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Submitting Foundation
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Foundation Name:
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Rochester Area Community Foundation
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Address:
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500 East Avenue
Rochester, NY 14607-1912
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Phone:
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585-271-4100
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Fax:
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585-271-4292
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Website URL:
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www.racf.org
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Founded:
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1972
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Submitted By:
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Deborah Ellwood
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Title:
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Vice President, Community Programs
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Direct Phone:
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585-271-4100 x 4312
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Practice Example Details
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Applicability:
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Large community foundations
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Methodology:
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Unrestricted fund grantmaking
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Standard:
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A community foundation awards some grants from its discretionary resources through open, competitive processes that address the changing needs of the community.
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How does this practice
meet the applicable standard?
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Six times a year, the Community
Foundation awards grants from its discretionary resources under three pertinent priorities that have been identified by panels of experts representing various sections of the community. The priorities have been chosen to meet the needs of the Rochester area and encourage community collaboration to serve the whole area.
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Briefly describe the practice,
including key elements:
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The Rochester Area Community
Foundation has chosen to prioritize three main areas for grantmaking: Building Social Capital through Civic Engagement, Early Childhood Development and Youth and Families. Each priority area has two grant cycles a year and all three are served by the same Grant Committee.
Each priority is supported by a panel of local experts and specialists who work together with the foundation to ensure that the programs are relevant and genuinely meeting the needs of the community and appropriately targeted at those most in need who can most benefit from the resources available.
The Civic Engagement program will award grants to a maximum of $20,000, while the early Childhood and Youth and Families Programs will award up to $40,000. Grants can be awarded over a number of years and all programs will support revenue costs. Large capital appeals are very unlikely to be funded.
There are no restrictions placed on the size of the applicant organizations, though the Foundation will pay very close attention to new organizations to ensure their capacity to manage the grant and deliver services.
The assessment process is undertaken by staff members who specialize in specific subject areas. Site visits are likely, except when the applicant is very well-known to the Foundation. The assessments are all made according to a fixed set of assessment criteria. This ensures consistency throughout the team and also provides a transparent audit trail should any grant decision be disputed by an applicant. The staff write application summaries for the grants committee and make recommendations regarding the outcome of the applications. The grants committee, made up of 12 members, predominantly current or past Board members, review the summaries, but only those applications where questions arise are discussed. The decisions of the committee are sent to the Board for ratification and they are usually approved.
When an application is first received by the Foundation, it will be acknowledged by letter giving a specific date when the applicant should expect to hear a decision. This is generally weeks after a Board meeting when letters are distributed, however successful applicants will receive a telephone call immediately.
All successful grantees are required to submit a report at the end of the grant that follows a prescribed format. Second or third installments of multi-year grants are not released until acceptable reports have been received.
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What method is used for
monitoring and measuring outcome?
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The Foundation works together
with the community to undertake a community-wide assessment that is able not only to track quantitative grantmaking, but the wider impact of targeted investment in specific areas. Staff compile program reports under each priority looking not just at grantmaking, but all areas of community engagement within each topic.
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What were the results?
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Grantmaking is only one element of the
Department and grantmaking sometimes leads to wider community programs in each priority area. Results are collaborative projects such as the Family Childcare Satellite Network that is now working throughout the Rochester area and comprised of state, private and non-profit representatives.
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