The Grants Process
Initial Review
You can make a request for funding at any time although Piper Trust’s program directors can provide the greatest service if you contact them prior to formally submitting a letter of inquiry and grant summary form. Advance discussion can help you identify projects that align with Piper Trust’s program areas and funding guidelines.
After you send a formal letter of inquiry and grant summary form, our staff will acknowledge your submission within a week. Then, staff review your materials and provide feedback within six weeks.
Full proposal
Program staff notify you if your request fits Piper’s program interests, and, if so, they request a full proposal and site visit. The full proposal should provide detailed information about the community need and the proposed intervention, as well as research that supports the project. The proposal should include the project budget, your organization’s most recent financial audit and an organization chart.
We also request specific information about board leadership, such as member attendance, the percentage of board members contributing to the organization and the total amount contributed by the board. Piper trustees believe strongly that successful organizations have strong board members who invest in their success.
Piper Trust also requires that your organization adopt eight best practices for nonprofit accountability based on recommendations from the Panel on the Nonprofit Sector. See Best Practices for Nonprofits…
Grant Review
Our staff make final funding recommendations to Piper’s trustees. The trustees review all recommendations for approval and for decline. If your proposal is declined, staff will send you notification within six weeks of your initial letter of inquiry. If we ask you to expand your initial proposal into a full proposal, we will notify you of the disposition of your full proposal within two to six months from the initial date of inquiry.
Grant Award
Each grant Piper Trust awards is an investment in the community, and trustees and staff take seriously the responsibility to ensure that grant programs are successful. Piper staff will call you after the trustees award a grant, and we then send an award letter.
Piper Trust then invites the CEO and board chair of your organization to a meeting, known as Piper 201. At that meeting, program staff review Piper Trust’s expectations and grant terms, confirms timelines and provides report forms. In addition, Piper evaluation, communications and finance staff outline additional areas of assistance available to you.
Monitoring
Throughout the term of the grant, you and Piper staff will communicate regularly about the project’s progress based on outcomes and timelines agreed upon prior to awarding the grant. Depending on the type and term of the project, Piper Trust may require interim reports or other kinds of ongoing communication. Some grants include more in-depth evaluation coordinated by Piper’s Research and Evaluation staff.
With all grant projects, Piper Trust is interested in lessons learned. When a grant is completed, we require a final report covering program outcomes, challenges and successes. Program staff also meet with you to discuss the program results.