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Grants

Giving Sum Grant Applications Accepted NOW

Annually, Giving Sum awards a $50,000 grant to a not-for-profit organization serving central Indiana. The application process is now OPEN and grants are due by 5pm on June 17, 2011. t is important to note that the requirements and processes described herein differ from the 2010 Giving Sum grant process. Please review the 2011 Grant Guidelines and submission instructions carefully. Grant application guidelines are available below. 

Request for Support Overview

Giving Sum grants 100% of each year's membership contributions to a not-for-profit organization in Indianapolis working towards change, innovation, and community good. Members commit to combining personal resources with other members' resources in order to create greater social impact. The three components of the Giving Sum equation that members offer to the community are:
  • Time: Members can serve as high-impact volunteers.
  • Voice: Members can use their collective voice to advocate for a cause or mission.
  • Money: Each member contributes $500 toward a pooled grant fund that is distributed annually.

Eligible not-for-profit organizations may submit one application to request a grant of $50,000 (Money), volunteer hours (Time) and advocacy efforts (Voice) from Giving Sum to support general operations or special projects in one of Giving Sum's Focus Areas.  Preference will be given to applications that meaningfully and creatively engage Giving Sum members in innovative, high-impact initiatives.

Giving Sum will also award the second-place organization a grant up to $12,500 for general operating support. This amount is contingent upon the number of Giving Sum members at the time of the award. All applicants are required to follow the same application process, and Giving Sum members determine the first and second place recipients. The second place recipient will not have guaranteed access to Giving Sum volunteers.

Focus Areas

In 2011, Giving Sum is moving to an annual issues format, voting early in the member year on the issues that will focus education, volunteer efforts, and grant engagement. Previous membership years have engaged members through affinity groups with themes of Arts and Culture, Environment, Education, Health and Human Service, and Community and Economic Development.
For 2011, Giving Sum members voted to focus on the following issues:
  1. Improving access to and quality of education from early childhood to post-secondary.
  2. Assisting families and individuals in achieving economic self-sufficiency.
  3. Helping families and adults live healthy lifestyles.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for support from Giving Sum, applicants must meet and adhere to the following criteria:
  • Organizations must be recognized by the Internal Revenue Service as a public charity under sections 501(c)(3) and 509(a)(l), (2), or (3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and provide a copy of their determination letter from the Internal Revenue Service.
  • Organizations or the proposed project must serve audiences within the greater Indianapolis area, including the counties of: Boone, Hamilton, Hancock, Hendricks, Johnson, Marion, Morgan and Shelby.
  • Applicants must request one $50,000 grant (money), Giving Sum members' volunteer efforts (time) and advocacy (voice). Requests for any amount other than $50,000 will not be considered; requests that do not include Giving Sum members' time and voice will not be considered.
  • Giving Sum will accept only one application per organization per year.
  • All deadlines described herein are absolute. Applications submitted after the deadline will not be reviewed.
  • Formatting guidelines must be strictly followed. Applications that deviate from the formatting requirements will not be reviewed.

Administrative Requirements

The grant may be used only for the purposes described in the organization's request for support to Giving Sum. Furthermore, the awardee organization may not use any Giving Sum grant funds to lobby or otherwise attempt to influence legislation, to influence the outcome of any public election, or to carry on any voter registration drive. The organization selected to receive a grant will be required to provide to Giving Sum an Annual Report at the end of the grant term summarizing project progress and how Giving Sum resources were utilized.

Questions?

All questions regarding Giving Sum and the application process may be sent to Giving Sum at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Giving Sum members are not able to discuss your project prior to submission. Please visit the "Grants" section of the web site for a list of FAQs and information about our past grant recipients. Please do not wait until the final week of submission for questions. Giving Sum is an all-volunteer organization and may not be able to answer your questions due to the high volume of applicants.

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