Information for Grant Applicants

I. General Information

This section provides eligibility and process information for Executive Directors of nonprofit agencies that have been invited to apply for the single annual grant of Everychild Foundation. The decision to apply for our grant triggers an intensive year-long application process that involves considerable dedication of agency leadership and staff, strategic thinking, and thorough knowledge of agency documentation and resources. Accordingly, we strongly recommend that the information here be reviewed carefully by agency executives as well as by grantwriters.

• Examine our entire Website. Review our mission, methods, and organizing strategy. Determine whether both your agency and your project are a good match with our grant criteria and process. Please apply only if you see a clear and compelling match.
• We will examine your agency's organizational capacity to implement our grant based on its history of implementing comparable grants, as well as your agency's history and sophistication in developing diverse fundraising strategies to sustain ongoing operations and fund new projects.
• Pay particular attention to the timing of your project. We vote on our two finalist projects in November of each year; to be eligible for our grant, projects must start in the following year. See "Timeline" below.
• Review the list of prior grantees on our Website. We do not duplicate prior year grants. Additionally, we will only consider grants that focus on unmet needs of local children that are different from those addressed by the previous year's grant.
• Finally, if you do not succeed one year, we hope you will apply again; however, finalist applicants not selected by the members must wait a year before reapplying for our grant.

Application for our grant is by invitation of our Grant Outreach Committee only. If your agency has not been invited to apply for our grant but you believe that your agency meets all criteria and that you may have an eligible project in the future, you are welcome to send an annual report with financial statements to the Foundation's post office box address. The Foundation will review this information as time permits.

One additional note:  we are continually trying to streamline our application procedure to make it as cost-efficient as possible for applicant agencies, while remaining compatible with the nature and mission of our Foundation. Toward this end, we ask our finalist applicants to provide us with an estimate of the cost of applying for our grant, including staff time and out of pocket expenses. Accordingly, we would appreciate it if applicants could monitor these costs from the beginning of the application process.

II. Timeline

Our grant process takes an entire calendar year. You should review the following timeline, both so that your project planning will match our process deadlines, and to be certain that your project will need funding commensurate with the size of the Foundation's grant by the end of the year. Specific due dates will be supplied to applicants as soon as the Grant Screening Board confirms its calendar. In general, the process unfolds as follows:

November - mid-January: The Foundation's Grant Outreach Committee conducts outreach to potential grant applicants that have been identified by our members and grant consultant, provides the Letter of Inquiry format to eligible applicants, and comments on draft Letters of Inquiry to ensure that they are complete.

Mid-February: Final Letters of Inquiry are due to the Grant Outreach Committee. These are then distributed to the Foundation's Grant Screening Board (the "GSB"), which begins its review process.

Late February: The GSB reviews Letters of Inquiry to determine which meet all eligibility requirements and address the current most pressing needs of children. Applicants are notified whether they are invited to continue with the grant review process. If so, document packages will be required immediately. See "Required Documents" below for a description of these packages.

March - April: GSB members review applicant document packages and develop substantive questions about the agency and the proposal for site visits. The GSB meets in April to determine which applicants will go forward to site visit. Site visit questions are then distributed to each agency. In order to permit the most efficient and informative site visit, we ask that site visit questions be answered in writing least one week prior to the site visit.

Note: For purposes of scheduling and administrative convenience, site visits are tentatively scheduled with each agency in early March, with visits occurring in May. However, document packages sometimes reveal that an agency is not currently eligible for the grant. In that case, the site visit for such an agency would be cancelled immediately following the April meeting.

May: The GSB conducts its site visits to applicant agencies. Site visits include an agency presentation, discussion with the agency executive, board leaders, and pertinent staff, and a tour of the agency. Because this is an essential part of our decision making process, approximately 20 GSB members typically attend each site visit.

June: The GSB meets in early June to determine which agencies will be invited to prepare final proposals and begin planning for their presentations at the Grant Hearing in October. We plan to invite two agencies to prepare final proposals.

June - August: Applicants work on final proposals and begin to plan their presentations, with assistance in August from designated GSB members.

Late August: Final proposals are due to the GSB.

Early September:The GSB prepares summaries of the projects for Foundation members based on the agencies' final proposals and all other submitted materials, as well as the GSB's site visit observations. The two finalist agencies work on their presentation to our members at the October Grant Hearing, including a video or slide show about the agency and need for the proposed project. GSB members are available to assist the agencies if requested.

Mid-October: The Grant Hearing is held, at which available Everychild Foundation members meet the finalist agencies' leaders, listen to each agency's presentation on need for the proposed project, view each agency's video and ask any additional questions about the project.

November: Members cast their ballots. Ballots are opened and counted by the GSB in mid-November. The agency that receives the majority of the votes receives the grant.

December: The GSB drafts the Grant Agreement preparatory to awarding the grant funds. Distribution of funds begins in the following calendar year in accordance with the Grant Agreement.

III. Grant Eligibility

The Everychild Foundation makes one grant each year, funded with annual member contributions. The members select the project that best matches our eligibility criteria. Applicants may request funds for capital projects, direct service programs, or a combination of both, as well as single-year or multi-year projects. However, we will consider only pilot or demonstration projects, or expansion of programs that have proven effectiveness. We do not fund ongoing operations, agency administration, or debt repayment.

A. Eligibility Criteria

Applicant agencies must meet all of the following eligibility criteria:

1. The agency is seeking funding for an unduplicated "breakthrough" project that targets a specific, critical, unmet, direct-service need of children in the Los Angeles area - a "gap" in the system of services for children - and the agency can demonstrate that its proposal is the best approach to meeting the need. For information on prior years' grant recipients, click on "Projects."

2. The critical, unmet need identified by the applicant agency can best be addressed by private philanthropy, alone or in combination with public funding. However, applicants should note that we do not consider applications for funding to replace lost dollars from other public or private sources and we do not fund the reorganization of existing services.

3. The project serves a significant proportion of the children who need the service. If the project will initially serve a small number of the total children in Los Angeles County who need the service, the applicant must discuss how (i) the project would be a replicable prototype and (ii) the agency would disseminate information about the prototype.

4. The agency must calculate and discuss the project's cost per child and the proportion of overall need for the service that will be addressed by the project. For a capital project, we would expect to see the cost per child for the program(s) conducted in the facility.

5. If the project includes services to adults, the agency must demonstrate that children are the primary population served, and adult involvement is incorporated to improve those services to children.

6. A one-time grant of approximately $1 million can provide all or a substantial part of the entire funding for the project. Because we only make one grant annually, we do not want our grant to be "a drop in the bucket." The agency must demonstrate how our funding is essential to the success of the project.

7. The agency must demonstrate that it has the organizational capacity and experience to:

(i) implement and sustain the project;

(ii) administer our grant, based on the agency's history of administering grants of comparable size; and

(iii) develop or continue diverse, sophisticated fundraising strategies to sustain ongoing operations and fund this and other projects of comparable scope.

8. If the proposal relates to an expansion of an existing program, the agency must, to the extent applicable, provide:

(i) specific criteria for measuring the program's success and describe how it performed during the pilot stage;

(ii) an analysis of what the agency learned through the pilot and how the program's redesign incorporates improvements;

(iii) qualitative and quantitative information about the program's impact on targeted children;

(iv) budgets showing how the program has grown; and

(v) a description of its strategies for expanding the program and sustaining it as a core program of the agency.

If the proposal is for a capital project, this criterion applies to the services that will be provided in the facility.

9. The project is already part of the agency's overall strategic plan and will be ready for implementation in the calendar year following the grant award in November. We generally do not provide lead grants, particularly for projects requiring substantial funding. For multi-year projects, we would expect to see concrete results within the first year of the grant.

10. The agency is an acknowledged leader in its field of children's services and its reputation is solid and uncontroversial.

11. The agency's board of directors is comprised of unpaid volunteers.

12. The agency is local and does not benefit from a national fundraising affiliation.

13. The project and agency are non-sectarian and the agency does not proselytize or target sectarian populations for services in practice, mission or strategic planning.

14. The agency is able and willing to help publicize the Everychild Foundation and can provide suitable donor recognition opportunities.

15. The project purpose does not duplicate the previous year's Everychild Foundation grant.

B. Required Documents

Applicant agencies must provide all of the following documents:

1. Annual report and/or newsletters - one complete year

2. Functional budget for current year (with columns showing revenue and expenses for management, fund raising, and each program, and including a line that shows any allocated administrative expenses)

3. Audited financial statements for 3 years

4. Complete IRS Form 990 for prior year (including all attachments)

5. IRS certification of 501(c)(3) status

6. Strategic plan and status report, or other documents defining how the proposed project advances the strategic direction of the agency

7. Chart of organization, including the proposed project; include names of staff in key positions

8. List of major funders for five years; include amounts and years of grants

9. Publications, evaluation reports, accreditations

10. News coverage, video (if any)

11. Board of Directors roster with professional and community affiliations; also include Advisory Board and other governance or fund raising groups (if applicable)

12. Additional board information: frequency of board meetings, list of standing committees, frequency of board review of financial statements, length of board terms, board recruitment process, and board giving requirements

13. CV's of key staff

14. List of activities and actions that demonstrate the agency is a leader in its field of services to children

15. Disclosure: Information about any lawsuits, present or former leaders' criminal activities; adverse auditors' opinions; accreditation or licensing problems.

16. Information specific to the proposed project, as requested by the GSB.

The Foundation relies on all statements and documents that applicant agencies provide to us throughout the grant process. Accordingly, any applicant that becomes aware of any material change in its situation or in information provided to us has an obligation to communicate changes in circumstances to the Foundation immediately. The Foundation's formal Grant Agreement expressly incorporates all information that has been provided to the Foundation by the grantee throughout the application process.

IV. Application Procedures

Everychild Foundation does not have a paid staff. All of our operations are conducted by trained and dedicated members. These members will work with you throughout each step of the year-long application process.

A. Letter of Inquiry

Application for the Everychild grant is by invitation only. If your agency has applied for or been invited to apply for our grant in the past, and the Grant Outreach Committee or GSB has voted to invite a future application, you will receive a letter at the beginning of the Foundation's Grant Outreach process. This letter will provide contact information in the event you have an eligible project for our current year grant. Your initial contact will be our Grant Outreach Committee or our grant consultant. If your agency appears to have an eligible project, you will be assigned to a member of the Grant Outreach Committee to help you prepare your initial application. She will be available at designated times or via email to provide assistance and guidance throughout the initial application process. The Grant Outreach Committee will provide you with a Letter of Inquiry application form. Do not apply using any other format. Follow the Letter of Inquiry's format, guidelines and page limitations closely. The Outreach Committee will also review your draft Letter of Inquiry and provide you with one set of comments before it is formally submitted to the GSB. Letter of Inquiry instructions will specify the final due date, how many copies to send, and where to send them. All copies of your Letter of Inquiry must be received by this date to qualify for consideration.

B. Grant Screening Board Review

The GSB meets in late February to consider which applications best fit with our mission and address the most critical unmet needs of local children. You will receive the results of the GSB's determination immediately following this meeting by telephone, along with any GSB comments on the application.

Assuming your Letter of Inquiry is among those selected by the GSB, you will receive instructions about our document review process which begins immediately following the February meeting. Specifically, you will need to assemble multiple copies of the documents requested above (see "Required Documents"). At this point, the GSB will appoint a team of if its members to assist it in its review of your agency and application, and to assist you through the rest of the application process.

Following an exhaustive review of your document package, your GSB team will develop a recommendation about whether the GSB should schedule a site visit to your agency, as well as detailed questions about your agency and the project to be addressed before and at the site visit. The GSB meets in April to consider each team's recommendation and questions, and to vote on whether to proceed to site visit with each agency. Invariably, one or two agencies are eliminated from the application process at this point because of eligibility questions raised by their documents, or because they conclude that their project is not yet ready to be considered for funding.

Your team will help you plan your site visit and advise you on what to expect from the GSB. Following the site visit, the GSB meets again in June to vote on which agencies to invite to submit a formal proposal. If your agency is ultimately awarded our grant, this final proposal forms the basis for our funding contract with you. Your team will provide you with final proposal specifications, and will review your draft in mid-August. Final proposals are due in late August. Your team and other Grant Screening Board members will be available during September and early October to assist you in the planning of your presentation to the membership at the Grant Hearing.

Ballots are counted at a meeting in mid-November. You will be notified of the results by telephone immediately following the vote count. Your team will then contact you about the terms of the Grant Agreement.

V. Grant Monitoring

The Everychild Foundation is committed to ensuring that each project we fund continues to reflect the purposes and goals represented by the agency during the application process. Accordingly, we have created a Grant Monitoring Committee to monitor the status of each project and agency that receives our grant. Under the terms of our Grant Agreement, the Monitoring Committee makes up to two site visits annually to the project site. These visits continue for a period of three years after the project's completion or implementation. We have found this to be an invaluable tool in sustaining and enhancing the relationship between our members and our grantee agencies.