A relatively small number of foundations award grants directly to individuals, while the vast majority limit their funding to nonprofit organizations. If you are seeking support for a project but are not affiliated with a nonprofit that has 501(c)(3) status, you may increase your chances of securing foundation support if you can find a nonprofit organization that will serve as your project's fiscal sponsor by receiving and administering the funds.
In searching for a fiscal sponsor, you should seek out organizations that have demonstrated an interest in programs or projects similar to yours. It will be easier to find a fiscal sponsor if your project enhances or furthers that organization's charitable purposes and/or if that organization benefits in some way from being associated with your project.
You might want to begin by using the Foundation Center's Foundation Grants to Individuals, available in print or as a searchable web-based database, to identify organizations that offer fiscal sponsorships to individuals and non-501(c)(3) nonprofit groups. Choose "Fiscal agent/sponsor" in the Types of Support field and combine with Geographic Focus or Grantmaker Location.
It is also useful to begin with your current affiliations to develop a list of potential prospects. Make a list of the professional societies, educational associations and institutions, religious organizations, social and recreational clubs, and other groups with which you are already associated, including employers.
Next, turn to web sites that offer directory-type information about nonprofit organizations. See our FAQ "How can I find information about a particular nonprofit organization?" for a listing of these resources.
Additionally, a number of reference guides such as the Encyclopedia of Associations: Regional, State & Local Organizations (Detroit, MI: Gale Research, annual) and the National Directory of Nonprofit Organizations (Farmington Hills, MI: The Taft Group, annual) identify local and regional chapters of national organizations that might serve as a fiscal sponsor for your project.
Once you have a list of potential fiscal sponsors, you will want to know whether or not the organizations on your list have a track record with foundations or corporate funders. To help you determine this, refer to the Foundation Directory Online, FC Search: The Foundation Center's Database on CD-ROM, or to a Foundation Center print directory (e.g., a specific title in the Grant Guide series) that indicates some nonprofits that have or are currently receiving foundation funding.
If you would like to see examples of fiscal sponsorship agreements, policies, and procedures, see our FAQ "Where can I find examples of policies, procedures, and guidelines for fiscal sponsorship agreements on the Web?"
For further advice on affiliation, see Fiscal Sponsorship: 6 Ways To Do It Right (2nd Edition) by Gregory L. Colvin (San Francisco: Study Center Press, 2005) and Chapter 2 of The Individual's Guide to Grants by Judith B. Margolin (New York: Plenum Press, 1983). (Also available online as the Guide to Fiscal Sponsorship and Affiliation.)
For other books and articles on fiscal sponsorship, try searching our Catalog of Nonprofit Literature (CNL), the Center's bibliographic database. You could start searching on the subject "Sponsors" with the keyword "Fiscal". Here are some examples of the books and articles you might find useful:
Many of the books and articles found through CNL, as well as the Center's print directories and online databases, can be consulted at Center Libraries and Cooperating Collections. It is best to call ahead to verify a specific library's holdings.
To learn more about fiscal sponsorship and foundation funding for individuals, attend our free one-hour class, Grantseeking Basics for Individuals in the Arts.
Can't find the answer you're looking for in our FAQs? Ask our Online Librarian.
