Iowa Cultural Trust Stability Grants

“…to bring financial stability to these organizations through fluctuating economic conditions, it is the intent of the general assembly that a public trust be established the income from which may be made available to supplement the operating budgets of nonprofit cultural organizations that meet certain criteria, including a commitment to strategies to attain long-term financial stability and sustainability.”

Iowa Cultural Trust Legislation, Iowa Code 303A.2

Grant Program Description

Iowa Cultural Trust Stability Grant funds are for projects that will help Iowa cultural organizations reach goals of fiscal stability and institute best practices in organizational strategic planning and management.

Application Deadline

Applications are due November 15. This is not a postmark deadline; all application materials must be received in the Iowa Cultural Trust office by 4:30 p.m. on the deadline date. If the deadline falls on a weekend or holiday in any year, the actual deadline will be the next business day. Applications should be submitted to: Iowa Cultural Trust: Stability Grant, 600 E. Locust, Des Moines, Iowa 50319.

Grant Amount

Applicants may request up to $2,500, but no more than 50% of the total project cost,. All requests must show a dollar-for-dollar cash match. In other words, for every Stability Grant dollar an applicant requests for a project, the applicant (or donors to the applicant) must contribute a dollar toward covering the project’s expenses. In-kind donations of time, materials, services and supplies are not considered cash match and do not count as match for this grant program.

Each organization is limited to receiving one Stability Grant per fiscal year (July 1 to June 30). First-time applicants will be given priority over requests from organizations that have received Stability Grants in previous years.

Period of Support

The period of support is January 1 – December 31 following the application deadline. Grant funded expenses and matching expenses must be incurred and expended during this period.

Use of Funds

Stability Grants are intended to make measurable changes in the ability of cultural organizations to be financially stable and sustainable. Grant funds may be used to hire a consultant to advise on appropriate policies and structures related to nonprofit financial or fundraising best practices (in particular, those detailed in the Iowa Principles and Practices for Charitable Nonprofit Excellence), to assist in developing a financial, fundraising, or endowment building plan, or to do fundraising for the applicant organization. Funds may assist in hiring new fundraising staff or expanding a current fundraising position. Funds may also be used to train the board and/or staff on fundraising, financial management, or endowment building.

Grant project efforts should result in one or more of the following:

Appropriate financial planning, budgeting, recording, reporting, and monitoring policies and procedures are adopted and followed.
Organization implements internal controls so that no single person is responsible for receiving, depositing, and expending funds.
Organization has appropriate cash reserves (3-6 months) for both capital and operational expenses.
Organization has a comprehensive 3-5 year financial plan and budget with realistic estimates of incomes and expenses that are integrated into the organization’s strategic plan.
Organization has a fundraising plan that is integrated into the organization’s strategic plan.
Organization raises sufficient funds to meet budgeted objectives.
Board and staff understand and adhere to fundraising ethics and standards.
Board and staff understand endowment building and have a plan to build the organization’s endowment.

Applicant Eligibility

Applicant must be incorporated in Iowa as a nonprofit organization and have federal 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status. The applicant must be located in Iowa.
Operate with one of the following organizational missions:

Arts Organizations: primary mission and purpose must be the arts; it must operate as an arts organization, including but not limited to: an art museum, performing arts-producing organization, or community arts agency.
OR
Historical Organizations: primary mission and purpose must be historical; it must operate as an historical organization, including but not limited to: a public historical museum, interpretive center, historical society, historical library or archive repository.
OR
Cultural Organizations: primary mission and purpose must be cultural; it must operate as a cultural center, botanical center, museum, or zoo.

Have been incorporated as a nonprofit organization in its community for at least three years.
Have at least one paid part-time or full-time professional employee who is responsible for managing the organization.
Certify that one of the following is true:

At least one current staff and/or board member from the organization has attended a half-day Iowa Cultural Trust workshop within the past two years.
OR
At least one current staff and/or board member from the organization has attended the Iowa Nonprofit Center’s 6-hour training on the “Iowa Principles and Practices for Charitable Nonprofit Excellence” within the past two years.
OR
The organization has received a waiver of the training requirement from the Iowa Cultural Trust. (See Training Waiver below.)

Not eligible to apply:

Individuals
An entity of federal or state government
An organization applying through a fiscal agent
An organization with an outstanding late Final Report to the Department of Cultural Affairs or any of its divisions
A public (non-historical) library, park, or recreation center
A for-profit corporation or business
A religious organization, labor union, political party, or national service/professional organization
An educational institution, organization, or K-12 school, whose primary orientation, mission, and purpose is education and the awarding of academic credits
An organization that has already received funding for the same project from another DCA grant program

Application Review Criteria

Stability Grant applications must demonstrate the following:

Project will clearly build the organization’s financial stability and long-term sustainability.
Project has achievable goals that are appropriate for the organization.
Project is appropriately budgeted.
Key participants (consultants, staff, etc.) are well qualified.

Training Waiver

If no one from your organization has attended either a Cultural Trust workshop or a “Principles and Practices” workshop presented by the Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center, you may still be eligible to apply for a Stability Grant. You must be able to demonstrate that at least one current staff and/or board member from the organization has attended similar training in the last two years or has gained this knowledge through work experiences. To request a training waiver, please e-mail Mary Sundet Jones at Mary.SundetJones@iowa.gov explaining how one of your organization’s current board or staff members has met the training requirement in another way. Do not request a training waiver fewer than 5 business days prior to the Stability Grant application deadline. If you are granted a training waiver, attach a copy of the correspondence from the Cultural Trust granting the waiver to your Stability Grant application.

Review, Approval, and Notification Process

Stability Grant applications will be screened by the Cultural Trust grants manager, and then reviewed and scored by a 3-5 person panel. Panel recommendations will be forwarded to the Iowa Cultural Trust board for final approval.

Applicants will be notified of the Cultural Trust board’s decision approximately 5-6 weeks following the application deadline.

Questions?

Contact staff Monday through Friday between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. The office is closed weekends and state holidays. Email is our preferred means of communication.

Contact:

Mary Sundet Jones, Interim Cultural Trust Coordinator
Mary.SundetJones@iowa.gov
515-281-4641

Definitions

Strategic Plan: A multi-year plan that includes goals, strategies, and assessment measures for the organization, including strategies related to long-term financial sustainability.

Endowment: An endowment is a collection of funds, typically invested in long-term assets that produce income for an organization. Generally, the endowed asset is kept intact and only the income generated by it is consumed.

Stability: A stable nonprofit organization operates in alignment with nonprofit best practices, in particular those detailed in the Iowa Principles and Practices for Charitable Nonprofit Excellence.

Sustainability: A sustainable nonprofit organization has structures and processes in place that will help it to thrive for many years. These structures and processes include an engaging mission, lawful and appropriate governance structure, regular and thorough strategic planning, a healthy endowment, ethnical and accountable management practices, and clear community support for its contribution to quality of life.