Grant FAQ
May I fax my letter of inquiry and/or grant application to Impact Austin?
No. The letter of inquiry and grant application must be submitted online using the forms provided by Impact Austin.
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How can I get the letter of inquiry and grant application to Impact Austin if we need to bring it in person to meet the deadline?
Beginning in 2008, letters of inquiry and grant applications must be submitted online using the form provided by Impact Austin.
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Should I attach a cover letter to the letter of inquiry and/or the grant application?
No. If you do attach a cover letter, it will not be distributed to the Impact Austin members reviewing your proposal.
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Can I send additional materials with the letter of inquiry, like one of our brochures or newsletters?
No. We discard all additional materials.
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The grant application instructions say to use 12-point type for the narrative. Do you require a specific font?
No. We don’t require a specific font.
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If we’re not sure what focus area applies to us for our letter of inquiry; can we leave it blank and allow you to select one for us?
No. As an applicant, you must choose one focus area for the letter of inquiry based on the descriptions provided in the grant guidelines. We will not consider a letter of inquiry without a selected focus area.
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Can you give us guidance on which focus area is appropriate for our proposal?
No. We can’t look at your proposal and advise you on selecting a focus area. Each organization must make that decision. Often, a proposal can fall into more than one focus area. For example, a project related to an after-school music program for underprivileged students could fit into the culture and education focus areas. It would also fit within the definition of the family focus area, since such a program would "strengthen and enhance the lives of children and families" by providing a quality after-school activity for children with fewer options in this area. And if the proposal also emphasized how such a program positively impacts the mental health of the children, it could be construed to appropriately fit within the health and wellness focus area.
Each year, each focus area has varying numbers of proposals submitted. The "competition" within each focus area depends on the number and quality of proposals submitted within each focus area. Because of that, it would be unfair, or could be perceived to be unfair, for Impact Austin to help any individual applicant choose a focus area.
We recommend you consider which aspect of your proposal has the strongest impact.
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The funding we need for our program/project is less than the amount of the grant Impact Austin offers. Can we submit a proposal for less than the full amount of our grant?
No. We’re looking for projects or programs that use the full amount of our grant. We do not fund smaller requests.
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My organization is a faith-based one. What restrictions apply regarding your grants for an organization like ours?
Our grant guidelines state that we will not fund grants that are intended for "inherently religious activities." A faith-based organization should take steps to ensure that any inherently religious activities, such as worship, religious instruction or proselytization, are separate, in time or location, from the services that would be funded, wholly or in part, by an Impact Austin grant. Additionally, our grantees may not require program participants to attend or take part in any religious activities and may not discriminate against a current or prospective program beneficiary on the basis of religion or religious belief. Any participation in religious activities or events by recipients of Impact Austin’s grant-funded services must be completely voluntary.
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Can our organization submit grant applications in more than one category?
No. Each organization may submit only one grant application each year and may select only one focus area.
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Do we have to use the sample financial forms attached to the grant application?
Yes. Wherever a requested attachment says, "use the attached form," that’s what we want you to do. We understand you may have the same information in another format, but putting the financial information in a common format for all proposals helps our committees review the information more efficiently and effectively.
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What do we do if we do not have one of the attachments requested in the grant application, like a certificate of insurance?
Include an explanation of why you do not have the attachment. The committees will take that explanation into consideration as they review the applications.
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How does Impact Austin decide who gets the grants?
We accept grant applications in five focus areas: culture, education, environment, family and health and wellness. Each focus area has a committee made up of Impact Austin members. These committees review and evaluate the applications to select a deserving finalist. The due diligence process includes research and site visits to three or four semifinalists in each focus area.
Committee members attend training sessions where they learn Impact Austin’s process as well as how to evaluate grant proposals. This training teaches committee members to consider the credibility, capability and commitment of the applicant organization and the feasibility and significance of the proposed project or program.
After each committee selects its finalists, each Impact Austin member receives information on the finalists for review. The finalists attend our annual member meeting and speak informally with members about their projects, then members vote for the finalists of their choice. We award the grant money based on a simple majority vote.
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Who can we contact to discuss our grant application after we send it in?
For questions regarding the guidelines, process or forms, you may or call us at 335-5540. If Impact Austin has questions about your letter of inquiry or grant application, we will contact you.
Impact Austin is committed to a fair, unbiased process. While we believe in treating every grant applicant respectfully, we will not entertain even a hint of any unfair influence. We reject any and all unsolicited communication related to topics other than questions about the guidelines, process or forms. We do not accept unsolicited phone calls for the purpose of clarifying information submitted in the letter of inquiry or grant application. Applicants must not contact members of Impact Austin or the Impact Austin board in any way unless and until Impact Austin contacts you for additional information. Applicants must not make any attempt to lobby for their proposal. Any attempt to unfairly influence the process is grounds for elimination from consideration.
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Do you give grants to programs or projects that expend the funds over a period of years?
No. As stated in our grant guidelines, we want projects or programs that use our grants within 24 months.
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Do you give expenditures responsibility grants to organizations that are under fiscal sponsorship?
No. Applicants must be 501(c)(3) public charities.
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Will you consider a proposal from a group of organizations collaborating on a project or program?
Yes. However, one of the collaborating organizations must be the "lead organization," applying as if it was an individual organization on behalf of the collaboration. The lead organization must be willing to take on all the potential rights, responsibilities, restrictions and liabilities of the grant if it wins it. Please note: this means the lead organization will not be able to submit a proposal outside of the collaborative proposal, and if this collaboration is selected to receive a grant, the lead organization will not be able to reapply in the following two years.
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Your guidelines indicate you will not fund capital campaigns. Will you fund capital expenditures as part of a proposal?
Yes. We will fund capital expenditures that are clearly related to the proposed project or program.
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Your guidelines indicate you will not fund general construction or renovation. Will you fund construction or renovation as part of a proposal?
Yes. We will fund construction or renovation expenditures that are clearly related to the proposed project or program.
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Once an organization receives a grant from Impact Austin, can it reapply the following year?
No. A grant recipient cannot submit another proposal for the following two years. For example, our grant recipient for 2004 must wait until 2007 to apply again.
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If we submit a proposal this year that is not funded, how soon can we submit another proposal?
You may apply again the following year. Impact Austin solicits proposals in January of each year.
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If you reject our proposal for a specific problem, will you give us a chance to fix the problem?
No. A rejection is final.
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Can we get a list of the members of Impact Austin?
No. We do not publish a list of our members.
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How do we know if Impact Austin will make a site visit?
Site visits are only made after each committee has selected three or four semifinalists. The chairperson of the committee reviewing your grant application will contact you.
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What kind of communication can we expect from Impact Austin during this process?
Until semifinalists are selected for site visits, all communication between grant applicants and Impact Austin is via the grant administrator by
or phone (335-5540). After we select the semifinalists, most of the contact is through the appropriate committee chairperson.
Impact Austin sends e-mail notifications to each applicant confirming receipt of its letter of inquiry and grant application.
Impact Austin will send an accept or decline notification of letters of inquiry by e-mail and/or regular mail to all grant applicants by February 1, 2008.
Impact Austin contacts applicants by phone or e-mail if questions arise about the proposals during the committee review. This communication occurs with the grant administrator until we select semifinalists, and then communication comes from the committee chairperson.
Impact Austin will send notifications by regular mail to all applicants declined before semifinalists are determined. Semifinalists who are declined will be notified by a phone call from the committee chairperson.
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Impact Austin is honored to be named the Outstanding Philanthropic Organization of the Year for 2007 by the Austin Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals.
