WHAT KIND OF GRANTS DO YOU FUND?
The Connecticut Health Foundation (CT Health) awards several types of grants:
- Program grant — Each quarter, CT Health awards grants for projects with the potential for broader, systems-level change that will advance health equity for people of color. These projects must align with at least one of the foundation’s strategic objectives. Typically, program grants are greater than $25,000.
- President’s discretionary grant— CT Health awards grants of up to $25,000 to organizations and institutions that align with the foundation’s overall mission and strategic plan. Discretionary grants are awarded on a rolling basis and include projects that are testing new ideas, time-sensitive, or require emergency funding.
- Requests for proposals — CT Health occasionally solicits proposals for specific types of projects that stem from one of the foundation’s strategic objectives. Grant amounts for requests for proposals vary.
- Event sponsorships – Throughout the year, CT Health awards small grants of up to $1,000 to support health-related events hosted by nonprofit organizations. Sponsorships are awarded on a rolling basis.
WHAT KINDS OF ORGANIZATIONS RECEIVE GRANTS FROM CT HEALTH?
We award grants to:
- Organizations with IRS 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status
- Coalitions, advocacy groups or collaboratives with a responsible fiscal sponsor that has 501(c)(3) status
- State and municipal public agencies
- Public and private university institutions
MY ORGANIZATION DOES NOT HAVE TAX-EXEMPT STATUS. DO I NEED A FISCAL SPONSOR?
Yes. A fiscal sponsor is an organization that has 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status that agrees, in writing, to allow you to seek grants and solicit tax-deductible donations under its exempt status. This nonprofit will distribute the award on your behalf and work with you to monitor your grant activities.
DO YOU AWARD GRANTS TO ORGANIZATIONS OUTSIDE CONNECTICUT?
Yes, but only for projects that are focused on Connecticut and designed to benefit Connecticut residents.
ARE THERE THINGS THAT YOU DON’T FUND?
We do not fund the following kinds of projects:
- Grants to individuals
- Direct services (projects that focus on service delivery only and not on a larger policy or practice change)
- Clinical laboratory research
- Capital projects, endowments, or chairs associated with academic institutions
- Projects that do not benefit Connecticut residents
- Lobbying or influencing the outcomes of proposed legislation or an election
WHAT IS THE RANGE OF DOLLAR AMOUNTS FOR THE GRANTS YOU FUND?
We fund projects at a variety of levels. The size of grants varies based on the type of grant. Higher amounts may be awarded to ideas with the potential for the highest impact.
WHAT IS THE AVERAGE LENGTH OF PROJECTS YOU FUND?
Our grants are typically awarded for 12 months.
DO YOU FUND INDIRECT (AKA ADMINISTRATIVE OR OVERHEAD) COSTS?
We support indirect costs, commonly referred to as administrative or overhead expenses, of up to 15 percent of the total budget. These funds can support supervisory oversight of the project, fiscal management, facility maintenance, and other administrative expenses necessary for the organization to implement the project. If using a fiscal sponsor, the applicant must specify the indirect cost between the grant project and the fiscal sponsor.
WHAT IS YOUR GRANTMAKING STRATEGY? WHY DO YOU FUND WHAT YOU FUND?
Our grants are focused on changing systems to support more equitable health outcomes for people of color in Connecticut.
Here are some examples of the types of projects we might support through a grant:
- Developing or piloting a better way to deliver care.
- Researching sustainable funding options for programs or services that will lead to more equitable outcomes.
- Elevating community voices to encourage engagement in the policy process.
- Piloting innovative or new approaches to health equity that can be scaled.
- Evaluating a program, policy or process to determine its effectiveness and ingredients for success.
- Finding a new way to solve a problem or health disparity.
- Supporting news coverage of issues related to health equity in Connecticut.
WHY DOES THE FOUNDATION PROVIDE GRANTS TO MEDIA ORGANIZATIONS?
Ensuring there is a robust and informed conversation about health care and health equity is key to our mission. News reporting on health care provides insights, informs debates, and ensures that critical topics reach broad audiences. However, the ability of news organizations to fund this kind of in-depth health reporting has eroded in recent years. Recognizing that the media is critical to having an informed society and to enabling citizens to thoroughly understand important policy matters, the Connecticut Health Foundation has provided grants to nonprofit media organizations for coverage of health equity issues. The funding is awarded with an understanding that the journalism will be independent and that the grant will play no role in the editorial decisions made as part of the news organization’s health equity coverage.
WHAT’S THE FIRST STEP IN SUBMITTING MY PROPOSAL?
The first step is to read about the different types of grants we award, which you can find on our grantmaking page.
WHEN ARE APPLICATIONS DUE?
Each of our grant types has different application dates. You can find them on our grantmaking page.
HOW DO I SUBMIT MY APPLICATION?
The Connecticut Health Foundation has an online portal where you submit applications.
Visit https://cthealth.fluxx.io to review funding opportunities and apply. Resources are provided here to help you register and navigate the portal.
WHAT IS THE PROCESS FOR REVIEWING GRANT PROPOSALS?
Most applications are reviewed by both our staff and board of directors. The following is an overview of the review progress for program grants. Other types of grants have different timelines.
- Applicant submits a concept paper
- Staff reviews concept paper
- Staff provides feedback and technical assistance to the applicant
- Once the application is submitted, staff reviews it and makes a recommendation to the board’s program committee, which meets quarterly
- The program committee reviews the application and votes
- If accepted, the application is forwarded to the full board for approval
- If the application is approved by the board, the grantee receives an email notification, followed by a formal letter of award and grant agreement
HOW LONG DOES THE PROCESS TAKE, FROM SUBMISSION TO FINAL DECISION?
Our grant application and review process for program grants takes about four months.
WHEN DO WE FIND OUT IF WE WILL BE RECEIVING A GRANT?
Our board meets quarterly. CT Health staff will notify all applicants of the board’s final decision by email within seven business days of board meetings.
IF MY PROPOSAL IS ACCEPTED, WHEN DO I RECEIVE MY GRANT MONEY?
After notification, CT Health will email a grant agreement to the new grantee. Once a grantee electronically signs the grant agreement, CT Health will distribute funds through the payment system bill.com. The payment schedule is outlined in the grant agreement; grants over $25,000 are typically split into two payments, and grants under $25,000 are typically issued in one payment.
I’VE RECEIVED A GRANT. WHAT COMES NEXT? HOW DOES THE FOUNDATION WORK WITH GRANTEES?
Every grant awarded by the foundation is assigned a program officer. This is because we believe that working closely and collaboratively with our grantees is critical to our success.
The role of the program officer is to serve as a resource and direct contact for all questions regarding the grant. We value honest and candid assessment of grant progress, so regular communication between the program officer and grantee is critical. Regular communication can also be helpful in identifying areas of the project that are working particularly well or areas that need evaluation and course correction.
In addition to regular communication, we require grantees to submit interim and final reports. For 12-month grants, this means submitting an interim report capturing progress through the first six months of the grant and a final report at the end of the grant period. These reports provide grantees an opportunity to capture the progress made toward the projects goals and to reflect on what they have learned.
Because we believe in ongoing learning, from time to time we invite our grantees to participate in “learning collaboratives.” This could involve hearing from a thought leader on a particular subject or meeting with other grantees to discuss challenges and brainstorm solutions.
WHERE DOES YOUR MONEY COME FROM?
Our grantmaking is supported by an endowment that came from the sale of ConnectiCare. CT Health, an independent private foundation, invests this endowment and follows strict spending policies to assure that we don’t erode the initial investment and are able to support the foundation’s mission in perpetuity. More information about our financials can be found on our financials and evaluations page.
DO YOU FUNDRAISE?
CT Health does not fundraise to support our grantmaking activities and operations. Instead, we rely on the income provided by our endowment.
WHAT IF I DON’T FIND THE INFORMATION I NEED ON THIS WEBSITE?
If you have additional questions, you can contact our program office at grants@cthealth.org.