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The application period for the annual campaign Season for Sharing is here.
Arizona Republic

Arizona nonprofits have until 5 p.m. Oct. 18 to begin applying for 2019-20 Season for Sharing grants.

Click here to apply.

Since Season for Sharing launched in 1993, the Arizona Republic-sponsored initiative has raised and given away more than $66 million to Arizona organizations that help teachers and students, older adults and struggling children and families. Last year, Season for Sharing distributed $2.1 million to 162 charities.

The deadline to apply for this year’s grants is 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 18.

Applications are given an initial screening by the Arizona Community Foundation before being presented to a grant review committee made up of Republic and Community Foundation staff members and community members.

Donations are accepted year-round at sharing.azcentral.com or facebook.com/seasonforsharing, but the most focused period of fundraising will be mid-November through Jan. 31, 2020. Grant recipients will be notified in late February or early March.

Grants are funded with generous donations from subscribers to azcentral and The Republic, plus matching fund contributions from the Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust. Businesses that are interested in sponsoring Season for Sharing or supporting the campaign in any way should contact The Republic’s Stacy Sullivan at [email protected]om or 602-444-8749. 

Last year, both the Desert Botanical Garden and Dig It Gardens contributed to the campaign. The Desert Botanical Garden gives ticket buyers to their annual Luminarias show the option to donate. Dig It Gardens donated a portion of their holiday sales

Here are some guidelines for nonprofits considering applying for a Season for Sharing grant:

Children and families

Grants in this category will:

  • Help prevent child abuse, find permanent placements and provide support for children in the foster care system.
  • Help with emergency shelter, housing, counseling and other services for domestic violence victims.
  • Offer free or low-cost food, including food banks and kids’ meal programs.
  • Help with emergency short-term shelter and long-term affordable housing.
  • Solve short-term emergency needs including personal care or hygiene items, clothing, rental or utility assistance or disaster relief.
  • Help with job training, and support under-employed youth and adults.

Education

Education grants will support programs that: 

  • Enhance K-12 curriculum, including tutors and academic after-school programs.
  • Provide back-to-school clothing, supplies and food programs.
  • Ensure that students graduate high school prepared for college or work.
  • Support adult and family literacy programs.

Older adults

Grants in this category will support programs and services for the elderly including supportive services, assisted living services, Alzheimer’s support, access to free or low-cost in-home or congregate meal programs and nutrition assistance and recreational services.

Grant amounts

Grants will range from $7,500 to $50,000. If asking for a larger grant than last year’s, the increase must not be more than 50% higher. First-year grants will be no more than $7,500. And no grant requests for less than $7,500 will be considered, 

Eligibility requirements

Applicants must meet the following criteria:

  • Priority is given to agencies that serve low-income and under-served families and children.
  • Primary geographic focus areas are Maricopa and Pinal counties, and all grants must be for programs in the state of Arizona.
  • Agency must be providing services in Arizona for a minimum of three years and, as a rule, have a minimum operating budget of $200,000 (can include in-kind support and must be reflected in profile budget or latest 990). 
  • Agency must not request more than 5% of the total annual operating budget (including in-kind donations), and no more than 10% of total contributed annual income (excluding in-kind donations).
  • Agency must be receiving income for proposed projects from multiple sources; Season for Sharing dollars cannot be the only source of funding.
  • Agency can apply for one category only.

The following are ineligible for Season for Sharing funding:

This year, Season for Sharing will not fund individual summer camp requests. Instead, Season for Sharing supports those programs as a collaborative funder for the Summer Youth Program Fund. 

Also ineligible:

  • Programs that primarily support a specific disease, disability, illness or addiction and with a mission of funding medical or scientific research.
  • Agencies that discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, medical condition, veteran status, marital status, disability, ancestry, sexual orientation or any other characteristic protected by law. 
  • Religious organizations, churches and programs that are purely denominational in purpose.
  • Sports teams or sporting programs that are primarily recreational in purpose.
  • Schools, including charter schools.

General guidelines

There is no guarantee of funding. Grants are competitive and funding may vary each year based on the annual campaign’s fundraising success. Also:

  • Agencies previously funded may ask for more money. However,  do not request an increase larger than 50% higher than the most recent grant.
  • Traditionally, pilot programs are not funded. 
  • Requests that most effectively address one or more defined criteria in each category that can show measurable results and outcomes are more likely to be funded.

Full timeline for 2019-20 Season for Sharing:

Applications are due 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 18, 2019no exceptions.

Grant awards and decline letters will be emailed out by March 16, 2020.

Thank You Thursday, March 19, 2020.

How to apply

Season for Sharing grants are submitted through the Arizona Community Foundation grants portal. Season for Sharing is a collaborative fund of the Arizona Community Foundation (nonprofit tax ID# 86-0348306).

Whether your organization has an existing ACF profile or not, applicants should click here to apply.

For assistance or questions about Season for Sharing, regarding the online application, contact ACF’s Competitive Grants Management Team at [email protected] or 602-381-1400. For guidance on whether your agency is qualified, contact Republic community relations director Stacy Sullivan at 602-444-8749 or [email protected]

Other tips:

  • Do not wait until the deadline date to apply.
  • During the last week of any grant cycle’s duration, access to ACF technical support will be limited.
  • Prepare the application offline in a text editor such as Microsoft Word to ensure a duplicate exists.
  • Update your browser. Google Chrome is the recommended browser. Avoid Internet Explorer.
  • Be sure to update and complete the entire profile before submitting your proposal.
  • The word count for narrative responses are limited, but you do not have to use all the words. Only provide information that is pertinent.
  • Review applications for spelling and grammar errors.
  • Check for an email notification indicating that your application has been submitted.

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