How to Apply

Determine Eligibility

We believe that a diverse and open community is a strong one! We support organizations that promote diversity among their leadership and employees.

Submit Letter of Inquiry

The Letter of Inquiry, or LOI, is required for both Small Grant and Large Grant requests. All LOIs will be reviewed by our Board of Trustees and you will either be invited to submit a full application, or be declined at that point. This process includes a short eligibility quiz, contact information, a brief description of your organization, your proposal and a project budget. (Note: The project budget is not required at LOI stage for small grants.) It’s important that you choose the right grant cycle for your project. Things to consider when determining when to submit your LOI:

• From the time you submit your LOI to the date you receive funding can take about five months.
• You must begin your project within 90 days of the start of your grant period.
• We cannot fund a project that is already completed. (You can begin your project prior to funding, but it cannot be completed.)
  

View our calendar to determine the best grant cycle for your project.

Submit Full Application

If you are invited to submit a full application, our Grants Coordinator will send you an email with instructions and timelines for submitting your application.

Log in
Log in to the online application system. Once in the system, you will begin on your Dashboard page. Select “Apply” located in the blue ribbon at the top of the page. (Note: You will also find instructions and tutorials on your dashboard page to help guide you through the process of applying.)

Download Templates
As you complete your application, you will be prompted to download and complete the most current Application Templates and then upload them to your application. We recommend creating a desktop folder for all related documents and templates. (See below for list of required templates and documents.)

Compile Documents
Compile additional documents. See below for a list of required documents. You will be asked to upload these documents at the end of your application.

Upload, Review & Submit
Upload all requested documents, then review and submit your application. The online system will walk you through uploading all required documents. You will receive a confirmation email upon submitting your application.

Additional Required Documents

During the application process, we will ask you for the following documents. Please have these documents ready before applying:

• Balance Sheet or Statement of Financial Position 
  This is not a template. You may submit this in your preferred format as long as it is GAAP Approved. Must be current within the last fiscal year.)
• Income/Expense Sheet-also called a Profit & Loss Statement
  This is not a template. You may submit this in your preferred format as long as it is GAAP Approved. Must be current within the last fiscal year.)
• *GAAP - Generally Accepted Accounting Principles
• Letter of Agreement or MOU (if partnership or collaboration with fiscal sponsor)

Grant Acceptance

Attend Check Presentation: If your grant is funded, we will invite you to attend our quarterly Check Presentation at the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Governance Center. We invite all of our grantees to Grand Ronde to receive their check and meet members of Grand Ronde Tribal Council, the Board of Trustees and our staff. This is a great opportunity to learn about crucial work being done in our communities and collaborate with other nonprofit organizations who have similar goals.

Note: All Quarterly Check Presentations are being held virtually until further notice.

Understand Reporting Responsibilities: At the conclusion of your 12 month grant period you will be required to submit a Final Report (due within 30 days of you 12 month grant period) detailing your project and its outcomes. Demographic information and a recap of spending will also be requested.

The final report is now part of the new online application system. You will need to log in to your account to complete the final report.

If you have any questions about this process please email info@thecommunityfund.com or call or main line at (503) 879-1400.