The Office of Grants Management is soliciting grant applications for the County’s 2024 Community Grants Program from qualified nonprofit organizations providing direct services to or advocacy for Montgomery County community members.
Donor Name: Montgomery County Office of Grants Management
State: Maryland
County: Montgomery County (MD)
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 08/13/2023
Size of the Grant: $375,000
Grant Duration: 12 months
Details:
The goal of this program is to support projects that target needs not directly addressed by other Montgomery County departmental efforts, addresses critical gaps in specific communities, cut across traditional sectors, or that offer innovative and experimental approaches to complex issues. Community needs do not always fit neatly into a single department’s mission, have often complex multifaceted root causes, and require innovative and flexible solutions. The 2024 Community Grants Program is intentionally highly flexible to allow nonprofit organizations, who have grassroots understanding of community needs, to design and propose projects that will best meet these needs.
To help applicants make their proposals more competitive, priority in awarding funding will be given to proposals that:
- Demonstrate a strong understanding of their target population’s/community’s needs and an effective program strategy to effectively meets these needs;
- Provide services, advocacy, or other support to the target population/community that is not already funded by other County resources;
- Provide technically, culturally, and/or linguistically proficient services to the target population/community;
- Demonstrate a broad base of impact through their proposal to their target population/community; and
- For the Underserved Communities target population pool, are submitted by nonprofit organizations based in Underserved Communities within Montgomery County and have a mission focused on serving these communities.
The range of programming allowed under this grant is intentionally very flexible. Examples of thematic priorities that have previously been funded by Community Grants across target populations include, but are not limited to:
- Workforce development, job training, vocational services, internships, case management services, and other employment support;
- Academic development programs such as after-school educational activities, tutoring, college preparation academic camps, and STEM training;
- Substance abuse prevention, treatment, and counseling;
- Wellness, leadership development, mentoring and social programs;
- Accessible sport and other programs;
- Advocacy, civic engagement, and community coalition building activities; or
- Basic needs support targeted at vulnerable populations not covered by other County efforts (i.e. clothing, targeted medical or mental health support,).
The Office of Grants Management will also seek proposals from organizations that:
- Exhibit cultural proficiency;
- Are inclusive of the LGBTQIA+ community members; and
- Use a racial equity lens in providing services.
Funding Information
Award sizes will vary with a minimum award of $50,000 and a maximum award of $375,000. The grant will be awarded for up to a one year (12 month) performance period lasting from January 1, 2024 to December 31, 2024.
Target Population
The target populations for this Grant Program are Montgomery County:
- Youth: $1.5 million is available for programs targeting the needs of the County’s youth community;
- Seniors: $1.5 million is available for programs targeting the needs of the County’s senior community;
- Residents who have Disabilities: $1.5 million is available for programs targeting the needs of County residents who have disabilities; and
- Residents who are members of Underserved Communities: $1,258,128 is available to nonprofit organizations from underserved communities who have unique insights into their local challenges and can develop the best programmatic solutions address them.
Eligibility Criteria
Applicants must meet all of the following conditions:
- The organization must have a Federal 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status or be a collaboration between two or more entities with at least one having this status;
- The organization must be currently registered and in Good Standing with the Maryland State Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT);
- The organization’s principal place of business must be located in Montgomery County; if a national or regional organization, it must have a location in Montgomery County through which it provides related services;
- All activities and expenditures under this grant program must be provided in Montgomery County OR be exclusively for Montgomery County residents if activities and expenditures occur outside of the County;
- Current Montgomery County contract or grant award winners must be current on all reporting obligations for other awards and those reports must reflect substantial progress towards the goals of their awards; and
- Proposed expenses must be for a new activity, expansion of existing activities, or a combination of both. County funding cannot be used to supplant other funding for already planned activities.
For more information, visit Montgomery County.
