Franklin Square House Foundation

1. When are applications due?

Each calendar year, we will offer two funding rounds for housing grants and two funding rounds for daycare grants. The Franklin Square House Foundation is currently accepting grant proposals for its 2010 housing round. The deadline for proposals is February 24, 2010. The 2010 daycare funding round is only by invitation of the Franklin Square House Foundation.

2. Is funding limited to a certain geographic area?

We are a Boston-based charity, serving the Boston area. We define the Boston area as including communities within the route 495 ring.

3. What size grants will the Foundation make?

The grant range for Franklin Square House Foundation is $25,000 to $100,000 per project for housing grants; the maximum grant in support of daycare is $50,000.

4. How do I know if I am eligible or if my project is far enough along to apply?

Franklin Square House Foundation will not accept grant applications from any grantee that has not spoken with the Executive Director prior to submission. This preliminary review is required to stop potential grantees from spending time on a grant application that has no chance of being approved.

5. Is there a preferred format for grant applications?

Submit one copy of the application with original signatures. Attachments should be appropriately labeled with a cover sheet detailing what has been attached. All of these sections should be inserted behind the formal application and preceded by a numbered index of all attachments.

Once a hard copy of the application has been submitted please submit a copy of the application and all supporting documentation that are live documents to the email address provided. This will facilitate the processing of grant applications and improve the quality of the review.

Since the Foundation will make copies of parts of your application, please do not bind the application in a way that makes duplication difficult.

6. Will the foundation grant seed money?

The granting of seed money is a highly risky activity and one that we are frankly unsure about at this time. We will consider seed money requests, but they will not be our first priority.

7. What is the Foundation’s position on acquisition funding?

As with seed funding, please call us to discuss your request before submitting a pre-application.

8. Where do I mail my application?

Please send all pre-applications, final applications, and additional information to:

Robert E. Goldstein
Executive Director
PO Box 78037
Belmont, MA 02478

9. Once an application is submitted, what can be expected?

Successful applicants will be notified in a timely manner. The length of the review process is related to the number of applications received and the timing of the foundations Board Meeting schedule. Just based on the calender review and decision should take sixty to ninety days.

Once you have filed an application, you may receive a follow-up call from us seeking additional information and/or clarifications. Following the staff review you will be contacted for the purposes of setting up a a site visit. All housing grants under serious review will receive a site visit by the Executive Director and representatives of the Board of Directors.

10. What is different about daycare grants, from housing grants?

Daycare grants are reviewed by a partnership of the Foundation and the Children’s Investment Fund. A list of all daycare grant inquiries is kept by the foundation. When a funding round is announced organizations on this list will be contacted and invited to attend a bidders conference. The conference is intended to review grant rules and requirements. No grant applications will be accepted without attendance at the bidders conference.

11. If my project is not funded, may I reapply?

Yes. A potential grantee may reapply in the round following the round in which they were rejected, as long as the project was not rejected for either being outside of our mission or the sponsor was deemed ineligible. Projects that are rejected twice must wait a full grant cycle (two rounds) to reapply.

12. What are the possible outcomes to my grant application?

Grant applications may be put on hold if, for example, they require more information, are awaiting approval from a major funding source, need zoning relief, lack public approval, or have site control issues. Some projects may be rejected not because the project isn’t worthy of funding, but because there were other projects that had a more immediate need for funding. In such circumstances, rejected organizations will be encouraged to reapply.  On projects that the foundation deems eligible, feasible and appropriate, every reasonable effort will be made to work with potential grantees.

13. Are there any benchmark criteria that a grantee should be aware of in the foundation’s evaluation of applicants and projects?

Track record and expertise are always significant in the review of a project sponsor. That said, all sponsors have a first project. Organizations without a track record must show how or where they will acquire the expertise to execute the project they are seeking to fund.

Projects will be evaluated based on adherence to our mission, feasibility, evidence of other funding commitments, and readiness to proceed.

If there are any further questions regarding first-projects, potential grantees should contact the Executive Director regarding specific issues with project eligibility and timing.

14. Would the Foundation ever consider a grant request made out-of-round?

At the risk of being flooded with out-of-round grant requests, we reserve the right to review out-of-round grant requests in the case of an eligible sponsor engaged in an emergency relief effort following a fire or natural disaster. If this is the case, a sponsor should directly contact our Executive Director. An expedited and abbreviated grant process can then be considered.