Community Arts and Humanities
The Community Arts & Humanities Fund of the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois enhances the quality of life in the Northern Illinois region by providing funding for arts programming.
Eligibility
To be eligible for funding, an applicant must:
Be a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt, not-for-profit agency and/or organized group carrying out a charitable purpose for the public good
Have arts and humanities as the primary focus of the organization’s mission
Be in active service to the public for at least one year prior to application
Provide services within Winnebago, Boone, Ogle, and Stephenson Counties
Be operated and organized in such a manner that no applicable anti-discrimination laws are violated
Be current on all final reports for grants from the Community Foundation; if your agency has a program currently being funded with a Community Foundation grant and your final report is not yet due, you must submit an interim letter letting us know the progress of your program (do not use the online final report form for this)
What We Look For
The Community Arts & Humanities Fund of the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois looks for projects that:
- Expand the availability of artistic and cultural experiences
- Increase access to the arts and humanities
- Enhance community awareness and increase public exposure to different ethnic and cultural art forms
- Preserve elements of past and current cultural forms
- Show support from other funding sources
- Provide long range fund development planning beyond funding period
- Present a clear work plan which shows the ability to achieve project’s goals
- Demonstrate quality, vision, effectiveness and good management
- Encourage cooperation, create efficiencies and reduce duplication of services
- Articulate meaningful, reasonable, measurable outcomes
- Priority will be given to collaborative projects
Priority for funding will be given to non-tax supported organizations.
Grant Cycle
The deadlines for submitting all applications are January 15th and July 15th of each year. If the deadline falls on a weekend or holiday, proposals are due on the next business day. Both the online application AND all hard copy materials must be received on or before the deadline date. Grants are typically awarded in late March for the January grant cycle and late September for the July grant cycle.
Carefully consider the funding cycle that allows you to receive funds prior to the start of your program. Grant applications for summer programs should apply to the July grant cycle the year before the program begins.
Only one proposal per organization per grant program will be considered during the Community Foundation’s fiscal year (July 1st through June 30th).
Exceptions to this rule:
- You are invited by a Grants Committee to resubmit an application in the following grant cycle.
- Organizations participating in a collaborative may apply once a year as a member of the collaborative, and once as itself or as part of a second collaborative.
Grant Committees are comprised of Community Foundation Trustees and Community Advisors. The Community Foundation’s Board of Trustees approves all grant awards.
All grant recipients are required to submit an online final report upon completion of the project for which the grant was made. This report must include the outcomes achieved by the project and a detailed budget explaining how the funds were used. The report may also include an oral presentation or other components as deemed necessary by the Community Foundation.
Final reports are due within one year of grant approval. You may access the final report here. » Past grant recipients will be excluded from future grant consideration if a final report has not been completed for prior funding. If an organization submits an additional application while a Community Foundation funded project is still in progress, an interim letter must be completed and returned by the grant cycle deadline. (Do not use the online final report form for this.)
Grants are made for one year only; should circumstances allow, a multi-year commitment may be considered.
Exclusions
Grants are not made from the Community Arts & Humanities Fund for the following:
- Ongoing operating and project support
- Operating funds – 10% of grant award may be used for project operating expenses
- Annual & capital campaigns
- Capital improvements
- Budget deficit
- Endowments
- Individuals
- Regranting of funds
- Permanent equipment (Unless it is an integral part of the program)
- Projects and programs that promote a religion or require participation in a religious activity as a condition for receiving services. However, grants may be made to faith-based organizations for other purposes.
All nonprofit agencies planning on submitting grant applications for a project done in partnership with Rockford Public School District 205 must obtain written certification of the project before submitting a grant application.
Click Grant Pre-Approval Form »
Online Application
As the Community Foundation strives for complete accuracy in its grant programs, we reserve the right to update grant application forms 60 days before the deadline. Your application may not be accepted if you do not wait to apply until it is 60 days or fewer until the deadline. While you may browse the online application at any time, you are reminded to check your calendar before you begin filling out any grant application.
Important Note: Both the online application AND all hard copy materials must be received on or before the deadline date. Please consult the online application for details.
To start a new application, click New Application »
To access an application that you chose to save and finish later, click Saved Application »
Please Note: Your computer must use one of the following commonly used internet browsers and have cookies enabled in order to access the online application.
- Internet Explorer version 7 or higherMozilla Firefox version 3.0 or higherSafari 3.2 (for Mac) or higher
- Google Chrome 4 or higher
Budget Worksheet: For your convenience, we are providing a budget worksheet that you can download by clicking the link below. You may find it easier to complete this worksheet in paper form before entering the information into the online form.
If you have questions, please contact Linda Sandquist, Program Officer at (815) 962-2110 ext 12 or lsandquist@cfnil.org.