General Application Procedures
After reviewing the Fund’s current priorities and limitations, interested applicants should submit an initial letter of inquiry through our online application. Applicants who receive a favorable response to their initial inquiry will be invited to submit a formal proposal with supporting materials. We encourage applicants who have questions regarding the appropriateness of a project to contact the Fund directly. There are no deadlines for submission; grant requests are accepted on an ongoing basis. In fairness to other organizations, each organization may submit only one request per year for consideration. Applicants should review the guidelines below before submitting an online application.
Start a Letter of Inquiry for a project that is new to the Lisa and Douglas Goldman Fund.
Start a Renewal Proposal
for a project previously supported by the Lisa and Douglas Goldman
Fund. Requests will only be reviewed after a final report has been
submitted to grantsmanager@ldgfund.org.
Access the account sign-in page to:
- Return to finish an application that you have saved, but not submitted.
- View your previous submissions.
- Access the Formal Proposal application if you have been invited.
For answers to common questions about the online application process, please see our Online Grant Application FAQs.
*Note: Online application works best when using Internet Explorer as your web browser.
Letter of Inquiry
- Organization Information: Name of organization, Federal Tax ID number (or fiscal sponsor name and Federal Tax ID number), address, phone number, website, annual budget amount, and mission statement.
- Contact Information: Name, title, direct telephone number, and email address of the organization’s primary contact person and of the request’s primary contact (if different).
- Project Description: Project title; a brief narrative description of the project for which the organization is seeking funding, including a one paragraph executive summary; total project budget; project timeline, goals, and objectives; and geographical area served. Project description should be the equivalent of two pages in length or less.
- Requested Amount: Total amount of funding requested from the Lisa and Douglas Goldman Fund.
You will need to attach the following information:
- Copy of federal IRS tax-exempt designation letter.
- Project Budget: A one-page itemized budget (including income and expenses) for the full project. Multi-year projects should include budgets for each year of the project.
- Project Funding: A list of recent and pending grants for the project for which funding is requested. Sample Project Funding (81.9 KB)
Formal Proposal
If a letter of inquiry receives a favorable response, an organization will be invited to submit a formal proposal through our online application. Proposals should include the following information:
- Organization Background: A concise summary outlining the organization’s purpose, history, and recent accomplishments.
- Project Description: A detailed description of the project for which funding is requested, including:
- executive summary
- goals and objectives
- relevance to the organization and community
- evaluation criteria
- timeline
- Project Staff: Names and qualifications of project staff.
- References: Provide the names, direct telephone numbers (including extensions), email addresses, and affiliations of five references who are familiar with the organization’s work and the project for which funding is requested, but who are not directly affiliated with the organization.
You will need to attach the following information:
- Project Budget: An itemized full project budget (not just the portion for which funding is being requested from the Lisa and Douglas Goldman Fund), including dates covered by the budget, income, and expenses. Please separate Salary expenses from Benefits and footnote any line items that may require explanation, such as acronyms, abbreviations, shared funding/expenses, pass-through grants, contingent grants, debt service, travel, overhead, indirect costs, and/or any line item labeled "other" or "miscellaneous".
- Project Funding: A list of recent and pending grants for the project for which funding is requested. Please include foundation names and amounts granted or requested, date funding was received or requested, total amount pending, and total amount secured. For multi-year grants, please indicate the time span for the grant and the amount awarded/to be awarded each year. Sample Project Funding (81.9 KB)
- Organization Annual Budget: The organization’s most current annual budget indicating the dates for the fiscal year covered and including income and expenses. Please footnote any line items that may require explanation, such as acronyms, abbreviations, shared funding/expenses, pass-through grants, contingent grants, debt service, travel, overhead, indirect costs, and/or any line item labeled "other" or "miscellaneous".
- Staff and Salary Information: Number of full-time equivalent staff, salary range for all staff, and median salary. Please indicate the title associated with the highest salary. Sample Staff and Salary Information (77.6 KB)
- Organization Funding: A list of grants received by the organization within the past year. Please include foundation names, amounts granted, and dates funding was secured. For multi-year grants, indicate the time span for the grant and the amount awarded for each year. (This list should include grants listed in the Project Funding document.)
- Board of Directors: A list of all current members of the organization’s Board of Directors including their professional or related affiliations and city and state of residence. Sample Board List (67.4 KB)
- Balance Sheet: The organization’s most recent month end balance sheet. Provide explanatory footnotes if the organization has deferred revenue, temporary and permanent restrictions on net assets, loans, a loss of net income, and/or for any line item that is out of the ordinary. If the organization has an endowment and/or reserve fund, provide the balance of the fund(s) and note the guidelines for accessing these funds.
- Profit and Loss Statement: A profit and loss statement with a date that corresponds to the most recent month end balance sheet provided.
- Current Financial Statements: (audited preferred).
- Supporting Documents: Any other materials directly relevant to the project, such as letters of support, news clippings, or brochures that would be helpful in evaluating the proposal.
Reapplying for Support
The Lisa and Douglas Goldman Fund recognizes that some projects we fund will benefit from continued support over multiple years. When appropriate, the Fund will provide support for a project through consecutive grants that are renewed annually for a limited period of time. Please note that the final report for a project must be submitted at the end of the grant period and prior to the submission of a request for renewed funding. Follow the directions in the Reporting Requirements section for submitting a final report.
Requests for renewed funding for a project should be submitted online.
Please include the following:
- Organizational Background: A concise summary outlining the organization’s purpose, history, and recent accomplishments.
- Organizational Changes: Note any significant organizational changes since the original grant request was submitted.
Project Description: A detailed description of the project for which funding is requested, including:- goals and objectives - describe upcoming goals and objectives and any changes to the project’s goals and objectives as described in the original grant request
- relevance to the organization and community
- evaluation criteria
- timeline
- Project Staff: Names and qualifications of project staff.
You will need to attach the following information:
- Project Budget: An itemized full project budget (not just the portion for which funding is being requested from the Lisa and Douglas Goldman Fund), including dates covered by the budget, income, and expenses. Please separate Salary expenses from Benefits and footnote any line items that may require explanation, such as acronyms, abbreviations, shared funding/expenses, pass-through grants, contingent grants, debt service, travel, overhead, indirect costs, and/or any line item labeled "other" or "miscellaneous".
- Project Funding: A list of recent and pending grants for the project for which funding is requested. Please include foundation names and amounts granted or requested, date funding was received or requested, total amount pending, and total amount secured. For multi-year grants, please indicate the time span for the grant and the amount awarded/to be awarded each year. Sample Project Funding (81.9 KB)
- Organization Annual Budget: The organization’s most current annual budget indicating the dates for the fiscal year covered and including income and expenses. Please footnote any line items that may require explanation, such as acronyms, abbreviations, shared funding/expenses, pass-through grants, contingent grants, debt service, travel, overhead, indirect costs, and/or any line item labeled "other" or "miscellaneous".
- Staff and Salary Information: Number of full-time equivalent staff, salary range for all staff, and median salary. Please indicate the title associated with the highest salary. Sample Staff and Salary Information (77.6 KB)
- Organization Funding: A list of all grants received by the organization within the past year. Please include foundation names, amounts granted, and dates funding was secured. For multi-year grants, indicate the time span for the grant and the amount awarded for each year. (This list should include grants listed in the Project Funding document.)
- Board of Directors: A list of all current members of the organization’s Board of Directors including their professional or related affiliations and city and state of residence. Sample Board List (67.4 KB)
- Balance Sheet: The organization’s most recent month end balance sheet. Provide explanatory footnotes if the organization has deferred revenue, temporary and permanent restrictions on net assets, loans, a loss of net income, and/or for any line item that is out of the ordinary. If the organization has an endowment and/or reserve fund, provide the balance of the fund(s) and note the guidelines for accessing the funds.
- Profit and Loss Statement: A profit and loss statement with a date that corresponds to the most recent month end balance sheet provided.
- Current Financial Statements: (audited preferred).
- Supporting documents: Any other materials directly relevant to the project, such as letters of support, news clippings, or brochures that would be helpful in evaluating the proposal.
Requests for renewed funding will only be reviewed after a final grant report has been submitted.
Requests for Capital Funding
In order to be eligible for consideration for capital support, in addition to the criteria outlined above, organizations must demonstrate support of the campaign by 100% of its Board of Directors/Trustees through personal financial contributions.
