Mission
The fund grants awards to initiatives that meet the needs of the community in the following areas: arts, community and economic development, education, environment and human services. The fund may, from time to time, emphasize one area over another when emerging needs or opportunities require special attention. Within the areas of focus, projects receive priority if they:
- Are new collaborative or organizational efforts that address budget or service deficiencies resulting from funding shortages
- Address underlying causes of community problems or prevent problems
- Build the organization’s program and/or management capacity or quality
- Respond to well-documented community needs and/or require a moderate amount of grant money but produce significant results
The following areas carry lower priority for funding:
- Capital and equipment requests
- Ongoing program support
Grant awards are not intended to provide permanent support. Organizations must have the financial potential to sustain a program after support from the Hermantown Community Fund has ended. In some cases, the fund can provide more than one year of support to ensure the stability of a new organization or program, or to support existing exemplary programs to maintain services that benefit the community.
The following are representative but not exclusive examples of projects:
- After-school activities
- Community arts projects
- Career and job development
- Intergenerational and senior programs
- Money management programs
- Parenting education
- Prevention programs for youth
- Wellness activities
- Youth recreational activities
- Wetlands conservation, restoration and preservation
Projects not eligible for funding include:
- Endowments
- Religious organizations for religious activities
- Medical research
- Debt retirement
- Requests from re-granting organizations for funding for their own grant-making
- Individuals
- Political organizations or campaigns
- Tickets for benefits
- Telephone solicitations
- Fundraising drives or activities
- Organizations that work to influence legislation as a substantial part of their purpose
Eligibility
To be eligible to apply for funding, an organization must:
- Be classified as a charitable organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code or classified as an organization under Section 170(c)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code or have a fiscal sponsor classified as a charitable organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code or an organization under Section 170(c)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code
- Be located in or provide services to residents of the Hermantown Community Fund’s primary service area, defined as the boundaries of the Hermantown School District.
Grant range
Grants generally range from $250 to $1,000.
Application timeline
- Application available March 1-April 3, 2023 (due by 5 p.m.)
- Project begin date: July 1 or later.
- If awarded, funds would be available in July. Notifications will be emailed at the end of June.
