FAQs

NO. Any eligible organization may submit an application to Greenville Women Giving. No
special consideration is given to organizations affiliated with any GWG members.

NO. GWG considers proposals serving a wide array of causes that are of interest to our membership. Specifically, GWG funds in five categories: Arts, Education, Environment, Health, and Human Services.

YES. GWG will consider grant requests from start-up non-profits that are certified as tax exempt under Section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or that have a Fiscal Agent under whom they function as a non-profit.

NO. The minimum grant is for $50,000. Requests below that amount will not be considered for funding.

We do provide grants for continuing, expanding and improving existing services and programs. GWG also considers grants for operating funds when the rationale is compelling and a plan for securing funding beyond the grant is clearly delineated.

NO, with exceptions. Each organization may submit only one application per year. Exceptions are made for organizations that have 5 or more locations in Greenville County and have at least 5,000 employees. Multiple departments from such organizations may submit an application.

Generally, there are no limits to the number of times an organization may apply for a GWG grant. However, an organization may not apply for a new grant prior to the completion of a current grant. The application deadline for new grants is at the end of November each year. Annual GWG grant cycles run from May (when grants are awarded) until June following the one- year or two-year grant term (when the completion of grant assessments are required). Organizations are not eligible to apply for another grant until after the end of the grant cycle for which they have received funding and until after all grant assessment requirements related to prior grants have been completed. An organization which has not received final approval of its grant by August 1st is NOT eligible to apply again until the next calendar year. The following outlines timelines of typical grants:

If awarded 1 year grant in 2022, eligible to apply again November 2023*
If awarded 2 year grant in 2022, eligible to apply again November 2024*
If awarded 1 year grant in 2023, eligible to apply again November 2024*
If awarded 2 year grant in 2023, eligible to apply again November 2025*
If awarded 1 year grant in 2024, eligible to apply again November 2025*
If awarded 2 year grant in 2024, eligible to apply again November 2026*
* assuming grant assessment is completed

Generally, GWG typically funds roughly 10% of the applications received. Greenville Women Giving intends to award at least one grant in each of our five funding areas (Arts, Education, Environment, Health and Human Services), with the remainder of funding being distributed to the highest-ranked grant applications.

Contact our administrator via email at greenvillewomengiving@gmail.com. You may also contact the Community Foundation of Greenville at (864)233.5925. Please understand that it may take 24-48 hours to receive a response. We recommend that applicants fill out and submit applications early to provide time to resolve any technical issues.

A GWG Grantee Information session for prospective grantees will be held October 26th from 5:30 to 7:30 at Greenville Water Works, 517 W. Washington Street. In addition, a GWG Grant Information video will be available on the Greenville Women Giving website beginning on October 30th. Following the video, you may submit questions to us electronically at greenvillewomengiving@gmail.com. Both new and previous grant applicants are encouraged to either attend and/or watch the video. Because of the volume of applications, we are not able to meet with grant applicants individually. In addition, we ask that you refrain from contacting Grants Review Committee members about the status of your application once it has been submitted.

Multiple sub-groups of the GWG Grants Review Committee review all the applications in assigned focus areas to identify those that (1) are complete and meet grant guidelines and (2) have the greatest potential for addressing current community priorities. They select the organizations that will receive a site visit, usually conducted in mid-January to early February. Due to short timelines, it is important that organizations selected for a site visit be able to bring their teams together to meet with Grants Review Committee members within 5 working days of being contacted.

Site visits are an opportunity for the Grants Review Committee to meet with key organizational leaders to address any questions and to obtain more in-depth information about the need and the organization. Grant applicant teams typically include Executive Directors, board members and key staff members who have deep knowledge of the grant request. Site visits are typically scheduled for one hour. During the site visit, organizations may use videos, PowerPoints, tours, brochures and any other effective ways of making their grant request understandable and compelling.

Each sub-group of the GWG Grants Review Committee meets again to review the information obtained during the site visits and to select grants to be presented for further consideration. Selected grants are presented during a 5-minute PowerPoint presentation by a committee member to the entire Grants Review Committee. The full Grant Review Committee then votes to determine the final slate of proposals to be placed on the ballot and presented to all GWG members for a vote. Organizations will be notified by early April as to whether they have been selected to be on the ballot.

The GWG Ballot Showcase is an opportunity for GWG members who have not been involved in the grants review process to ask questions and learn more about the grants on the ballot. Two representatives from each organization on the ballot are expected to attend. Selected organizations will receive detailed instructions prior to Ballot Showcase.

All organizations will be notified by the end of April as to whether they were selected to receive funding. We ask that this information be kept confidential until it is announced to the GWG members and the general public at the GWG Annual Meeting in May. Applicants selected for funding will be expected to sign a contract outlining the terms of the funding, to participate in a short video about their organization’s grant, and to have two representatives in attendance during the check presentation portion of the meeting. Organization representatives will be invited on stage to accept the check. No acceptances speeches are required.

NO. At the end of each section is an option to “Save and Finish Later.” Some sections must be completed and saved before moving to the next section. If you don’t have the information to complete a question yet, you can put an “x” in the box and you will be able to proceed to the next section. You will be able to go back and fill the missing information later. However, be sure that you review your entire application and fill in all the required information before you click on the button to submit it. You will not be able to make changes once your application has been submitted and incomplete applications will not be considered.

YES. For existing applications, login to the Foundant system. Under the Active Requests tab select “View Application” for the application you would like to print. On the Application page, select “Application Packet.” A pdf will be created that you can print.

Definitions of the categories can be found on the GWG Grants main page of our website at greenvillewomengiving.org. More detailed information, including examples, can be found in the Application Instructions. You will be asked to identify the category that best applies to your grant request. GWG reserves the right to adjust categories as necessary to maintain consistency with internal guidelines.

Grant requests for less than $50,000 or more than $100,000 will not be considered. The specifics of your grant proposal will determine the amount of your request. It is critical that you clearly delineate the need for the requested grant and how the requested funds will be used. Please outline if/how the grant will be supplemented with other sources of funding to ensure the grant’s successful completion.

GWG generally does not give partial funding; therefore, you should assume that the members will be voting based on the total amount requested. GWG’s intent with large grants is to be transformative – to help organizations implement large, innovative programs that are typically not included in the normal operating budget. Large requests that combine a variety of smaller cost and expenses, and those that do not clearly document the need for the amount requested, are less likely to be supported by GWG members.

Grants that will take longer than a year to implement should consider applying for a two-year term. Two-year grants are intended to cover instances where there are multiple phases or require a longer time to complete. If applying for a two-year grant, the request for funding should clearly delineate the activities that will be completed in each year. Grants that require additional preparatory time before they can be implemented, and therefore might not be completed within a two-year grant period, may want to consider delaying the grant application until the next year, when completion is more likely. In some cases, funds for the preparatory work are part of the grant request and a two-year grant application may be appropriate.

NO. All applications must conform to the number of characters indicated on each section of the application.

Organizations are limited to 2 optional attachments, maximum file size of 3MB each. These are intended for grant applications for which additional information will help the grant reviewers better understand the grant request (e.g., maps, renderings). If your organization is selected for a site visit, you may show videos and make additional written materials available to the committee at that time.

It is important to make sure you receive a confirmation email that verifies the application has been received. If you do not receive an email within 72 hours of submitting your application, please contact our administrator via email at greenvillewomengiving@gmail.com. Grant reviews begin in January and you should receive notice via email by the beginning of February as to the status of your grant.