatives that will restore, preserve, revitalize or enhance the facilities, surroundings and/or recreational opportunities of the Southern Connecticut Area.
    • Family: Initiatives that strengthen and enhance the lives of children and families living in the Southern Connecticut Area.
    • Health & Wellness: Initiatives that improve the mental and/or physical well-being of people living in the Southern Connecticut Area.

Impact100 Southern Connecticut will not provide grants for:

  • General operating expenses or overhead (Items of an operating or overhead nature may be requested if applicable to the new initiative or project to be funded by Impact100 Southern Connecticut)
  • Debt reduction or operational deficits
  • Grants to individuals
  • Endowment funding
  • Interim or bridge funding
  • Partisan, legislative, or political activity
  • Capital improvements or renovations to property for the grant project where the organization does not own or have at least a five-year lease or written agreement
  • Projects of individual churches, religious organizations or bodies of worship that are intended to benefit only their specific denominations or congregations, or are exclusive with respect to others of differing beliefs
  • Faith-based projects/programs which require participation in activities of a particular faith, denomination or religion in order to benefit from the project or program
    • Benefits of the project or program must be available to any person, regardless of religious beliefs or practices
    • Benefits of the project or program must not be dependent on any person being required to participate in any religious activity, ceremony or service

As we continue to grow and evolve, Impact100 Southern Connecticut reserves the right to change its eligibility criteria without notice at any time.

Grant FAQs