Rural Partnerships Program Grant

The Rural Partnerships Program Grant, offered by the Elmina B. Sewall Foundation, aims to foster resilient rural communities in Maine through collaborative infrastructure and partnerships. With a focus on the Katahdin Region and Washington County, the foundation supports diverse initiatives including affordable housing, economic development, and climate change adaptation. Grant amounts range from $10,000 to $200,000 annually, depending on the project scope, promoting sustainable solutions to local challenges.

Priorities
For over a decade, the Sewall Foundation has focused on place-based rural grantmaking in the Katahdin Region and Washington County. Over the next three years, we will continue to prioritize work in the Katahdin Region and Washington County while also exploring ways to expand support by the specified year for additional regional, statewide, and cross-sector partnerships.
Priority work supported in the past includes:

• Affordable housingBroadband expansion
• Climate change planning and adaptation
• Community development
• Economic development
• Food systems
• Human health and social service systems change initiatives

Natural resource-based economic opportunities (ex. regional trail systems, industrial mill site cleanup and redevelopment)
Two-generation (2Gen) approaches
Wabanaki partnerships (land back, habitat restoration, economic development)
Funding
Available Funding: 2,885,000Generally, grant funding levels in this program area are:Individual organizations: $10,000 to $60,000 per yearIncreased funding amounts may be available to organizations that are acting as a hub for federal grants or that have special capital, operating, or project needs.Collaborative efforts involving multiple organizations/groups: up to $200,000 per year
Occasionally, organizations may apply for both organizational and collaborative fundsTransformational opportunities: variable funding levelsThese efforts address critical community and regional priorities and create sustainable, systemic changes. Generally, funding is limited to one to two years.

Eligibility

Applicants must be eligible to receive tax-deductible donations as outlined in Section 170(c) of the Internal Revenue Code. This includes: 501(c)(3) federal tax-exempt organizations; public schools; public agencies working for the State of Maine; Indian tribal governments (and their political subdivisions) recognized by the Department of the Interior. We accept applications from organizations and groups who work through a fiscal sponsor. A fiscally sponsored organization does not need to be a legal entity, but it must have a signed fiscal sponsorship agreement with a 501c3 nonprofit organization. The Sewall Foundation has funded 501(C)(4) organizations in the past for specific nonpartisan and charitable work, however it requires additional considerations and expenditure responsibility. We ask that any 501(c)(4) organization contact program staff to explore potential grant support. Organizations with 501(C)(4) status should not start or submit a grant application before speaking with program staff. Eligible organizations may apply regardless of their funding history with Sewall Foundation.

Ineligibility

The Sewall Foundation does not provide grant funding to private for-profit enterprises, cooperatives, or individuals.