South Berkshire County Fund: Creative Transportation Solutions

Grant Information

Inadequate transportation is a barrier to accessing childcare, obtaining fresh and healthy food, receiving health services, attending education and cultural enrichment programs, obtaining and maintaining employment, and experiencing social inclusivity. The South County Fund Advisory Committee recognizes the need for additional transportation solutions and that public transportation is not the only transportation system available to residents.

We invite applications for projects whose goal is to increase or improve access to transportation for South County residents of all ages.

Project Examples

Examples of possible projects include:

• New Volunteer Driver Programs: support to create new volunteer driver programs for people in underserved communities and populations.
• Nonprofit Program Access: support to ensure that more individuals, particularly low-income individuals, can access nonprofit programs that are offered in locations without public transportation options.
• Transportation Program Expansions: planning to expand existing transportation programs to new or underserved locations, on new days/times, or adding transportation services for new purposes (e.g., expanding transportation services from just medical appointments to also include supermarkets or social gatherings).
• Transportation Program Improvements: support to improve the effectiveness and/or efficiency of existing transportation programs. This may include developing partnerships with other service providers, improving technology, and/or training and outreach.

Awards

Grants will generally range up to $5,000. Collaborative proposals will be considered for higher amounts. Applicants should identify clear outcomes as part of the application process.

Eligibility

_You can learn more about this opportunity by visiting the funder's website._

• Who Can Apply
  • Proposals are considered from nonprofits, municipalities, community organizations or civic entities serving residents of South Berkshire County, MA: Alford, Great Barrington, Egremont, Lee, Lenox, Monterey, Mount Washington, New Marlborough, Otis, Richmond, Sandisfield, Sheffield, Stockbridge, Tyringham, and West Stockbridge.
  • Please note that it is not the geographic location of an organization that determines its eligibility but rather providing service to South County residents.
  • Community groups may apply using a nonprofit organization as a fiscal agent.
  • Requests from organizations working with or in schools must be accompanied by a letter of support from the school principal and or superintendent.
• Eligible Expenses
  • All grant requests may include:
  • Staff time for program coordination
  • Reimbursements or stipends for volunteers
  • New software and/or technology
  • Meetings for outreach to community members and organizations, and developing partnerships
  • Inventories of existing programs or services, and identifying gaps
  • Technical assistance

Ineligibility

• Ineligible Expenses
  • Annual appeals and capital campaigns
  • Multi-year requests (the grant period is one year, though an organization may submit requests in consecutive years)
  • Expenses that have already been incurred
• Grants will not be awarded retroactively to replace funds that have already been expended.
• Neither the Fund for South Berkshire County Fund nor Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation supports organizations which in their constitution, by-laws or practice discriminate against a person or group on the basis of age, race, national origin, ethnicity, gender, disability, sexual orientation, political affiliation or religious belief.