KCF: Multiyear General Operations Grant

_NOTE: Organizations can apply once every three years. This grant type is a good fit for organizations that have received grant funding from KZCF in the past five years._

Multiyear General Operations Grant

KZCF offers grants with a three-year commitment to support general operations for organizations serving Kalamazoo County. This grant type is a good fit for organizations that have received grant funding from KZCF in the past five years.

Organizations receiving multiyear grants will generally not be prioritized for Annual Responsive Grants.

Community Impact Priorities

KZCF’s priorities have expanded.

• Wealth - is attainable; people have resources to meet their needs and invest in their future.
• Housing - is affordable, safe and available.
• Education - is accessible and learners are supported.
• Neighborhoods - are vibrant; health, safety and strong social connections are nurtured.

Funding

The grant awards range from $25,000 to $175,000 per year with an estimated average award of $50,000. Grants will be for the same amount each year.

Eligibility

_ You can learn more about this opportunity by visiting the funder's [website]().

Application Details

Introduction
In 2024, Kalamazoo Community Foundation (KZCF) underwent a comprehensive strategic planning
feedback from partners, listened to community members from across the country, and reflected on
help grantees assess alignment.
commitment to equity is more accurately by hundreds of organizations applying and
reflected as a fundamental part of each priority managing KZCF grants.
instead of a separate priority.
Our current grantmaking approach is reactive
Partners are not always clear on what type of and disconnected across various cycles,
work or projects we fund and how to access limiting our ability to invest in proactive and
resources. Other sources of confusion include comprehensive strategies.
and funding for capital projects
The changes reflected in our grantmaking approach, found in the pages ahead, are
intended to create meaningful improvements in each of the areas mentioned.
how identities and different forms of discrimination overlap in the experiences of Black, Indigenous
and people of color, people with disabilities, women, people who identify as LGBTQ+, and under or
undocumented community members.
and resources that are the result of ongoing racial, economic and social injustice.
following the principles of trust-based philanthropy and are continually learning how to put these
principles into practice.

MISSION VISION
To create a thriving community where Kalamazoo County is the
people, resources and expertise are most equitable place to live.
mobilized to advance racial, social and
economic justice in Kalamazoo County.
KZCF’s priorities have expanded. We believe Kalamazoo
County thrives WHEN:

• $
• W H
• EALTH OUSING
• is attainable; people have is affordable, safe and available.
• resources to meet their needs
• and invest in their future.
• is accessible and learners are are vibrant; health, safety and strong social
• supported. connections are nurtured.
• 3

Nonprofits Faith-Based Public Entities Projects with a Current
501(c)(3) Organizations such as a governmental agency, Eligible Fiscal Sponsor

ABILITY TO PROVIDE DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION
Demographic data plays a critical role in advancing equity across the social sector. As KZCF deepens
nonprofit partners to provide demographic data on their staff, board and clientele. This information will
be used to inform conversations about representative leadership and support ongoing accountability,
Submission of demographic data will now be part of the grant application.
RESTRICTIONS

• In most cases, funds are used to support general operations. However, at the discretion of KZCF

staff, funds may be restricted to support a specific program or project that demonstrates the
greatest alignment to our priorities.

• Funds received may not be used to intervene in any election or support/oppose political

candidates for voter registration or lobbying purposes as outlined by the applicable IRS code.

Faith-Based Organizations
KZCF works with organizations to create impactful change in Kalamazoo County. Many partners
are faith-based organizations. KZCF prioritizes funding organizations that provide resources,
programs and services accessible and welcoming to all residents, regardless of their diverse
backgrounds.
KZCF evaluates all grant requests based on:

• • The strength of their alignment with our WHEN funding priorities.
• • Their ability to bridge the gaps in access, opportunity and resources that are the result of
• ongoing racial, economic and social injustice.
• • The ability to serve community members who have been historically disadvantaged,
• including Black, Indigenous and people of color, people with disabilities, women, people
• who identify as LGBTQ+, and under or undocumented community members.
• KZCF adheres to the Council of Michigan Foundation’s guidance such that community
• foundations’ publicly raised resources can be used for grants for non-sectarian activities of
• religious organizations and cannot support their primarily religious functions.
• As part of our funding process, we ask faith-based organizations a few questions to understand

how their religious identity shapes their work. These questions are now part of the application:

• • Does your organization ensure that programming is inclusive and accessible to community
• residents of other beliefs and identities?
• • Are community members seeking services through your organization required to participate
• in any religious activities?
• • Are the faith-based principles of your organization integrated into the design and
• implementation of your operations (i.e., hiring, board recruitment, funding sources, etc.)?
• This approach is designed to foster transparency and accountability, ensuring that all funded

programs align with our commitment to inclusivity and equity. Applicants can provide more
information to ensure a thorough understanding of their practices and principles.

Public Entities
Public entities can be large, complex and known for managing significant funding streams.
These entities operate at various levels – such as local, state or federal – and are typically
created to serve the public good. Examples of public entities include:

• • Government agencies (departments of health, education, transportation, etc.)
• • Public schools and educational institutions
• • City councils
• • Public libraries
• • Municipal offices
• These additional questions will be asked of public entities as part of our application process:
• • Please specify which department will manage the work and provide contact information
• for those directly responsible for managing the work proposed.
• How would KZCF funds complement, enhance or make new work possible? Are there

other funding sources that will be utilized alongside any funds granted?
Fiscal Sponsorships
A fiscal sponsorship is when a 501(c)(3) organization (the fiscal sponsor) provides its legal and
tax-exempt status to a project. This allows the project to receive grants and tax-deductible
donations while operating independently.
A written fiscal sponsorship agreement must be created between the nonprofit 501(c)(3)
organization and the project to outline responsibilities and expectations of both the sponsor
and the project. This ensures transparency and alignment for both parties as well as KZCF. This
document is required when applying for a KZCF grant.

GUIDELINES BY TYPE OF ORGANIZATION
Applicants using a fiscal sponsor will be required to submit a current and signed fiscal sponsorship
agreement at the time of application and provide an active agreement throughout the term of
their KZCF grant. If a grantee receives a multiyear grant, a current fiscal sponsorship agreement
must be submitted annually.
Key Components of a fiscal sponsorship agreement

• Purpose and Scope: Define the mission and objectives of the project and how the project relates

to the fiscal sponsor.

• Roles and Responsibilities: Outline the duties and obligations of both parties, including financial

management and compliance.

• Financial Arrangements: Determine administrative fees, fund disbursement and handling of

contributions.

• Governance and Oversight: Specify the governance structure and decision-making processes.
• Termination Clause: Establish conditions for ending the agreement and handling remaining funds.

Please check out the following helpful resources for fiscal sponsorships or contact our Community
Impact team if you need help locating additional resources.
Local Resources

• Stara Collaborative: This fiscal sponsorship resource offers grassroots agencies and leaders, as well

as projects, a valuable pathway to access funding while handling essential operational support.

Requests
The high demand for funding means we do not have the capacity to fulfill every grant request
and must prioritize those that most closely align with our mission, vision and WHEN priorities.
prioritize funding for organizations pursuing the following principles.
INCLUSIVITY AND ACCESSIBILITY
We partner with organizations that reflect our community’s diversity, ensuring everyone can
authentically celebrate their identities. A commitment to enhancing service access, practicing anti-
racism and improving inclusive practices is vital for strong partnerships.
We prioritize organizations that demonstrate:

• • A strong commitment to racial equity.
• • A high degree of accessibility and relevance to people with multiple oppressed identities
• (including intersections of race, ethnicity, economic status, immigration status, LGBTQ+ identity
• and disability).
• • A high degree of potential to create lasting change for communities facing racial bias and
• discrimination, including advocacy and systems change work addressing systemic barriers.
• 9

CENTERING PEOPLE AND COMMUNITIES OF COLOR
Partner organizations best serve Kalamazoo County by centering and amplifying the voices, expertise
and leadership of people of color, creating opportunities in civic, cultural and political spaces.
collaborate with partners who prioritize communities of color across the nonprofit sector.
We prioritize organizations that demonstrate:

• • That the communities most impacted are involved in significantly informing the work.
• • That there are no barriers that prevent oppressed communities from fully participating in
• programs and services identified.
• COLLABORATION TO ACHIEVE SHARED OUTCOMES
• We assess how organizations are collaborating to harness collective power.
• We prioritize organizations that demonstrate:
• • That there are multiple strong local partnerships established.
• • That their work fulfills a unique need that enhances existing efforts or programs in community.
• COMMITMENT TO LEARNING AND GROWING
• Our partners are engaged in continuous learning and growth, recognizing it as essential to advancing

equity and justice. Partners embrace opportunities to engage with complex and challenging
information, value lived experience, and foster equitable practices.
We prioritize organizations that demonstrate:

• • That equity practices and nondiscrimination policies are in place.
• • That multiple identities and perspectives are present to lead the work.
• • That there is evidence of growth in and commitment to
• advancing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).
• 10

CHART YOUR GRANTSEEKING JOURNEY
Explore KZCF’s many grant options and match your organization and needs to
the one that fits best.
of KZCF’s Community Impact WHEN priorities
and demonstrate racial equity strategies.
(programs, salaries, space,
program supplies, etc.).
eligible. For more information through KZCF’s Community
on fiscal sponsorships, refer to Impact process?
the Guidelines by Type of
Organization section.
commitments range that range from
from $25K to $175K $5K to $50K.
with an average
award of $50K.

Operations Grants
KZCF offers grants with a three-year commitment to support general operations for organizations
serving Kalamazoo County. This grant type is a good fit for organizations that have received grant
funding from KZCF in the past five years.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

• Organizations must be a nonprofit 501(c)(3), registered religious institution or public entity (i.e.,

governmental agency, public school, educational institution, city council, public library, municipal
office, etc.), or a project with a current eligible fiscal sponsor.

• Organizations must connect to at least one of KZCF’s Community Impact WHEN priorities.
• The organization or its programming must be located in Kalamazoo County.

FUNDS AVAILABLE DEADLINES
The grant awards range from $25,000 to $175,000 with an In 2025, there is one opportunity
estimated average award of $50,000. Grants will be for the to apply for a multiyear grant.
for this type of grant will be in

• An estimated $5 million is available to fund approximately 60 to 80

the spring of 2028. If a grant is
organizations.
• Ten percent of the funds available are earmarked for
year grant term.
organizations that build capacity for the nonprofit sector or that
• Open Date: Wednesday,
serve as backbone institutions for collective impact or sector
Feb. 12, 2025
coordination efforts.
• Deadline: Wednesday
March 26, 2025, by 5 p.m.
2028. Awards will be renewed annually after the annual reporting
is completed and the new grant agreement is signed.

REPORTING
Funded partners must engage in an annual reporting process each year during the three-year grant
period. The annual report will include two components:

• • An opportunity to engage in a grant reflection conversation with a Community Impact officer
• (CIO) prompted by the CIO.
• • A submission of summarized data through a provided form.
• Required information to be submitted includes:
• • Total number of individuals served across the grant year.
• • Combined geographical information for those served, collected by either township/city, zip

code or school district. This information will be collected in a percentage format.

• Combined racial/ethnic demographics for those served, collected in commonly utilized

categories. This information will be collected in a percentage format.

• Actual numbers for the impact data points that the applicant identifies within the application.

See the Reporting section for details.
RESTRICTIONS

• Funds received may not be used to intervene in any election or support/oppose political

candidates for voter registration, or lobbying purposes as outlined by the applicable IRS code.

• Organizations can apply once every three years. Organizations receiving multiyear grants will

generally not be prioritized for Annual Responsive Grants.

• Funding commitment could be subject to change based on annual availability of KZCF funds.

APPLICATION PROCESS

1. Submit an Online Request by the Deadline

Apply online once every three years starting in 2025. This application requires the submission of the
following items.

• An organizational budget.
• One to three proposed outputs or outcome data points that will be evaluated annually, including

projections for each point.

• A collection of demographic information, including the racial/ethnic identifications of staff, board

members and clientele.

• An indication of significant leadership changes at the organization or board level.
• An indication of any findings related to a financial audit in the past two years.
• An explanation of the current standing of the board, including the number of members, their

relation to the executive director and the governing bylaws.

• Narrative responses to questions about your request.

1. Your Grant Request is Reviewed

Applications will be reviewed by KZCF’s Community Impact team, Community Impact Committee
and board of trustees. A liaison will follow up with the grant contact via email if there are additional
questions.

1. Grant Award Notification and Grant Agreement

Notification of the outcome of your request will be sent via email by the end of June.

• If a grant is awarded, a grant agreement will follow the award notification, which must be signed

and returned for the grant payment to be processed.

1. Annual Reporting

An annual report will be required each year of the grant period. See the Reporting section for details.
You may contact your CIO at any time with questions about your grant or ideas for how we can offer
nonmonetary support for your work. Additionally, we would welcome a visit to your space at your
discretion. Your CIO will reach out to schedule an annual reflection conversation.

Grants
KZCF offers grants with an annual one-year grant term to support projects, programs or general
operations for organizations that connect to one or more of KZCF’s Community Impact WHEN
priorities. This grant is a fit for organizations applying for the first time, newly established organizations,
ongoing grants for partners who did not receive a multiyear award, and emerging pilots or projects for
organizations already being funded.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

• Organizations must be a nonprofit 501(c)(3), registered religious institution or public entity (i.e.,

governmental agency, public school, educational institution, city council, public library, municipal
office, etc.), or a project with a current eligible fiscal sponsor.

• Organizations must connect to at least one of KZCF’s Community Impact WHEN priorities.
• The organization or its programming must be located in Kalamazoo County.

Opportunity 1
The grant range is from $5,000 to $50,000. • Open Date: Wednesday, Feb. 12,
2025.
fund approximately 50 requests under this type of
2025, by 5 p.m.
• Open date: Wednesday,
Aug. 13, 2025.
• Deadline: Wednesday,
Sept. 24, 2025, by 5 p.m.

REPORTING
Funded partners must engage in an annual reporting process. The annual report will include
two components:

• • An opportunity to engage in a grant reflection conversation with a CIO prompted by the CIO.
• • A submission of summarized data through a provided form.
• Required information submitted in that form will include:
• • The total number of individuals served across the grant year
• • Aggregate geographical information for those served, collected by either township/city, zip

code or school district. This information will be collected in a percentage format.

• Aggregate racial/ethnic demographics for those served, collected in commonly utilized

categories. This information will be collected in a percentage format.

• Actual numbers for the impact data points the partner identified in the application. See the

Reporting section for more details.
RESTRICTIONS

• Funds received may not be used to intervene in any election or to support/oppose political

candidates for voter registration, or lobbying purposes as outlined by the applicable IRS code.

• Organizations can apply once per year for this type of grant. Organizations receiving multiyear

grants will generally not be prioritized for Annual Responsive Grants.

APPLICATION PROCESS

1. Submit an Online Request

Visit our website to apply once per year by the deadline. This application requires the submission of the
following items:

• • An organizational budget.
• • One to three proposed outputs or outcome data points that will be evaluated annually, including
• projections for each point.
• • A collection of demographic information, including the racial/ethnic identifications
• and projections for each point of staff, board members and clientele.
• • An indication of significant leadership changes at the organization or board level.
• • An indication of any findings related to a financial audit in the past two years.
• • An explanation of the current standing of the board, including the number of members,
• their relation to the executive director and the governing bylaws.
• • Narrative responses to questions about your request.

1. Your Grant Request is Reviewed

Applications will be reviewed by KZCF’s Community Impact team, Community Impact Committee
and board of trustees. A liaison will follow up with the grant contact via email if there are additional
questions.

1. Grant Award Notification and Grant Agreement

Notification on the outcome of your request will occur by the end of June (if applied in March) or the
end of December (if applied in September).

• If a grant is awarded, a grant agreement will then follow the award notification, which must be

signed and returned for the grant payment to be processed.

1. Annual Reporting

An annual report will be required before the next grant cycle or consideration for future Grants. See
the Reporting section for details.
You may contact your CIO at any time with questions about your grant or ideas for how we can offer
nonmonetary support for your work. Additionally, we would welcome a visit to your space at your
discretion. Your CIO will reach out to schedule an annual reflection conversation.

Capital Grants
KZCF offers funding to support projects such as building renovations, new constructions, land acquisition
and equipment purchases for eligible organizations or projects in Kalamazoo County. Funding for
capital campaign projects is limited to Kalamazoo County. Applying for or receiving a Capital Grant will
not affect opportunities to apply for other KZCF grants.
Organizations interested in exploring loan opportunities can be connected to KZCF’s Impact Investment
team to discuss additional resources.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

• Organizations must be a nonprofit 501(c)(3), registered religious institution or public entity (i.e.,

governmental agency, public school, educational institution, city council, public library, municipal
office, etc.).

• Organizations must connect to at least one of KZCF’s Community Impact WHEN priorities.
• Organizations must have been in operation for the last two years.
• The organization or its programming must be located in Kalamazoo County.

organizations annually with a minimum request of $100,000.
DEADLINES

• Larger projects may be considered for multiyear commitments

at the discretion of the Community Impact team.
There is one opportunity to
apply for capital grants:

• • Open date: Wednesday,
• Aug. 13, 2025.
• • Deadline: Wednesday,
• Sept. 24, 2025, by 5 p.m.
• 18

REPORTING
Funded partners must submit a brief report with information on the project, how funds were spent and
include any available pictures.
RESTRICTIONS
Funds received may not be used to intervene in any election or support/oppose political candidates for
voter registration, or lobbying purposes as outlined by the applicable IRS code.
APPLICATION PROCESS

1. Submit an Online Request

Visit our website to apply online once per year by the deadline. This application requires the
submission of a project budget and timeline.

1. Your Grant Request is Reviewed

Applications will be reviewed by KZCF’s Community Impact team, Community Impact Committee
and board of trustees. A liaison will follow up with the grant contact via email if there are additional
questions.

1. Grant Decisions Are Communicated

Notification of the outcome of your request will be sent via email in December.

• If a grant is awarded, a grant agreement will then follow the award notification, which must be

signed and returned for the grant payment to be processed.

1. Reporting

A brief report with information on the project will be required within a year of receipt of the funds.
Grantees will be asked to provide update on the status of the project and pictures as available.
You may contact your Community Impact liaison at any time with questions about your grant or
Additionally, we would welcome
a visit to your space at your discretion. Your liaison will reach out to schedule an annual reflection
conversation.

Kalamazoo
Community
Foundation
Grant Guide

In This Guide
02 Introduction
03 Mission, Vision and Priorities
04 Overall Eligibility
06 Guidelines by Type of Organization
09 How We Prioritize Requests
11 Charting Your Grantseeking Journey
12 Multiyear General Operation Grants
15 Annual Responsive Grants
18 Capital Grants
20 Mobilizing Grants
22 Annual Reporting Process
23 Contact Us
24 Key Terms

Introduction
In 2024, Kalamazoo Community Foundation (KZCF) underwent a comprehensive strategic planning
process to define our future direction within the community. Through this process, we gathered
feedback from partners, listened to community members from across the country, and reflected on
what our team and the philanthropic sector has learned.
We have identified opportunities to improve on:
CLARITY EFFICIENCY
We learned that in practice, the priorities Ninety two percent of the grants made in 2023
of education and equity are too broad to were one-year grants, meaning that a significant
help grantees assess alignment. Further, our amount of time and energy was spent annually
commitment to equity is more accurately by hundreds of organizations applying and
reflected as a fundamental part of each priority managing KZCF grants.
instead of a separate priority.
STRATEGY
TRANSPARENCY
Our current grantmaking approach is reactive
Partners are not always clear on what type of and disconnected across various cycles,
work or projects we fund and how to access limiting our ability to invest in proactive and
resources. Other sources of confusion include comprehensive strategies.