Franklin Square House Foundation

Mission Statement

The Franklin Square House Foundation is committed to the belief that all women and families deserve access to high quality housing options and supportive services required to live productive and successful lives. To this end, the Foundation supports the creation and upkeep of affordable housing and the continuation of essential services, thereby preserving the founding principles of the Franklin Square House Apartments.

Grant Guidelines

In support of this its mission, the Franklin Square House Foundation makes grants to housing and shelter organizations working to support women and families in Boston and the surrounding communities.  While we focus our grant making activities primarily on projects providing transitional and permanent housing, we pay specific attention to organizations that provide supportive services appropriate for the populations they serve.

Possible Uses of Funds:

1. Capital Projects for Housing: The Foundation makes capital grants ranging from $25,000 to $100,000 to support housing projects that support its mission. Grant money must be used for construction expenses resulting from erecting new buildings, expanding or adding to current buildings, furniture fixtures and equipment, and/or deferred maintenance on existing buildings. The Foundation will give one grant per project, but organizations that have been funded for a specific project may reapply for funding on a different project.
2. Capital Projects for Daycare: The Foundation makes capital grants of up  to $50,000 for childcare centers. Grant money must be used for construction expenses resulting from erecting new buildings, expanding or adding to current buildings, furniture fixtures and equipment, and/or deferred maintenance on existing buildings.  Grant funds cannot be used to fund operating or purchase supplies. The Foundation will give one grant per center over a five year period.

Please note, for both types of funding, grants will not exceed 10% of the organization’s annual budget.

Grant Recipient Selection:

The following criteria will be used in evaluating all grant requests:

1. Does the mission of the organization align with the mission of the Franklin Square House Foundation? Specifically, does the organization show a history of commitment to helping women and families through providing high quality living arrangements and comprehensive support services?

2. Will the project create an impact within the Foundation’s indicated area of geographic interest?

3. Does the organization provide accessible supportive services appropriate to the population it serves? Such services may include, but are not limited to, counseling, job placement, and rehabilitation programs, as well as mentoring, tutoring, academic support, and child care.
4. Does the organization have a strategic plan outlining its path for the next three to five years and key implementation steps?
5. Is the organization in a financial position to ensure the long-term viability of both the funded project and the organization itself? All funded organizations must have audited financial statements for their most recent fiscal year.
6. Does the organization have a strong and creative leadership team? Can it point to significant accomplishments?
7. Has the organization attracted other support for the project?  Will the organization have the ability to attract the support necessary to sustain the project upon its completion?

The following criteria will be used in evaluating CAPITAL PROJECT grant requests:

1. If the organization is expanding its facility or building a new facility, how has the organization arrived at the assumption that increasing programming and/or physical space is both necessary and feasible? What internal and external research tools did the organization use to reach this conclusion? How does the organization plan to support this expansion after construction?

2. If the organization is improving an existing facility, how and why did the organization choose to do the work at this time? What organizational processes were involved? Does the organization have a facilities replacement or maintenance plan? And if not, how do the staff and board identify and prioritized required work?

The Franklin Square House Foundation will accept applications on the schedule posted on its web site.  Applicants are invited to apply for grants in two consecutive cycles. Organizations not chosen in two consecutive cycles must wait one year before reapplying. Similarly, organizations that have received housing grants may only apply for grants for additional projects.