Chicago

APPLICATION PROCEDURE

DEADLINES

JANUARY 13 - for a spring meeting

  • Topic: Social Services

MAY 1 - for a late summer meeting.

  • Topic: Health

JUNE 1 - for a fall meeting.

  • Topics: Arts and Culture, Environment and Capital.

Proposals must be received by noon on the deadline date. If the deadline falls on a weekend or a holiday, proposals must be received prior to the deadline date. We are no longer accepting proposals on paper. Please submit your proposal on line as a single .pdf file addressed to: tfron@prince-trusts.org.

Technical Requirements:

Please send all required materials (except the .jpeg files) in a single PDF file to: Teri Fron (tfron@prince-trusts.org). Be sure the name of your organization is in the title of any file you submit and each individual document within the large file. If you have technical questions about transmitting the file electronically, please call Teri Fron at 312-419-8700 x124. We do not encourage the submission of additional materials, but they may not be submitted electronically. If you feel you must submit other supporting materials, send them in hard copy to the Prince offices before the deadline. We will acknowledge your submission via email within two days of receipt. In the unlikely event that an email acknowledgment is not received, please contact Teri Fron by email to follow up.

We strongly encourage that proposals be sent in advance of the deadline, although no sooner than two months prior to the appropriate deadline. There will be no exceptions made for late proposals.

PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS AND ATTACHMENTS

All grant applications must include a Prince Charitable Trusts cover sheet. This is to be the top sheet of the proposal and should be filled out in type no smaller than 12 point. To download the cover sheet in Microsoft Word format, click here. If you need to have a copy mailed or e-mailed to you, please contact Teri Fron, Grants Manager, at tfron@prince-trusts.org or (312) 419-8700.

Proposals (3-5 pages) should include the following:

  • A brief description of the history, purpose and activities carried out by your organization
  • A statement as to the need for support and how it will be used.

Required Attachments:

  • A list of foundation and corporate supporters and the amount contributed for the current and the previous fiscal years
  • A percentage breakdown of funding sources (foundations, corporations, individuals, government, fundraising events, membership, United Way, etc.)
  • A current operating budget and the previous year's operating budget
  • A current project budget and the previous year's project budget, if applicable
  • A copy of the most recent audited financial statements
  • A copy of the IRS determination letter stating your organization is exempt from federal income tax under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and is classified as a public charity under Sections 509(a)(1) or 509(a)(2). If the letter does not specifically describe your organization as 509(a)(1) or 509(a)(2), separate confirmation from the IRS or your attorney must be included.
  • A list of your Board of Directors.
ADDITIONAL ATTACHMENT FOR ARTS APPLICANTS ONLY:
  • A Funders Report generated through the Illinois Cultural Data Project for your most recently completed fiscal year.
Beginning this year, the Prince Charitable Trusts is engaging in a new partnership with the Illinois Cultural Data Project (IL CDP). The first management tool of its kind, the IL CDP is a state-wide, collaborative effort of public and private funders throughout Illinois and consists of an online system for collecting and standardizing historical financial and organizational data. Prince Charitable Trusts, along with other funders in Illinois, now requires applicants to complete a Data Profile annually through the IL CDP website (http://www.ilculturaldata.org). You will use the information you enter into the Data Profile in your application to Prince Charitable Trusts, as well as other participating funders throughout the state.

The IL CDP will provide the cultural community with consistent, reliable, comprehensive data on arts and culture in Illinois, and enable organizations to view trends in their data, benchmark themselves against peer organizations, and enhance their financial management capacity.

For more information about the Illinois Cultural Data Project, please see http://www.ilculturaldata.org.

Proposals should be sent to the attention of Benna B. Wilde, Managing Director.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PROPOSAL REVIEW PROCESS

  • Within one month of a deadline, organizations will be informed in writing about whether the proposal request falls within the guidelines of the Trusts.
  • Once a proposal has been accepted for consideration, an organization will be notified if further information is needed and a site visit may be scheduled.
  • Within five months of the proposal submission deadline, organizations will receive written notice as to whether the request has been funded.

WHAT WE FUND

  • The Trusts make grants only to charitable organizations that are exempt from federal income tax under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and are classified as public charities under Sections 509(a)(1) or 509(a)(2).
  • The Trusts' Chicago program only funds organizations within the city limits of Chicago (with the exception of grants made through the MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at Prince).
  • The Trusts do not fund projects that promote or proselytize any religion. While we do fund the projects of faith-based organizations, those projects must be secular in nature.
  • The Trusts do not fund organizations that discriminate on the basis of ethnicity, race, color, creed, religion, gender, national origin, age, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any veteran's status