On January 13th, Vermont Community Foundation held a Grantseekers Forum at the Vermont Law School in South Royalton. While there are no major changes to VCF’s grant programs, the forum provided a refresher and offered nonprofits the opportunity to ask questions about grant criteria and the application process.

2. What is a Community Foundation?
 Community Foundations are aggregators of charitable
capital - we work “better together.”
 Community Foundations manage several different kinds
of charitable funds:
 Donor Advised Funds
 Donor Designated Funds
 Nonprofit Endowments and Reserve Funds
 Field of Interest Funds
 Discretionary Funds

3. Vermont Community Foundation – Quick Facts
 We are Vermont’s largest home-grown foundation
 Over $190 Million under management
 Over $12 Million in grants awarded in 2013
 653 Different Charitable Funds including:
 The J. Warren and Lois McClure Foundation
 The Permanent Fund for Vermont’s Children
 The High Meadows Fund
 The Vermont Women’s Fund
 The Samara Fund for LGBTQ Vermonters

4. Our Vision
Informs Our Grantmaking
Create demonstrable impact by connecting and
mobilizing people through giving so that the full
potential of our communities is realized.
When communities’ full potential is realized, they:
•have the capacity to succeed
•are welcoming to all and care for one another
•are sustainable

5. Reporting out – 2012-2013-2014
Our Grantmaking Goals:
•Demonstrate collective and individual community impact
 Help you tell your story as effectively as possible
•Engage with more donors
 Help philanthropists participate in your work
•Award more and/or larger grants
 say YES! more often, say no less often
•Broadly grow the culture of giving in Vermont

6. Discretionary? Donor Advised? What does it all mean?
 Discretionary Grants are awarded through the competitive
public grant rounds.
 Donor Advised grants are made on the recommendations
of individual donors from their funds.
 The Vermont Community Foundation’s “Giving Together”
program provides donors with opportunities to give
strategically with others.

7. Quick Summary of our Grantmaking
There are 4 primary statewide programs:
•Small and Inspiring: For community engagement and
social capital building at the hyper-local level
•Innovation and Collaboration: For projects that cross
issues, sectors or regions
•Big Impact: Foundation-driven collaborative philanthropy
for statewide systemic change.
•Special and Urgent Needs: For emergency or unforeseen
problems or opportunities

8. Small and Inspiring – The 251 Club
Goals:
•Connect people to each other, their communities and the natural world
•Connect donors with local heroes and champions
•Inspire people and tell the VCF Story
Process: Short, online application focusing on telling a good story of
community engagement. Grants will be awarded every other month in
2014.
Grant Size: $500-$2,500

9. Small & Inspiring Results by the Numbers – 2013
 174
Applications received
 107 Applications approved (67 denied)
 61% of Applications approved
 $1,900 average grant size
 $199,021 in grants awarded
 $84,020 contributed through Giving Together
 Program grew 30% over 2012

10. The Best of “Small and Inspiring” 2013
Glover Pioneer Day Camp –
A Child’s Life in the Wilderness, 1800-1840
Big Heavy World –
Teen Hacker Dreams Suck Way Less Than You Think
Bethel Revitalization Initiative - Bethel University
Brattleboro Museum and Art Center –
BEAN Micro-Grant Dinners

11. Innovations and Collaborations
Goals:
•Support best practices in collaborative, innovative work
•Increase donor giving with new and exciting opportunities
•Strengthen the sector by promoting models of success
Process: Two grant cycles each year with initial deadlines in February
and July, 2014. A short letter of interest is required prior to receiving an
invitation to submit a full proposal. Typically, applications will be
submitted by two or more partner organizations. 2nd Year Continuation
Funding is available for invited grantees. 2nd Year Grants are $10,000.
Grant size: $10,000-$20,000

12. Innovation and Collaboration Results by the Numbers – 2013
 125
Letters of Interest received
 46 New Full Applications invited
 13 Continuation Applications invited
 20 new & 9 continuing projects approved (49%)
 average new grant - $17,250
 $435,460 in grants awarded
 $224,750 contributed through Giving Together
 Program grew 9% in 2013

13. Best of Innovation and Collaboration 2013
ONE Strings - Vermont Youth Orchestra, Lake Champlain
Chamber Music Festival and the Integrated Arts
Academy
Vermont Coalition for Criminal Justice Reform - VT Dept. of
Corrections, ACLU of Vermont, Vermont Human Rights
Commission, Vermont Works for Women, Mercy
Connections and others.
Vermont Farm and Food Business Planning Competition –
Strolling of the Heifers, Vermont Technical College

14. Big Impact: The Food and Farm Initiative
Goals:
•To create statewide systemic change on key issues over the long term (new
issue areas to be chosen every 5 years)
•To increase collaborative funding on key issues by state, regional and national
donors
•To leverage the leadership potential of the Foundation
•The goal of the Food and Farm Initiative is to support farmers and others
who want to help Vermont families put nutritious, local food on the table
regardless of where they live or what they earn.
Process: Proposals are accepted by invitation only. Grantees work in close
collaboration with each other, the Foundation and other regional funders to
advance a collective strategy.
Grant Size: $25,000+

15. Big Impact Results by the Numbers – 2013
9 Grants Awarded in 2013
 $ 494,584 in grants awarded
 $ 289,584 contributed in Giving Together
 average grant size $54,954
 Program grew by 60% in 2013
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16. Big Impact: The Food and Farm Initiative
Current Grantees
Center for an Agricultural Economy - Hardwick
Food Connects - Brattleboro
Green Mountain Farm to School - Newport
Hunger-Free Vermont - Burlington
NOFA VT - Richmond
Upper Valley Farm to School Network – White River Junction
VT FEED/Shelburne Farms - Shelburne
Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets - Montpelier
Vermont Housing and Conservation Board - Montpelier
Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund - Montpelier
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17. Big Impact – Grantee Accomplishments in 2013
 Expanded eligibility for free school meals
 Trained school food service staff
 Developed a statewide local produce marketing campaign
 Piloted new strategies for getting healthy local foods to families
 Strengthened statewide capacity for ongoing collaborative action

18. Special and Urgent Needs
Goal:
•Provide rapid philanthropic support for emergencies and/or unexpected
opportunities faced by Vermont nonprofits
Process: Nonprofit organizations may apply for a Special and Urgent
Needs grant at any time. Priority is given to applications having a direct
impact on basic human needs (food, shelter, health care, etc.) but
applications are welcome from any organization facing an emergency or
urgent situation that they could not have planned to address in advance.
Grant size: up to $5,000. Available funding is limited and is
occasionally used up before the end of the calendar year.

19. Special & Urgent Needs Impact by the Numbers - 2013
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33 Applications Received
20 Applications Approved
61% of Applications Approved
$6,000 Giving Together contributions
$79,402 in grants awarded
$4,000 average grant size

20. Highlights from Special and Urgent Needs - 2013
 Northwoods Stewardship Center
 The Bennington Coalition for the Homeless
 Champlain Senior Center
 Milton Elementary School

21. Other Grantmaking Highlights
Issue Based Funds
• The Vermont Women’s Fund
• Vermont Arts Endowment Fund
• The Samara Fund for LGBT Issues
• The Paul Post Fund …and more
Regional Grant Rounds
• The Northeast Kingdom Fund
• Walter Cerf Fund
• The Green Mountain Fund
• Hills and Hollows Fund ... and more

22. Some Deadlines Coming Up!
• January 31
VT Women’s Fund Deadline
• February 3
I&C Round 1 Letter of Interest Due
• February 3
S&I First Monthly Deadline
S&I deadlines will be on the closest business day to the 1st of
the month in even numbered months in 2014
• April 1
Samara Fund Deadline
• April 28
VT Arts Endowment Fund Deadline
…and more, visit the website for details

23. Using the Online Grants Manager
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5 Things you need to know
1. New vs. existing account? Call us to confirm!
2. All-in-one tracking:
Application, Status/Decision, Grant reporting
3. Easy PDF conversion of applications and reports
4. Help us share your stories and community impact
5. New features coming in 2014
Check our Online Grants Center for updates and support!

24. Other Nonprofit Services
• Vermont Directory of Foundations
• Vermont Directory of Nonprofit Consultants
• Planned Giving Partnership
• Nonprofit Endowment and Reserve Fund Program
• Occasional workshops and other events
• www.CommonGoodVT.org
• Benchmarks for a Better Vermont

25. Contact Us for Help