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FAQ’s
General Questions
1. How do we apply for a grant?
Health, Education, and Arts Program Areas
Applications are accepted via invitations only this year. The Foundation will only review applications from those who have been invited to submit an application.
2. When can we apply?
Application submissions for the 2020 grant cycle will open February 10, 2020.
3. When will we know if we are invited to apply for a Health, Education or Arts grant
Invitations will be sent out the week of February 10, 2020. Please note that an invitation to apply does not guarantee funding.
4. What does the review process consist of?
Applications will be reviewed by Foundation staff and Trustees. The review process will include a site visit. Final decisions will be announced in June 2020.
5. How can we strengthen our application?
Applications will be assessed based upon their alignment with our mission, program area focus, and grant-making goals. We highly encourage you to review our overview of the Foundation’s grants program to learn more about our grant-making priorities, as well as the Foundation’s review criteria that highlight the characteristics we value in the organizations we fund.
6. What kinds of support do you provide?
The Foundation will consider requests for support for programs, core operating, or capacity building. Capital needs will be supported if they are directly tied to program delivery (e.g., supplies, equipment, technology, renovations).
7. How much should we apply for?
Foundation grants vary. A moderate grant size has historically been between $25,000- $50,000. We encourage you to submit for an amount that reflects the core needs of your organization or program. A number of factors will be used by the Foundation to determine ultimate funding levels including project budget size, participation of other funders, and specific organization or program needs.
If you are a past grantee, keep in mind that historical funding amounts will have no influence over funding levels for this year.
8. If we were a past Health, Education, or Arts grantee and didn’t receive an invitation. Did our organization do something wrong?
Unfortunately the Foundation has finite resources and is unable to support all of the quality nonprofit organizations doing important work in greater Long Beach. One of the goals of the strategic planning process was to focus our grant-making in a number of ways (including identifying a primary geographic constituency as well as focused program areas) in order to best leverage our funding for impact. Yet this also means that unfortunately, we cannot continue to support past grantees that are not well- aligned with our focus. Determinations regarding grant program invitations were solely based upon this measure of programmatic fit.
9. How can we learn more about the Miller Foundation’s grants program and application process?
For more information please see the programs overview page or contact us.
Grant Software Questions
1. What are the recommended browsers for Foundant?
Google Chrome 14 or higher, or Safari 4 or higher. You may use Internet Explorer or Firefox, but you may experience some technical issues and we do not recommend them.
2. After accessing the system, I do not see the application. Where is it?
Due to the nature of our invitation-only grants, you must enter your access code in the provided box.
You can find the access code in your invitation letter.
3. Can I email or mail my proposal?
No. We are moving our entire process online.
Please contact our office for more assistance.
4. Do I need to complete my application all at once?
No.
If you need to come back to your application, you can click on the “Save as Draft” button located at the bottom of the application. Doing so will ensure your information is not lost.
Additionally, you can answer each question on a Word document as a backup and paste each answer into the application fields.
5. I just submitted my application, what is next?
After submission, your application will undergo the same evaluations as done in previous grant cycles – only digitally. A site visit will be arranged followed by a final decision from the Miller Foundation Board of Trustees.
Please monitor your email and our grant system websites for updates regarding your application.
6. Can I collaborate with another individual on my grant proposal?
Yes.
Once you have started a request you will see the Collaborate button at the top of the page. This can be used to invite other people to work on this request.
- From the Collaborate pop up, enter the email address of the person you would like to invite,
- Set the Permission you would like the collaborator to have, either View, Edit, or Submit.
- And lastly, include a message and select Invite.
Click here for more information
7. How can I print my application?
If you would like your application in a printed format, simply login to the application portal and click the “Application Packet” link. This will generate a PDF version of your application.
8. Is there a file size limit for attachments?
The maximum size for attachments varies.
If your attachment is larger than the allowed amount, please contact our office.