Grant Application
Guidelines
Considerations of the Foundation
The Otto Bremer Foundation accepts grant applications for the following purposes:
- Program or project development
- General operations
- Organizational development
- Capital: building and/or equipment
- Challenge/matching
grants
- Program Related Investments
The Foundation works to insure that the impact of its funding
results in all people fully participating in community life.
The Foundation is interested in its resources being used
for programs that work to empower beneficiaries, not just
serve them.
The Foundation’s resources are available to organizations
that serve the public without discrimination on the basis
of race, color, creed, sex, religion, age, disability, sexual
orientation, marital status, or national origin.
The Foundation is supportive of organizations that are constituency-controlled,
have an impact on the future wellbeing of the communities,
and advocate systemic change.
The Foundation funds a variety of programs and services
whose relevancy and value have been identified by the community
and work with other community members to create broad-based
solutions to common issues.
The Foundation looks to see how the program or project is
sustainable.
Most grants are awarded for a one-year period, however the
Otto Bremer Foundation will consider multi-year funding as
well.
The Foundation values working with new and emerging groups
as well as established organizations.
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Funding Qualifications
Grants are only made to organizations whose beneficiaries
are residents of Minnesota, North Dakota, or Wisconsin
with priority given to those communities or regions served
by Bremer affiliates.
Grants are not made to individuals.
Grants are restricted to private nonprofit or public tax
exempt organizations for purposes defined under section 501(c)(3)
of the Internal Revenue Code.
The Foundation does not have a staff discretionary fund.
While the Otto Bremer Foundation does fund some post-secondary
programs, it does not fund Kindergarten through 12th grade
education.
Proposals that are turned down may not be considered again
for one year, but requests will be considered for a different
project. More than one project may be considered at a time.
Requests for the following types of projects are discouraged:
- Annual fund drives
- Benefit events
- Camps
- Commercial and business development
- Medical research
- Sporting activities
- Building endowments other than for
the development of community foundations
- Theatrical productions,
including motion pictures, books, and other artistic or
media projects
- Historical preservation, museums and interpretive
centers.
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The Process
The following outlines the process,
procedures and requirements for all of the Foundation’s grant
making activities, regardless of the subject of the proposal.
Applicants for grants under Civic Engagement or Organizational Effectiveness should also review those specific programmatic guidelines.
(These programmatic guidelines ask slightly different questions
beyond the general guidelines, and identify different kinds
of documentation that may be required, depending on the type
of work your organization is considering).
The Foundation requires only one copy of a proposal.
Assistance
In the preliminary stages, telephone inquiries or emails
to discuss potential projects or programs are encouraged,
but not required. Staff are available to offer assistance
in the development of grant proposals. Letters of Inquiry
are also accepted but not required.
The Minnesota
Common Grant Application Form is accepted
by the Foundation.
Our new added search function allows you to identify Grant
Recipients by year, grant type including related investments
and region.
Other Considerations
Grant review questions to consider in the proposal:
Does this program treat people with respect?
Does this program seek to support those considered to have
the least access to institutions and services?
Is the program accessible to all without discrimination?
Does the program ensure open and full participation by those
most affected by the program?
Does the program identify benchmarks and indicators to ensure
meaningful and measurable realization of rights?
Using these and related questions, we expect to identify
and work with organizations not because they provide services
to those who are underserved or have had fewer opportunities
in life, but rather because they provide services that enable
people to fully participate in and access the benefits of
their communities.
The Grant Review Process
- Applications are accepted at any time during the year;
there are no deadlines.
- Once application materials are received,
the review process starts.
- If an application falls outside
the geographic or programmatic purview of the Foundation,
the Foundation will notify the applicant immediately by
letter and the application will receive no further consideration.
- Applications are otherwise reviewed in two stages: a
preliminary review followed by a full review for final
decision.
- In the
preliminary review, the trustees and staff review applications
to determine whether a proposal generally falls within
the Foundation’s giving guidelines, including how the application
relates to the Foundation’s mission.
- Once past the preliminary
review, a program officer will investigate the proposal,
request additional information if necessary, and conduct
site visits whenever possible.
- Program officers analyze and
evaluate the information gathered from the applicant, then
make a recommendation to the trustees, who make the final
decision on grant requests.
- The time from receipt of materials
to a final decision averages ten to twelve weeks.
After the Decision
The
Foundation will send written notice of the trustees’ decision
to the applicant within a week of the grant review meeting.
Grant recipients must complete and return a donee agreement
before the Foundation can release the grant.
Payment is scheduled after a signed donee agreement is
received.
- A two-part report is required at the end of one year
from the day the grant payment was received. The report
should include a narrative portion explaining the impact
of the program, as well as a financial report of the expenditure
of grant dollars. The Otto Bremer Foundation does accept
the Minnesota
Common Report Form.
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Mail letters of inquiry to:
Otto Bremer Foundation
445 Minnesota Street, Suite 2250
St. Paul, MN 55101-2107
Phone: (651) 227-8036
Toll Free Number: (888) 291-1123
Fax: (651) 312-3665
E-mail: obf@ottobremer.org
Website: www.ottobremer.org
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Grant Proposal Checklist
A proposal should include the following:
Program and Organization Information:
- Legal name, address and
telephone number of the organization and the name and address
of the contact person.
- A brief description of the organization,
including its goals, purposes, short history, and if appropriate
any recent organizational changes.
- Proposals submitted under
the Organizational Effectiveness Program that include consultant
costs for capacity building activities should include a
workplan (including budget) for these services.
- A description of the
project for which funds are sought, what it hopes to achieve,
and how it will be accomplished.
- The names and qualifications of individuals responsible
for implementing this project.
- A list of the board of directors of the applicant organization
and evidence that the request is endorsed by the board.
- Documentation of the organization’s nonprofit and tax-exempt
status, if not a church or governmental body (municipality,
county, etc). Please include a copy of the 501(c)(3) ruling
from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service.
Suggested questions to consider
when writing a proposal should include:
- What do you want to change?
- Who wants you to do it?
- How will you go about changing it?
- What will you need to
do it?
- Who will help you?
- How will you know when it's done?
- How are you going to communicate
your results to others?
- How will your work be accessible
to all members of the community?
Financial Information:
- The specific amount being requested.
- A complete budget
for the project, including projected revenues and expenses.
- An audited financial statement for the organization's
previous fiscal year, if available, or a copy of the most
recent IRS 990 tax return.
- A list of other funding sources
for this project. The Foundation encourages applicants
to seek funding from a variety of sources.
- A description
of future funding plans.
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