Guidelines
for grant applicants
The Rotary Club
of Charleston Fund (the RCCF) is a charitable grant-making fund organized
by the Rotary Club of Charleston in Charleston, S.C., that is used exclusively
for charitable purposes within the meaning of Section 501(c)(3) of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (the "Code").
Purpose
The RCCF makes
contributions primarily to support local community needs, although the
fund's granting authority is flexible enough to support other projects
deemed by the Fund's board to qualify for charitable, educational or
other philanthropic purposes.
Grants disbursed
by the RCCF primarily are targeted for unique or non-recurring needs,
as outlined below. Grants are for specific short-term projects, one-time
events or one-time needs. Grants, awarded with the scope of the purposes
of section 501(c)(3) of the Code, are not awarded to organizations for
multiple or successive years. Grants will not be awarded for general
operating needs of an organization.
Grant
eligibility
To receive a grant
from the RCCF, organizations must meet the following requirements.
1. Nonprofit
organization. The grantee organization must be:
a. A non-profit
organization in compliance with Section 501(c)(3) of the Code, or
b. If the grantee
is not a non-profit organization as describe above, the RCCF board
shall exercise due diligence in determining eligibility for any
grant.
2. Proximity.
Grant applications should focus on projects that generally are within
Charleston County and support unique or non-recurring needs.
3. Type of
projects.
When applying for RCCF funding, it is important for organizations
to understand that the RCCF does not normally fund multi-year projects,
recurring needs, operating expenses, or annual budget items. It focuses
on specific, one-year unique or non-recurring needs that support priorities
of the Rotary Club of Charleston. Ideally, the grant should cover
all or most of the cost of the requested item, such as the purchase
price of a computer. This helps the RCCF Committee distinguish an
eligible request from a non-eligible request for operational funds.
Funded projects generally fall into, but are not limited to, three
areas:
a. Health.
The RCCF awarded $1,000.00, for example, to the American Lung Association
of South Carolina to cover the costs of sending 1-2 children to
Camp Puff 'n Stuff, a summer camp designed to teach asthmatic campers
about their condition to help avoid emergency room visits and school
absenteeism. The RCCF has also previously provided grant money to
Water Missions International, a local nonprofit that builds clean
water machines for distribution throughout the world.
b. Education.
The RCCF awarded, for example, $1,500.00 to Junior Achievement of
Coastal South Carolina to provide materials and instruction to 75
students at Mitchell Elementary School regarding the topics of free
enterprise, business, and economics. Similarly, the RCCF awarded
$500 to YEScarolina to distribute books to needy Charleston County
students.
c. Welfare.
The RCCF awarded, for example, $1,500.00 to Florence Crittenton
to provide new and properly installed car seats to 30 expectant
mothers in the Florence Crittenton Residential Program. Likewise,
RCCF awarded $1000 to Veterans on Deck to provide life vests for
veterans receiving job skills training while on boats at sea.
4. Religious
organizations. It is not the RCCF's intent to award grants to
religious organizations. However, grant requests for organizations
that are sponsored or affiliated with religious organizations will
be considered if they meet the purpose of the RCCF, as described above.
5. "Year
off" rule. Organizations
that receive funding must wait a full fiscal year from receiving an
award through the RCCF before applying for another grant. The RCCF
fiscal year starts each July 1.
For example,
if an organization applied for a grant in March 2011 and received
it in May 2011, it would have to wait a full fiscal year (July 2011
to June 2012) before being able to reapply at the next grant cycle
in September 2012.
6. Club Member
Sponsor.
Applications should be sponsored by a member of the Rotary Club of
Charleston.
Grant
amounts
Generally, the
RCCF accepts requests for grants from $250.00 to $2,000.00, with the
majority of grants being between $750.00 and $1,500.00. In rare cases,
other amounts may be awarded. We recommend that you check with the club
before making an application outside of the normal funding range.
Grant
selection and disbursement process
The RCCF uses the
following process to award grants to qualified nonprofit organizations:
1. Advisory
committee. As related under the provisions of the by-laws of the
RCCF, a Special Advisory Committee on Fund Operations ("The Committee")
will accept, consider and make recommendations to the RCCF governing
board on grant applications received on a periodic basis, as outlined
below.
2. Grant pool.
At the beginning of each fiscal year, the Committee will receive information
from the RCCF's governing board about the amount of money expected
to be released for grants for that fiscal year.
3. Grant approval
cycle. The
Committee will accept, review and make recommendations for grants
twice a year.
a. Timetable.
To be considered for a grant, applicants must submit an application
by the following timetable:
- March
1 -- To be considered for the April grant review period.
- September
1 -- To be considered for the October grant review period.
- The RCCF
Board may allow applications to be received at other intervals
in the event of unforeseen emergencies, such as a catastrophic
hurricane in Charleston County.
b. Review
of applications. The Committee, which is responsible for approving
or denying grant requests, will meet, consider, review and make
recommendations to the governing board during the month following
each deadline for grant applications.
4. Governing
board recommendation. After receiving the Committee's recommendation,
the RCCF board then will make final decisions within a month for disbursements
of grant monies. Once approved, the RCCF will notify successful grant
recipients and those organizations whose applications have been denied.
5. Unused
grant funds. If any funds from the grant pool are not spent by
the end of the fiscal year, they will be deposited into the corpus
of the RCCF's primary grant-making account.
How
to apply for a grant
Interested organizations
must submit a Letter of Inquiry and a completed Grant Application form,
which can be downloaded
here.
This letter should
be no longer than two pages and should include the following:
- A description
of the organization;
- The purpose
for which funds are being requested;
- A summary of
the plan of action or proposed activities;
- Rotarian involvement
(each applicant must have a sponsor who is a member of the Rotary
Club of Charleston);
- The intended
results;
- Who was involved
in identifying this project (e.g., board, staff, members) and;
- The amount requested.
Grant
requests must be submitted electronically by sending the completed application
by e-mail to:
Grant
payment
Grant payments
will be processed by the RCCF as soon as administratively possible upon
receipt of instruction from the RCCF board at the end of each grant
cycle.
For
more information
Contact
the president of the Rotary Club of Charleston, who changes each July
1, or the Club's
Executive Secretary.
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REMEMBER
- You must send a letter
along with your grant application
- You must send your grant
application electronically to the RCCF. (Where
to send)
- Grant applications must
be submitted by March 1 to be reviewed by April; by Sept.
1 to be reviewed by October.
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Rotary
is a global network of 1.2 million neighbors, friends, leaders, and
problem-solvers who see a world where people unite and take action to
create lasting change across the globe, in our communities, and
in ourselves.
Solving real problems takes real commitment and vision.
For more
than 110 years, Rotary's people of action have used their passion, energy,
and intelligence to take action on sustainable projects. From literacy
and peace to water and health, we are always working to better our world,
and we stay committed to the end.
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For almost
100 years, the Rotary Club of Charleston has been the premier service
club in Charleston, S.C.
Chartered
in 1920, the Rotary Club of Charleston is the "father" club
of almost a dozen area clubs from North Charleston to Beaufort. More
than 150 members of the club meet weekly at the Riley Park Club at the
Joseph Riley Stadium along the Ashley River.
Learn
more about our club
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Please
consider visiting our club, which meets just about every Tuesday
at 12:30 p.m. at the Riley Park Club in Charleston.
Meeting
address:
Riley
Park Club
360 Fishburne St., Charleston, S.C.
E-Mail:
carrollschweers@gmail.com
Mailing
address:
P.O.
Box 21029, Charleston, SC 29413
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