Foundations and Other Funding Agencies

Foundation Center Cooperating Collection

(302) 831-2432

The Foundation Center Cooperating Collection, located in the Reference Department of the University of Delaware Library, is one of more than 200 similar reference collections affiliated with the Foundation Center whose central office is located in New York City. It is a specialized collection of research materials designed to aid organizations or institutions in locating potential sources of funding, in particular, grants from private foundations. The Foundation Center has an excellent World Wide Web site (http://www.foundationcenter.org) which provides a good orientation to the Foundation Center products and services, and serves as a gateway to Internet resources related to foundations and grants.

General Information

The collection is available to researchers who visit the Library in person. Staff assistance is limited, and can be assured only by appointment. For appointments, information or assistance in using the collection, please refer to the collection's supervisor, Carol Rudisell (831-6942).
Telephone service is available for easily obtainable information. For additional information, researchers must visit the Morris Library to conduct their research.
There is limited mail service.
Materials are for reference only and may not be borrowed from the Library. Photocopying equipment is available.

Getting Started

To obtain a quick overview of the essentials of the grantseeking process, refer to:

Guide to Funding Research Location: Internet (http://foundationcenter.org/getstarted/tutorials/gfr/index.html): This guide presents a clear outline of the steps involved in researching private foundations and other funding agencies. It describes the basic resources available that can assist you in the research process. The guide recommends a four-step search strategy:

Generate a broad list of foundations that award grants for activities similar to those of your organization.
Narrow this list by eliminating foundations that have policies or restrictions that rule out your proposal.
Study in depth those foundations that remain on your list, and finally:
Apply to those foundations whose interests and giving records match your needs most closely.

For additional information on this topic, see:

Foundation Fundamentals: A Guide for Grantseekers. New York: Foundation Center, 2004. Location: Morris Library - Reference (Ref HV41.9 .U5 F686 2004)

Databases

The following databases can be used to generate a broad list of funding agencies. To obtain in-depth information on the agencies, consult various printed and/or Internet resources listed elsewhere in this guide.

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Location: Internet (http://www.cfda.gov): This is a complete listing of federal programs, projects, services and activities that provide assistance or benefits to the American public. It includes summary program descriptions and is searchable by keyword. Grantseekers are encouraged to first use Grants.gov to identify federal grant programs.

COS Funding Opportunities Location: Library Databases: Through the University's membership in COS, an international resource for information on research funding and expertise in all disciplines, campus users have access to this database. The site provides Web access to select federal and private funding opportunities. Professional associations and public charities that provide grants are also included.

Foundation Directory Online Professional Location: Library Databases (Morris Library only): Searches U. S. foundations, corporate givers and grantmaking public charities. It also includes descriptions of associated grants, and lists trustees, officers, and donors. It also includes links to grantmaker web sites and filed tax returns (Form 990 PFs). Database records provide the same depth of information as entries published in the Foundation Directory (Ref AS911 .A2F65), the Foundation Directory Part 2 (Ref AS911 .A2F651), the Guide to U. S. Foundations, Their Trustees, Officers, and Donors (Ref AS911 .A2F64), the Directory of Corporate Giving (Ref HV89 .N26), and the National Directory of Grantmaking Public Charities (Ref HV89 .N37). Federal and state funding is not included. This database is best suited for nonprofit agencies seeking grants; individuals seeking scholarships, fellowships, or grants to individuals should use the Foundation Grants to Individuals Online.

Foundation Grants to Individuals Online Location: Library Databases (Morris Library only): The Foundation Center database that targets scholarships, fellowships, grants, awards, and other financial support for individuals. Nonprofit organizations should use the Foundation Directory Online Professional.

Grants.gov Location: Internet (http://www.grants.gov): A common web site for all federal grant opportunities. The site is searchable by keyword, federal funding agency, date, or Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number.

GrantSmart.org Location: Internet (http://www.grantsmart.org): This web site permits searching by grantmaker name or location and provides access to grantmakers' IRS tax returns (990 forms). The IRS Form 990 outlines an organization's charitable giving activities and lists grant recipients for the year. These returns are also available from the Foundation Center's 990 Finder.

GuideStar Location: Internet (http://www.guidestar.org): Developed by Philanthropic Research, this site features a searchable database that provides brief information on U.S. nonprofit organizations, including public charities and private foundations. Entries often include links to an organization's tax return (Form 990 or Form 990PF). These returns are also available from the Foundation Center's 990 Finder.

Private Foundations

Foundation Finder Location: Internet (http://lnp.foundationcenter.org/finder.html): Web sites, annual reports or newsletters often include a foundation's grantmaking policy and philosophy, a list of grants made during the previous year, and a list of officers and trustees. Many of these publications may be found on the Web by searching for an agency's name using a search engines (e.g., Google). Printed copies of the reports can often be obtained by contacting the funding agency. The Foundation Center's Foundation Finder provides links to grantmaker web sites.

Foundation 1000. New York: Foundation Center. Annual. Location: Morris Library - Reference (Ref HV97 .F65 F67a): This publication profiles the largest 1,000 private foundations in the U.S. The profiles in this volume are more complete than those in any other source and include: giving interests, application procedures, sample grants, and an analysis of recent giving patterns. Entries are listed alphabetically and are followed by a subject and geographic index. Some analytic data presented in this publication is not available in the Foundation Directory Online Professional.

990 Finder Location: Internet (http://foundationcenter.org/findfunders/990finder/): For small, local charitable organizations not included in other sources, the annual tax return that each organization must file with the Internal Revenue Service is an invaluable source of information. These returns are public records. The Foundation Center's 990 Finder provides online access to recently filed 990 and 990-PF tax forms. Older tax returns for Delaware foundations are available in the Morris Library Department of Special Collections.

2006 Directory of Grantmakers Funding Programs in Delaware Location: Internet (http://www.delawarenonprofit.org/Foundation2006.pdf): Produced by the Delaware Association of Nonprofit Agencies, this directory includes brief descriptions of more than 90 foundations that give in Delaware. It is especially useful for identifying Delaware foundations that may be interested in funding small projects of local or statewide import.

Corporate Giving

Corporate Foundation Profiles. New York: Foundation Center, 2002. Location: Morris Library - Reference (Ref HV97 .A3 C66): In-depth descriptions of some of the largest corporate foundations.

General Business File ASAP Location: Library Databases: The site provides Web access to magazine, newspaper, and journal articles that contain company and industry information.

National Directory of Corporate Giving. New York: Foundation Center, 2006. Location: Morris Library - Reference (Ref HV89 .N26): This publication includes detailed descriptions of more than 3,000 corporate foundations and direct giving programs. Many entries also include in-depth program analyses of grantmaker giving interests.

50 Largest Corporate Foundations by Total Giving Location: Internet (http://foundationcenter.org/findfunders/topfunders/top50giving.html): The Foundation Center provides links to those corporations that have Web sites describing their charitable giving activities.

Federal Grants

The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Location: Internet (http://www.cfda.gov): This is a complete listing of federal aid programs. It includes summary program descriptions and has an extensive subject index.

USA.gov for Nonprofits Location: Internet (http://www.usa.gov/Business/Nonprofit.shtml): This site provides an excellent overview of federal funding information and includes a select listing of federal agencies that provide grants. It also includes a link to Grants.gov, a website federal grant programs that is searchable by agency, keyword, date and CFDC number.

Public Charities

COS Funding Opportunities, Foundation Directory Online Professional , and GuideStar (see Dabatabases section listed above) are the best sources of information on grantmaking public charities. Additional information may be available from the following site and from other grant-related resources on the Internet.

National Directory of Grantmaking Public Charities. New York: Foundation Center, 1998. Location: Morris Library - Reference (Ref HV89 .N37): This publication includes detailed descriptions of the more than a 1,000 public charities.

News

Newspapers and online news digests can be excellent sources of information on grantmakers' current activities:

Chronicle of Philanthropy Location: Morris Library - Reference (Ref HV85 .C48) Location: Internet (http://www.philanthropy.com)

Foundation News and Commentary Location: Morris Library - Reference (Ref AS911 .A2 F68) Location: Internet (http://www.foundationnews.org)

LexisNexis Academic Location: Library Databases: Provides full-text information on a variety of topics from newspapers, magazines, corporate news and records, legal literature, and other sources. Several subfiles are available that may be searched individually, including: General News, Business News, Company Profiles, and Reference.

Philanthropy News Digest Location: Internet (http://foundationncenter.org/pnd): The Foundation Center provides a news service, as well as a searchable archive of news stories related to private foundations and other philanthropic organizations. Subscribers can have the digest delivered directly to their e-mail account.

Proposal Writing Guides

Foundation Center's Guide to Proposal Writing. New York: Foundation Center, 2004. Location: Morris Library - Reference (Ref HG177.5 .U6 G44 2004): Excerpts from this publication are available online as part of the Foundation Center's Proposal Writing Short Course (http://foundationcenter.org/getstarted/tutorials/shortcourse/index.html).

The Foundation Center's Guide to Winning Proposals II. New York: Foundation Center, 2005. Location: Morris Library - Reference (Ref HV41.9 .U5 F673 2005): This guide includes grant proposals that have been funded by some of today's most influential grantmakers. Each proposal is reprinted in its entirety and includes a critique by the agency that decided to fund the proposal. It includes commentary that points to the strengths and weaknesses of each proposal.

The Grantsmanship Center Whole Nonprofit Catalog Location: Morris Library - Reference (Foundation Center) Location: Internet (http://www.tgci.com/magazine/archives.asp)

Miner, Lynn E. and Jeremy T. Miner. Proposal Planning and Writing. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood, 2003. Location: Morris Library - Reference (Ref HG177.5 .U6 M56 2003)

Proposal Writer's Swipe File: 15 Winning Fund Raising Proposals..... Washington, D.C.: Taft, 1984. Location: Morris Library - Reference (Ref H91 .P76 1984)

Winning Grant Proposals: Eleven Successful Appeals by American Nonprofits to Corporations, Foundations, Individuals, and Government Agencies. Rockville, MD: Fund Raising Institute, 1993. Location: Morris Library - Reference (Ref HG177.5 .U6 W565 1993)

Internet Resources

There are many useful fundraising resources available on the Internet, including program guidelines, application materials, and reports issued by private foundations. In addition to those Internet sites previously mentioned in this guide, you may also consult:

Foundations and Grants: A Guide to Internet Resources Location: Internet (http://www2.lib.udel.edu/subj/foce/internet.htm): A concise resource guide from the University of Delaware Library.

The Foundation Center's Guide to Grantseeking on the Web. New York: Foundation Center, 2003. Location: Morris Library - Reference (Ref HV41.2 .F68 2003): A comprehensive guide that provides an overview of the history of the World Wide Web and its utility to grantseekers. The volume provides Internet addresses and brief descriptions of grantmakers on the Web, and also describes databases, journals, and discussion lists that are useful for grantseekers.

This page is maintained by Carol A. Rudisell, Reference Department.

Version: 03/2007
Last modified: 06/17/09