Frequently Asked Questions

Prince Charitable Trusts, Washington, DC

How should I contact the Prince Charitable Trusts to explore funding opportunities?
The Trusts do not use letters of inquiry. Basically, we review proposals submitted for the relevant grant cycle. If you have a question that is not covered on this web site, you can send an e-mail inquiry to Kristin Pauly, managing director at kpauly@princetrusts.org or to info@princetrusts.org.

What kinds of projects do the Prince Charitable Trusts fund?
The Trusts make grants in 5 broad areas: arts & culture, community & environment, health, hospital morale and youth. Check the section of the website entitled “Areas of Interest” for more detail about the focus within these broad areas. The Trusts make grants for either general operating support or for specific projects. The Trusts will also fund demonstration and pilot projects, feasibility studies, strategic planning, and program development and enhancement.

A very small number of capital grants may be awarded each year to organizations with which the Trusts have had a prior giving relationship. In addition, the Trusts have made program-related investments on a few occasions to help advance a programmatic objective.

What is the Trusts policy on multiple grants?
The Trusts will only provide one grant per year to any organization. We must receive the final report on the previous years’ grant before payment will be made on the next years’ grant. However, the organization may submit a proposal for a second grant before the final report from the first grant has been submitted. For example, the XYZ Theater submitted a proposal in January 2006 and received a grant in June of 2006. The XYZ Theater may submit a second proposal in January, 2007 even though the final report on their first grant is not due until April, 2007. However, if the report is not received in April, the second grant will not be awarded in June, 2007. If your organization receives a grant from the Prince Charitable Trusts, you will be asked to sign a grant agreement letter – that letter will tell you when the final report is due.

Where should I send our proposal?
Proposals may be hand-delivered or mailed to:

How long will the Trusts provide grants?
The Trusts will provide support to an organization for a maximum of 5 consecutive years (or 5 grants within 7 years). Organizations are then requested to “take a break” from submitting a proposal for the next 3 years. After a break of 3 full years, the organization is eligible to submit a proposal again. [If an organization is asked to “take a break” in 2006, they are eligible to apply again in 2010]. We recommend checking this website before submitting a proposal after a break to be sure that the guidelines and areas of interest have not shifted.

While the Trusts will consider requests for 5 consecutive years, this does not mean that a grant from the Trusts is automatically a multi-year commitment. A new proposal – following the guidelines on this website for “Funding for Renewals” – must be submitted and approved by the Trustees each year.

What is the geographic scope of the Trusts?
In the areas of arts & culture, health, youth, and hospital morale, the Trusts support organizations based in Washington, DC. In the community & environment area, the scope is the Washington metropolitan region, with particular emphasis on the Virginia Piedmont.

Are there other limitations?
In the Youth category, the Trusts primarily support programs for high-school youth aged 14 – 17.

What is a reasonable amount of grant to request?
A review of grants on this website will give a good indication of our current grant amounts. Since the Trusts provide general operating support, the average size of the grants tends to be smaller because the budget for each category is divided among those organizations that are within their 5-year funding cycle. Only a few new organizations are added each year.

If we have previously received a grant from the Trusts, may we ask for an increase in a subsequent year?
Yes, if there is justification for requesting a larger amount you may do so, explaining why the increase is needed. However, the Trustees are reluctant to keep increasing the amount of the grant each year.

Do you have deadlines? If so, when is the next deadline and how soon will I hear about your board’s decision?
For each of the program categories, there is only one application deadline per year. Please refer to the Application Procedures within the Washington, DC section of the website for particulars. Once your proposal has been submitted, you will receive an e-mail within 1 week after the deadline letting you know that your proposal has arrived. You will receive a letter within 6 weeks letting you know whether or not your proposal has been accepted for review. At that time, you will also be informed of the designated consultant who will review your proposal. The consultant will call you to schedule a site visit and may request additional supporting information. Typically, you will be informed of the Board of Trustee decision in writing within 4 months of the proposal deadline.

Who is my contact at the Prince Charitable Trusts?
Over the last several years, the Trusts have worked with a team of consultants to review proposals. It is our practice to rotate the person reviewing an organization so it will have multiple advocates. You are welcome to contact the executive director, grants manager, or a consultant with whom you have previously worked if you have questions about your grant or future proposals.

When and how frequently are reports on grants due?
The Trusts encourage organizations to develop evaluation tools and methods for their programs and to report their experiences to us. On a one-year grant, a final report will be due approximately 11 months after you have signed a grant agreement letter and received payment. The grant agreement letter will specify that date on which the final report is due. Occasionally the Trusts make multi-year grants. In this case, an interim report will be due at the end of each year; again, the grant agreement letter will specify when the interim and final reports are due. Grantees are requested to use the Report Format provided on the WEB Site. Both a narrative report and a financial report are requested.

If my proposal is denied, may I apply again for the same purpose?
Usually a proposal is rejected for one of the following reasons:

1. It does not meet the geographic requirements
2. It does not focus on the specific age-range the trusts are funding
3. It is outside the areas of interest of the trusts
4. There are already more organizations in the category that received funding last year than there are funds available