We award four types of competitive grants to Fairfield County nonprofits
Program support grants
These grants are awarded for specific programs and services that contribute to one of our key result areas, and their corresponding strategies. The Community Foundation prioritizes requests from organizations that are results oriented and have capacity to measure/evaluate the impact of their work. Performance measures for program support requests focus on the impact of that program on the clients/customers served by the program.
Capacity building support grants
Primarily for nonprofits previously funded by Fairfield County’s Community Foundation whose work aligns with our key result areas. These grants are awarded to support specific projects intended to strengthen high-impact and/or high-potential Fairfield County nonprofits so they can achieve their goals more effectively and sustainability. Examples of capacity building requests include strategic planning support, performance measurement, executive transition planning, financial assessment and scenario planning, technology development, staff development, and board development. Performance measures for capacity building grantees focus on the impact of that project on the organization and its internal customers (staff, board, etc.).
General operating support grants
General operating support grants are by invitation only. They are reserved for highly effective organizations that are critical to the achievement of one or more of our key result areas. Only nonprofits that have been previously funded by Fairfield County’s Community Foundation and have a proven track record of effectiveness and impact will be considered for this type of support. If you are interested in being considered for a general operating support grant, please contact your Program Director during an open Letter of Inquiry period.
The Fund for Women & Girls small grants
Nonprofits seeking a small grant must demonstrate how they are helping Fairfield County women and girls live economically secure, healthy and safe lives. Small grants are specifically for initiatives that prioritize women and girls and meet their unique needs. Small grants are intended to support programs, projects, events that are educational in nature and capacity building requests. Small grants are offered year-round and the turnaround is quicker than our traditional grant process. Through the small grants we aim to increase access to funding for organizations that may not meet the requirements of our rigorous competitive grant process and strengthen the capacity of smaller, developing organizations. For more information about the small grants including the application/review process and additional eligibility criteria click here.
