PNC Foundation has been supporting nonprofit organizations for decades. The Foundation exists to establish partnerships with community-based nonprofit organizations in order to enhance educational opportunities for children and to promote the growth of targeted communities through economic development initiatives. PNC Foundation concentrates its charitable giving on nonprofit organizations focusing on the following areas:

• Education–the Foundation provides sponsorship to less-fortunate children, ages 0-5; and to programs that focus in the areas of math, science, financial education and also provide direct services to children in their classroom; professional development to teachers; family engagement, etc.
• Economic Development & Community Services– sponsorship is provided to community development initiatives that promote the growth of targeted low-and moderate-income communities and/or provide services to these communities, such as job training programs, early learning and educational enrichment programs for children in low-and moderate-income families.
• Affordable Housing and Community Development – grants are provided to nonprofits that provide transitional housing and/or counseling services; as well as nonprofit organizations that provide services for small businesses;
• Revitalization and Stabilization of Low-and Moderate-Income Areas – support is given to organizations that help stabilize communities;
• Arts & ulture – grants are provided for cultural enrichment programs.

The charitable grants and sponsorship are provided to nonprofits that operate in regions where The PNC Financial Services Group has strong presence. Some of the qualifying states include: Alabama, Florida, Delaware, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Kentucky, and others.

The applications for grants are accepted online. Each applying organization must pass the eligibility quiz and then to go through the application process.

More information and specifics on the application process is available at: http://www1.pnc.com/pncfoundation/foundation_grantProcess.html.

 

American Express Foundation is supporting nonprofit organizations focusing their activities on Historic Preservation, Leadership and Community Service. Each year hundreds of nonprofit charitable organizations receive grants which reflects company’s values and business priorities. American Express Foundation concentrates its charitable giving on nonprofit organizations, providing the following activities:

• Disaster Relief – so far American Express has provided assistance for over 50 disasters in 35 countries;
• Employee-Driven Philanthropy – this is the gift matching program. Through this program the American Express Charitable Fund provided over $5.8 million in funds to match over $5.9 million in employee donations in 2011. In addition, the fund awarded $220,500 to 236 nonprofits on behalf of its employee’s volunteer service in 2011;
• American Express Leadership Academy – Academy focuses on building the personal, business and leadership skills needed to run a successful nonprofit organization;
• Historic Preservation Initiatives – the Program aims to increase public awareness of the importance of historic and environmental conservation, preserve global historic and cultural landmarks, educate visitors on sustainable tourism and strengthen local communities through preservation efforts;
• Serve2Gether Consulting – employing teams of Amex employees to provide pro-bono consulting to key nonprofit organizations.

When providing grants, American Express Foundation gives priority to projects of nonprofit organizations, serving one of these areas in US: South Florida, Greater Phoenix, New York City, Salt Lake City and Washington DC. Some of the countries abroad include: Argentina, Germany, Mexico, United Kingdom, Greater China and others.

The applications for grants are accepted online. Each applying organization must pass the eligibility test, consisting of questions regarding area of operation; whether the organization has its 501c3 tax-exempt status approved by the IRS, area of operation and other questions.

More information about deadlines for applying and specifics is available at: http://about.americanexpress.com/csr/howto.aspx

Boeing is known as the world’s largest company manufacturing commercial jetliners and defense, security and space systems.

Boeing is also known for giving back to the society by partnering with organizations which take leadership in what they do (size doesn’t matter), that promote diversity, exhibit innovation and work with others toward feasible solutions for community issues.

Boeing’s community investments/contributions are managed locally where Boeing has a presence, so grant making specifics and requirements are customized locally to address the specific needs of their region. Boeing offers support in 21 states here in the US, as well as certain countries in Africa, Canada, Asia, Europe, Middle East, and Latin America.

Generally, Boeing provides support to organizations focusing on Education, Environment, Health and Human Services, Arts and Culture, and Civic matters. Again, each state has specific requirements based on the needs of that geographic location.

In order to see if Boeing provides support to nonprofits in your state, specific requirements in the state, as well as information regarding the deadlines and where to submit the Letter of Inquiry, please view Boeing’s Corporate Citizenship Web Page

Cisco Foundation was established in 1997 to provide support, cash, products, and volunteers to nonprofit organizations with sustainable solutions that use Internet and network technology to benefit individuals and communities around the world. Cisco provides grants and networking technology and equipment to qualified nonprofit organizations to help them achieve best results in productivity, scalability, and cost-efficiency. Thus, Cisco Foundation uses SMART (specific; measurable; achievable; realistic; timely) metrics to measure the nonprofit’s impact.

Cisco Foundation’s charitable giving is divided into:

• Technology Grants – they’re provided under The Cisco Product Grant Program for small nonprofits applying for funding up to $15K;
• Cash Grants – cash grants are provided to nonprofits with an innovative approach to a significant social problem in one of the areas: education, economic empowerment, and critical human needs.

The requirements for the nonprofits to apply for grants include:

501c3 tax-exemption;

Organizations must serve the community at large;

Organizations’ charitable activities must focus on at least one of the following areas: access to education, economic empowerment, or critical human needs;

Organizations’ overhead is not to exceed 25%.

Each organization that receives a grant is required to sign a donation agreement before donations can be delivered. For the successful implementation of the project activities, grantee organizations are required to use Cisco’s online grant platform to measure their progress, as this is a requirement for continued funding eligibility.

Each year Cisco’s employees devote their time, professionalism and efforts to support charitable projects. Furthermore Cisco’s Foundation is matches employee donations worldwide for hunger relief.

More information about deadlines for applying and specifics is available at: http://csr.cisco.com/

Thus far, we’ve highlighted some of the national corporate foundations in our previous articles.

Another funding option available to 501c3 and nonprofit organizations are community foundations. Community foundations are public charities set up to provide funds to other charitable organizations, generally 501c3 organizations. There are approximately 800 community foundations in the US.

Community Foundations:

Serve a specific geographic region, which may be a city, state, zip code, etc.

Get their funds from public and private donors.

Are managed by a local board from the community.

Have a specific mission to support a certain charitable cause or causes

Charitable foundations are set up by individuals, families, businesses and nonprofit organizations. The individuals who set up the foundations can make recommendations on how the grants are given out.

In terms of size, many of the community foundations are small in size. However, there are also many larger size community foundations, with assets of more than a $1 billion. Several of the larger community foundations give grants totaling more than $100 million annually.

With approximately 800 community foundations in the US, there is likely to be several of these foundations that serve your geographic region and that support charitable activities similar to the ones offered by your organization. It will serve most 501c3 organizations very well to network with these individuals and seek out the foundation leaders who have an interest in supporting causes in common with your organization’s activities.

Over the next several weeks, we will be provide specific information on many community foundations throughout the US. We will provide information on geographic regions served, charitable causes supported, contact and the process of applying for these community foundation grants.