A new online resource aims to streamline the process of applying for grants through private and corporate foundations.
The Charitable Grants Resource Hub, launched this month by the University of Minnesota Foundation, serves as a one-stop shop for finding information about funding opportunities of $50,000 or more from philanthropic foundations. University faculty and staff on all UMN campuses can use the hub to search through current grant offerings, find information to help them prepare and submit proposals, and manage resulting awards. Listed funding opportunities may span all academic disciplines and come from any type of private foundation or industry.
Through the hub, researchers can also access a number of helpful resources, including tips for writing a good grant proposal, an interactive guide to help determine whether a grant might be managed by UMF or Sponsored Projects Administration, and a list of frequently requested documents.
Lynne Schoen, associate director with UMF’s Corporate & Foundation Relations team, said the hub is designed to strengthen private foundation fundraising by better coordinating efforts across the University system.
“We are striving to elevate the services we provide to faculty and staff applying for grants,” Schoen said. “We wanted to help manage the confusion of applying for grants through private and corporate foundations that all have different rules and guidelines.”
Private foundations—which are nonprofits that receive their funding from an individual, family, or corporation—may require applications to come through a 501(c)(3) organization (like UMF) or to be centrally managed. The hub helps meet these requirements while also simplifying the application and grant management process for University researchers.
“We hope any University-wide faculty and staff members looking to apply for a charitable grant will use the hub,” said Schoen. “We designed it to be helpful to those new to applying for grants—the website walks them through the process—as well as seasoned researchers that may only need a copy of a UMN document to complete their application.”
Faculty and staff can access the Charitable Grants Resource Hub using their UMN login.