WCF Home  >  Grants  >   Apply for a grant  >  Funding guidelines

Wisconsin Community Fund Grant Guidelines 

[Also available in .pdf or .doc format]

Introduction
Wisconsin Community Fund is the only Wisconsin foundation that channels charitable contributions to grassroots organizations working for progressive social change in every part of the state. Each year WCF receives hundreds of donations allowing us to provide grant money and technical assistance to community groups.

WCF's annual grant cycle provides non-profit organizations with funding for projects and general operating expenses. Special Opportunity Grants and technical assistance through workshops and staff consultations are available on an on-going basis.

Eligibility
Wisconsin Community Fund makes grants to organizations that are:

• Based in Wisconsin.
• Not-for-profit and exempt from federal taxes under section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code or utilizing a fiscal sponsor.
• Working for fundamental social change and demonstrating practical alternatives to economic and social injustice.

Priorities
Wisconsin Community Fund shows preference to projects that:

• Respond to current and emerging needs and issues, especially the Movement-building issue(s).
• Include coalition-building aspects, with groups from different issue areas working together toward a common goal.
• Work to protect and expand basic human rights and increase opportunities for the poor, the disenfranchised, and people of color.
• Promote and strengthen local community control and seek more equitable distribution of wealth, power and other resources.
• Advocate structural change to create a more just and cooperative society and challenge existing institutions to be more responsive to their constituencies.
• Demonstrate limited access to other sources of funding.

Organizations supported by WCF use a broad range of tools to work for a more democratic and equitable society. These tools include community organizing, coalition-building, action-oriented research and advocacy. WCF seeks to support grassroots groups with a clear and well-defined strategy for developing local leadership and empowering their constituents, and which reflect awareness of broader social policy issues.

Limitations
Wisconsin Community Fund does not fund:

• Projects that are individual, national, legal, academic or religious in nature.
• Social or community service, legal fees, academic research, education or cultural projects, unless there is an organizing or direct action component.
• Groups with annual operating budgets over $400,000.
• Annual fund drives, endowments or capital campaigns.

What We Look For
In reviewing funding requests, the Grant Allocations Committee will ask questions like these about each proposal:

• Do the strategies employed or proposed by the organization or project work to empower people?
• Are the strategies likely to be effective?
• How well does the organization/project challenge the dominant institutions and attitudes of society?
• Are other sources of funding likely to be available for this organization or project?
• Does the organization or project include outreach to and involvement of an appropriate constituency?
• Are the project goals realistic for the time and resources allocated?    

[View these Guidelines as an Adobe Acrobat .pdf document]

[View these Guidelines as an MS Word document]

1202 Williamson St, Suite D Madison WI  53703 Tel: (608) 251-6834 FAX: (608) 251-6846 e-mail:  info@wcfund.org
		a member of: