GRANT GUIDELINES

The Connecticut Health Foundation (CT Health) is the state's largest independent, nonprofit grant-making foundation dedicated to improving the health status of the people of Connecticut through systemic change, program innovation and public health policy analysis. To accomplish this, CT Health focuses its resources on strategies that make qualitative and measurable differences in the health and well-being of individuals, their families and their communities. The foundation actively strives to serve the unmet needs of the state and its communities, and be responsive to unserved and underserved populations.

The foundation awards grants to organizations and institutions that directly respond to its current priority areas. CT Health also accepts discretionary grant proposals from time to time that are responsive to the foundation's mission of improving the health status of people in Connecticut.

FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES:

Each year, the foundation awards several million dollars of grants to improve the health status of the people of Connecticut. The foundation's board of directors has targeted between $4 million and $5 million (or 5 percent of the foundation's endowment, as required by the Internal Revenue Service) for distribution each year. While this is a substantial sum, it is small in comparison to hundreds of millions of dollars that the State of Connecticut spends on health care each year. To make a difference in the state, we must target our funding effectively.

These grant application guidelines describe the kinds of projects we do and do not fund; help you determine if your project idea is a good match with our strategic grantmaking objectives; and explain how to apply for grant funding.

DETERMINING ELIGIBILITY

Organization Eligibility: Each applicant must meet one of the following criteria to be considered eligible for a Connecticut Health Foundation grant:

• Tax-exempt under section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or
• Recognized as a public entity of state/local government.

Private foundations as defined in section 509 of the IRS code are not eligible to apply.

Grant Proposal Eligibility: The Connecticut Health Foundation does not fund the following:

• Construction, alteration, maintenance of buildings or building space, unless specifically allowed in the instructions for applicants
• Tuition or awards to individuals
• Billable services provided by physicians or other providers
• Capital projects, endowments, or chairs associated with universities and medical schools;
• Projects that do not benefit Connecticut residents
• Lobbying or influencing the outcome of specific municipal, state, or federal legislation or elections

In addition, CT Health funds indirect costs – expenses that cannot be directly linked with the work of the grant proposal but are associated with it.  Also know as overhead or administrative costs, these include costs of buildings, utilities, administrative staff and other expenses necessary for the operation of an organization. 

Indirect costs not to exceed 15 percent are allowable for all grants except Discretionary and general operating support grants (see below).

TYPES OF GRANTS

1. Solicited Grants:
   Solicited Grant Proposals or other invitational announcements that are specific to one of three program priorities.  These solicited grant announcements describe the problem to be addressed within one of three following strategic grantmaking areas:
   
   
   1. Children's Oral Health: The goal of the children's oral health initiative is to improve the oral health of children covered by Medicaid.  Over the next 10 years, the foundation will invest in projects that: 1. Increase use of preventive and treatment visits to the levels achieved by children insured in the private sector; 2. Identify and promote models of care that improve oral health outcomes for children covered by Medicaid in our funded communities.
      
      
   2. Children’s Mental Health:  The goal of the children’s mental health initiative is to reduce the number of at-risk children ages 6-14 entering intensive treatment and/or the juvenile justice system due to mental health problems.  Over the next 10 years, the foundation will invest in projects that: 1. Promote a community-based system of early identification and intervention for children at risk of mental health problems; 2. Support developing and disseminating knowledge in early identification and effective interventions relating to children's mental health.
      
      
   3. Racial & Ethnic Health Disparities:  The goal of the racial and ethnic health disparities initiative is to decrease racial and ethnic health disparities.  Over the next 10 years, the foundation will invest in projects that: 1. Create public will to decrease racial and ethnic health disparities in access and treatment; 2. Improve the quality of systems that enhance patient-provider interactions in order to promote health equity.
      
      
      
   To review the application procedure for a typical Solicited Grant, click here for the application guideline.
   
   
2. Unsolicited Grants:
   
   1. Unsolicited Grant Proposals not only respond to one of the three strategic grant-making areas listed above, but also support the overall mission to improve the health status of the people of Connecticut.  To review the application procedure for a typical unsolicited grant, click here for the application guideline.
      
      
   2. Discretionary Grant Proposals support the foundation’s overall mission to improve the health status of the people of Connecticut.  These small grants – not to exceed $25,000 -- are made at the discretion of the CT Health’s president & CEO and/or the chair of the board of directors and/or the chair of the program committee.  To review the application procedure for a typical discretionary grant, click here for the application guideline.
      
      

GRANT REVIEW PROCESS

The foundation’s application review and approval process includes the following steps:

1. An internal audit of all completed proposals ensures that all required documentation is present and that each section of the application is complete.
   
   
2. A review by both internal staff and external experts ensures that an application adds value to one or more of the foundation’s three priority areas, is programmatically sound and fiscally responsible, and presents methods that can be measured and evaluated.  Reviewers’ comments and opinions are incorporated into recommendations to the foundation’s program committee.
   
   
3. The program committee reviews applications, considers reviewers’ comments, and makes its recommendations to the full board for a final vote.
   
   
4. During quarterly meetings, the board of directors votes to either approve or reject grant applications.
   

NOTIFICATION PROCESS

Generally speaking, the grant review process takes about three months from the application submission deadline date. 

Upon receiving an application, the foundation’s grants manager will send an email to the organization’s identified contact person acknowledging receipt of the application and explaining the grant review and notification process along with specific dates for notification. 

If the program committee does not recommend an application to the board of directors, the applicant will be notified in writing or by phone within ten (10) business days of a program committee meeting. 

All applications that are considered by the board of directors will receive written or verbal notification within ten (10) business days of the quarterly board meeting. 

For additional information, please contact the vice president of program & evaluation at vpprogram@cthealth.org.

The Connecticut Health Foundation adopts the following strategic plan for 2007 to 2017.¹

¹ Progress will be measured against benchmarks on shorter time intervals, such as every three years.
² A large benchmark group will need to be identified by the foundation; data should be compared across same-age categories.