Most of the larger, staffed foundations accept applications from grantseeking nonprofits, but many others, particularly smaller, unstaffed foundations, do not. There can be several reasons why a funder does not accept applications, including legal constraints or lack of sufficient staff to review proposals.
The Foundation Center's editorial staff uses a variety of sources to determine whether or not a grantmaker accepts applications. Some grantmakers indicate their policy regarding applications by way of a check box designated for this purpose on the IRS Form 990PF. Others communicate this information to us directly, or outline their policies in printed materials or on their web sites.
When using the Foundation Directory Online to research potential funders, it is possible to exclude grantmakers that do not accept applications from your search results by clicking the check box located directly below the Keyword Search field on the Search Grantmakers Screen.
Filtering your search results in this way may significantly reduce the number of grantmaker records retrieved. While this approach might be an effective first step in developing a prospect list, it doesn't necessarily mean that grantseekers should disregard these funders outright, especially if a grantmaker's interests closely match an organization's needs. Although grantseekers are discouraged from submitting funding requests to grantmakers that do not accept applications, it might be possible to cultivate relationships in other ways.
Foundation Directory Online is available for free use at Center libraries and Cooperating Collections.
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