Women's Giving Circle of Harford County 2025 Grant Application

Women's Giving Circle of Harford County

2025 Grant Guidelines and Application
Grant Guidelines:

The Women’s Giving Circle of Harford County (WGC) grant program assists a wide range of nonprofit organizations’ programs/projects/activities directly benefitting women, children, and/or families in Harford County.

The purpose of the program is to provide a one-year grant of up to $5,000 each to nonprofit organizations to complete a specific program/project/activity that provides services in Harford County, Maryland. Grant funds may be used for direct costs related to a specific program/project/activity, such as but not limited to, personnel responsible for implementing a project, equipment, materials, supplies, that are necessary for the program/project/activity and administration of the specific program/project/activity (not the organization as a whole).

WGC shall fund defined activities proposed by an organization, and not its general operating expenses (including, but not limited to salaries, rent, etc.). Successful applications are those for which an organization has proposed to DO something specific with the requested funds. If the proposed program/project/activity needs staff to support that specific goal, personnel costs may be considered in the context of the application. However, if the request is to support the salary of a staff person to do the routine work of the organization and/or assists the organization in meeting its payroll and/or other general administrative expenses, those requests would not qualify, and would score poorly.

Examples:

Nonprofit X currently offers GED classes, but there is a months’ long waiting list. X proposes to staff a new cohort of classes and submits an application asking for funding for training workbooks, snacks for sessions, and to cover the per hour cost of a staff person to teach the new cohort. The staff person is currently paid by the hour for teaching existing classes, but there is no funding in X’s budget to cover the additional hours needed to staff a new cohort. In this example, the proposed salary costs support a specific activity and may generally be considered.

Nonprofit Y lost grant funding from another source and is seeking new sources of revenue. Y applies for a WGC grant for salary in order to backfill the deficit in its administrative budget. No particular activity is proposed beyond the routine work of the nonprofit. Because the salary request does not support a specific activity, the application will not receive a favorable review since the request is for the administrative support of the organization.

When completing the application, the organization shall ensure that its responses to the required questions clearly correlate to the specific program/project/activity it proposes.

The term of the award will begin on the date of the award letter (projected for June 2025). Awarded grant funds must be utilized during the term and fully expended by June 30, 2026.

Eligibility Requirements:
1. Applicant must be a tax-exempt nonprofit organization under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code providing services in Harford County. Proof of tax-exempt status will be required as part of the application by submitting the organization’s 501(c)(3) determination letter from the Internal Revenue Service and status will be confirmed prior to awarding funds. Additional documentation may be requested if the organization’s tax-exempt status cannot be determined.
2. Only complete applications submitted in accordance with the instructions will be reviewed.
3. Grant requests are for one year only.
4. Grant funds must be used to execute a specific program/project/activity that provides services in Harford County.
5. Grant requests must be for a specific program/project/activity that directly supports women, children, and/or families.
6. Grant funds may not be used solely for ongoing general operating expenses of the nonprofit organization and may not be used to supplant other funding.
7. Grant funds may not be used for sectarian religious purposes, or for faith-based programs not of direct benefit to the broader community.
8. An applicant for 2025 that received a grant in 2024 must complete and submit a grant report (either the final or an interim report, depending on the status of the project) of 2024 activities to be eligible to apply in the current grant cycle. The requirements and report template are available online here.
9. If an applicant was awarded a grant from the WGC for the three previous consecutive years (2022, 2023, and 2024), the organization must take one year off before applying for another WGC grant.
Additional Information:
1. Eligible applicants awarded a grant from WGC may only use the grant funds for the charitable purposes as stated in the application and approved by WGC.
2. Grapevine, WGC’s grant fund administrator, will distribute grant funds through the Grapevine Giving Foundation, a 501(c)(3) public charity.
3. Grapevine has the authority to withhold and/or recover grant funds if at any time, grant funds are misused or the applicant does not meet the criteria for the award.
4. Each grantee must submit a report of activities and expenditures at the conclusion of the project, but no later than the due date for the submission of a subsequent WGC grant application. Grant applications from grantees that are not in compliance with reporting requirements will not be considered for funding.
5. Grantees may be asked to submit 2-3 photos with a short narrative to describe the funded project/program. Photos may be used for WGC’s social media posts, press releases, or for other announcements. Should photos and a narrative be requested of a grantee, additional details will be provided as part of that request.
6. Organizations may submit questions related to this application by sending an email to: wgcharfordcogrants@gmail.com.
7. An optional pre-application meeting will be held for interested organizations on Tuesday, February 4, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. via videoconference. For more information and to register, see the Events page of WGC’s website. Note: a passcode is required to join the videoconference. You can obtain the passcode by registering for the meeting on WGC's website.
8. Grants are anticipated to be awarded in June 2025.
Deadline:

Applications must be RECEIVED by 12:00 PM (noon) on Friday, March 14, 2025, and must be submitted online only here in accordance with the instructions herein.

Applications received by email, postal mail, personal delivery, fax, or other methods will not be considered.

Application Requirements:

To be considered, applicants must: (i) complete all required sections of the online application; (ii) upload proof of tax-exempt status (the organization’s 501(c)(3) determination letter from the Internal Revenue Service); (iii) submit a project budget completed using the Excel template available at the bottom of the Grants and Awards page of the WGC website; and (iv) submit the organization's operating budget, all by the deadline noted above.

Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Ready to apply? Begin the application below.
Organization Information

Please provide the information below for the applicant organization.
Organization Name*
Enter the legal name of the organization.
Name of Organization's CEO/President/Executive Director:*

First NameLast Name
Email of Organization's CEO/President/Executive Director:*
example@example.com
Organization Address*

Street Address

Street Address Line 2

CityState

Zip Code
Organization Phone Number*
Please enter a valid phone number.
Organization Website*
example: www.nameoforganization.com
Point of Contact Name*

First NameLast Name
Point of Contact Phone Number*
Please enter a valid phone number.
Point of Contact Email*
example@example.com
Please provide a brief description of the organization and its history, mission, and mission statement.*
List, in bulleted form, the organization’s Board members and executive staff, including titles.*
Organization's Total Annual Operating Budget:*
Please enter a dollar amount.
Name of Program/Project/Activity (if applicable): *
Total Amount of Program/Project/Activity Budget: *
Please enter a dollar amount.
Amount Requested from WGC:*
Please enter a dollar amount not to exceed $5,000.
Date Program/Project/Activity Began/Will Begin: *

MonthDayYear
Date
Date Program/Project/Activity Will End: *

MonthDayYear
Date
Program/Project/Activity Information

Please provide a clear and concise response to each of the following questions. All information to be considered should be included in the narrative section below.
1. a) Describe, with specificity, the proposed program/project/activity to be implemented, including how it will directly assist women, children, and/or families in Harford County. b) Describe how the proposed program/project/activity aligns with the WGC’s vision and compliance with the Grant Guidelines.*
2. Describe the need and/or problem the proposed program/project/activity will address and its impact on the demonstrated community need. *
3. Describe the planned participants for the proposed program/project/activity, the projected ages of those to be served, and the geographic area designated for program/project/activity implementation.*
4. Describe the organization’s qualifications, expertise, and financial capacity to successfully implement the proposed program/project/activity.*
5. Describe how the success of the proposed program/project/activity will be measured. Provide at least two (2) quantifiable or qualitative measures of the expected outcomes.*
6. Explain why the requested funding is considered reasonable to successfully implement the proposed program/project/activity and ensure the request is reflected properly in the attached budget.*
Financial Summary

Please provide the information below for the applicant organization.
What percentage of total expenses was devoted to the cost of fundraising and administration for each of the past three (3) fiscal years? (Divide fundraising/management and general by total expenses – data available on Form 990.)*
What is the organization’s net income/loss for each of the past three (3) fiscal years? (Subtract total expenses from total revenue.)*
How many months of operating expenses are held in reserve by the organization? (Divide funds available for operations by average monthly expenses.) *
Enter number of months.
Does the organization have investments and/or an endowment beyond operating cash?*

YesNo
If the organization has investments and/or an endowment beyond operating cash, please enter below the amount of investments/endowment. *
Please enter the amount in dollars.
To demonstrate the diversity of the organization’s funding sources, report the last year’s total revenue by percentage:*
What percentage of the Board of Directors supported the organization with a personal financial gift this past fiscal year? *
Please enter the percent.
Are the financial statements audited?*

YesNo
If the financial statements are not audited, are the financial statements reviewed?*

YesNoNot Applicable
If the financial statements are reviewed (see previous question), explain by whom.
Explain who reviews the unaudited financial statements.
Program Budget

Please complete the Excel Grant Budget Form for the program/project/activity. Ensure that the proposed program/project/activity budget includes expenses and revenues. Use ONLY the Excel Grant Budget Form provided on the Grants and Awards page of the WGC website available online at www.harfordwomengiving.org/grants. Save the completed Grant Budget Form as an Excel file with the organization name in the file name (example: mynonprofit.xls where "my nonprofit" is the organization name and upload the file below.
Upload the completed Excel Grant Budget Form below:*

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Organization's Operating Budget

Please provide the organization’s current annual operating budget, including expenses and revenues.
Upload the organization's operating budget below:*

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Tax-Exempt Status

The applicant organization must be a tax-exempt nonprofit organization under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code providing services in Harford County. Proof of tax-exempt status is required as part of the application by submitting the organization’s 501(c)(3) determination letter from the Internal Revenue Service and status will be confirmed prior to awarding funds. Additional documentation may be requested if the organization’s tax-exempt status cannot be determined.
Upload the organization's proof of tax-exempt status below:*

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Submission

My electronic signature below signifies my approval of the submission of this grant application on behalf of the organization. I certify that the grant application and the organization does not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, gender, age, sexual orientation, national origin, or disability. I further certify that, to the best of my knowledge, the information included in the application is accurate and true.
Authorized Signature of the Organization's CEO/President/Executive Director:*
Should be Empty:

Women's Giving Circle of Harford County

Organization Information

Program/Project/Activity Information

Financial Summary

Program Budget

Organization's Operating Budget

Tax-Exempt Status

Submission