Questions & Answers

Below is a summary of Frequently Asked Questions.

What is The Foundation’s philosophy on working with organizations that are in a start-up phase?
Do you provide grants to individuals?
Do you have scholarship funds available?
Do you fund projects outside of Georgia?
What is the average size and duration of your grants?
What are the chances of being funded?
How can I improve my chances of receiving a grant?
How does the Foundation program staff identify the organizations that it invites to submit proposals?
What are the deadlines for submitting organizational overviews?
Is there a contact person to whom I can address our organizational overview form?
Is there a limit to the length of the organizational overview form?
How much time does it take to review organizational overviews?
If we received a declination letter last year, may we submit another organizational overview for review in the current year?
Do you have suggestions of where else I might look for funding?

What is The Foundation’s philosophy on working with organizations that are in a start-up phase?
The Goizueta Foundation prefers to work with organizations that have an established track record, demonstrate strong fund-raising support & financial management, have an independent board, and have developed a strategic plan. Primary/Secondary and Higher Education Institutions are required to be accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS).

Do you provide grants to individuals?
No. The Foundation only supports not-for-profit organizations with 501(c)(3) tax exempt status.

Do you have scholarship funds available?
No. The Goizueta Foundation awards grants to educational institutions, and in some cases, those institutions do have Goizueta Foundation scholarship funds for disbursement annually. If you are interested in seeking scholarship funds, contact the admissions and financial aid offices at the institution(s) where you plan to attend. The Goizueta Foundation does not administer funds to individuals, or assist in any way in the selection of the recipients.

Do you fund projects outside of Georgia?
The Goizueta Foundation does not accept organizational overviews from organizations outside of Georgia. However, The Foundation does work proactively with a few organizations annually whose projects may not be located within the state. In those cases, The Foundation program staff coordinates the efforts directly with the organizations.

What is the average size and duration of your grants?
Amounts awarded and time periods vary widely and depend on the scope and significance of the project. The Foundation has made grants ranging from $15,000 to $12,000,000 with time periods from one year to endowments that continue in perpetuity. The majority of programs funded will be for multiple years to allow the organization to gather meaningful data to measure effectiveness of the program.

What are the chances of being funded?
Unsolicited requests and blind proposals will not receive funding from The Foundation. If you feel your organization is a fit for our strategic funding, please fill out the organizational overview for your type of organization. Once an organization submits its organizational overview form, it goes through a fair and intensive review process to determine if its priorities match the focus areas of The Foundation. At every step in The Foundation’s grant-making process, many organizations are declined and few are asked to continue in the process.

How can I improve my chances of receiving a grant?
To improve the chances of obtaining a grant, please take the time to follow the process outlined in the How To Apply section of this website.

How does the Foundation program staff identify the organizations that it invites to submit proposals?
Through ongoing research and review of reports from the field, the program staff identifies organizations with strong track records on issues related to our program area priorities.

What are the deadlines for submitting organizational overviews?
Because the Foundation's process involves several steps, we operate with rolling deadlines. Organizational overviews may be submitted at any time.

Is there a contact person to whom I can address our organizational overview form?
All correspondence should be submitted to Program Staff. Once received, correspondence is distributed internally to the appropriate personnel based on areas of expertise and workload.

Is there a limit to the length of the organizational overview form?
No. However, please keep in mind that The Foundation receives over 100 organizational overviews annually and it is the first step of several in The Foundation’s grant-making process.

How much time does it take to review organizational overviews?
It generally takes our staff between two and four weeks to review and respond to any correspondence received.

If we received a declination letter last year, may we submit another organizational overview for review in the current year?
Yes. Organizations must wait one full, calendar year before re-applying to The Foundation.

Do you have suggestions of where else I might look for funding?
Links to other resources: • Council on Foundations • Foundation Center • Georgia Center for Nonprofits • Guidestar • Southeastern Council of Foundations