At this time, the Freeport Community Foundation awards grants two times a year. Grant submission deadlines are: February 1 and October1 at 4:00 PM.  Emergency and critical needs grants may be considered outside the normal grant cycle. Organizations with a 501(C) 3 status are eligible to apply.  The Freeport Community Foundation does not award grants to individuals.  Grant Guidelines that include the funding objectives, fields of interest and restrictions, together with the Grant Application are obtained from the Freeport Community Foundation office at 524 W. Stephenson St., Freeport, IL, by emailing cindy@freeportcommunityfoundation.org or by calling the office at 815-232-5184, or through the Freeport Community Foundation website.  Grant applications will not be accepted after the deadline. After the grants are received in the Foundation office, the application and proposals are distributed to the Board of Directors for detailed review.  We do not do site visits to the organizations applying.  If a member of the Board of Directors has a question, needs clarification or would like to gather additional information to make an informed decision, the organization’s leadership will be contacted.  The Board of Directors then convenes and makes their decision based on the merit of the proposal, needs of the community and the wishes of the donor.   They utilize a fair and methodical rating process to make their final decisions on the grant awards. Awards will be announced by the 1st of the following month. A letter to the awardees announcing the award and a detailed grant agreement will be sent to the grantee to be signed and returned. At that time the grant amount will be remitted. A follow-up report on the results of the project or program funded is required. The Freeport Community Foundation is particularly interested in funding initiatives that are collaborative, inclusive and responsive to current and emerging needs of the community.  Programs and/or activities should: Present innovative, creative and practical approaches in dealing with community needs Strengthen the capacity of the community to solve problems or seize opportunities in the future Encourage partnerships and collaborative efforts to reduce duplication of services Demonstrate vision, action, effectiveness, good management and quality The philanthropic fields of interests include, though are not limited to, initiatives that will: Address current and emerging needs Foster civil and community betterment Meet human and health service needs Provide reform and innovation in the schools and new approaches to learning Support the advancement of arts and literature In general, grants are not awarded for the following: Annual project/program support and ongoing operating support Annual fundraising drives Capital campaigns (this does not exclude grants for emergency capital needs) Capital and operating debt reduction Endowments Grants to individuals, fraternal organizations, bands, booster clubs Travel or conference expenses Religious purposes (this does not exclude grants to religious organizations for nonreligious purposes) Fundraising expenses If you have any questions or would like to discuss your program or project prior to submission (this is highly recommended) please email our Executive Director at cindy@freeportcommunityfoundation.org.  To download the Freeport Community Foundations current application and guidelines, click here.