View Grants Database
Current Interests 2006
Recent Changes to Ford Foundation Grantee Policies
The Ford Foundation’s Values and Grant Letter
Pursuing our Mission as a Responsible Philanthropic Institution

Grants and Program-Related Investments to Organizations

Before a request is made for a grant or program-related investment, a brief letter of inquiry is advisable to determine whether the foundation’s present interests and funds permit consideration of the request.

The letter should include:

• The purpose of the project for which funds are being requested
• Problems and issues the proposed project will address
• Information about the organization conducting the project
• Estimated overall budget for the project
• Period of time for which funds are requested
• Qualifications of those who will be engaged in the project

After receiving the letter, foundation staff members may ask the grant seeker to submit a formal proposal. There is no grant application form. The proposal should include:

• The organization’s current budget
• A description of the proposed work and how it will be conducted
• The names and curricula vitae of those engaged in the project
• A detailed project budget
• Present means of support and status of applications to other funding sources
• Legal and tax status

In some instances, the foundation requires the grantee organization to match the foundation’s grant with funds from other sources.

The foundation supports pluralism and equal opportunity in its grant making and in its internal policies. The opportunities that prospective grantee organizations provide for women and other disadvantaged groups are considered in evaluating proposals.

Applications are considered throughout the year. Normally applicants may expect to receive within six weeks an indication of whether their proposals are within the foundation’s program interests and budget limitations. If the proposal is being considered for a grant, the approval process is generally completed within three months. Activities supported by grants and program-related investments must be charitable, educational or scientific, as defined under the appropriate provisions of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code and Treasury Regulations. The foundation monitors grants through regular financial and narrative reports submitted by the grantee.

The foundation’s funds are limited in relation to the great number of worthwhile proposals received. For example, in 2004 the foundation received about 41,000 grant requests and made 2,091 grants. The foundation directs its support to activities that are within its current interests and are likely to have wide effect. Support is not normally given for routine operating costs of institutions or for religious activities. Except in rare cases, funding is not available for the construction or maintenance of buildings.

Requests in the United States should be e-mailed to: office-secretary@fordfound.org
or mailed to:

Requests in foreign countries should be directed to the nearest foundation office. See Addresses and E-mail links for locations of field offices.

Grants to Individuals

Most of the foundation’s grant funds are given to organizations. Although it also makes grants to individuals, they are few in number relative to demand and are limited to research, training and other activities related to its program interests.

The foundation does not award undergraduate scholarships or make grants for purely personal needs. Support for graduate fellowships is generally provided through grants to universities and other organizations, which are responsible for the selection of recipients. Most foundation grants to individuals are awarded either through publicly announced competitions or on the basis of nominations from universities and other nonprofit institutions. In all cases, recipients are selected on the merits of their proposals and on their potential contribution to advancing the foundation’s program objectives.

How is a grant selected and made?

Proposals are accepted and reviewed in the office located closest to the beneficiaries of the work being proposed. Grant recommendations originate in those offices and grants for under $200,000 may be approved locally. Grant recommendations for $200,000 or more are considered in New York, generally at biweekly meetings of staff and foundation officers. Ford receives about 40,000 proposals each year and makes about 2,500 grants. Ford considers requests for grants, recoverable grants, loans and loan guarantees. Requests range from a few thousand dollars to millions of dollars and are accepted in categories such as planning grants, project support, general support and endowments. Upon receipt, each proposal is numbered and a letter is sent to the applicant suggesting that the foundation be notified if a substantive response to the request has not arrived within 45 business days. If a grant request falls within program interests, it is reviewed by a grant maker—called a program officer—who has been hired for his or her expertise in a field in which the foundation is working. The program officer looks for fresh ideas and effective organizations that can help advance work in a particular area, as well as for evidence that the people and organizations are likely to succeed in the project they propose and work well with others. If the proposal is being considered for a grant, meetings, site visits, grant negotiations, administrative and legal review and presentation of the grant for approval are generally completed within three months. The first check from the foundation or bank notification should arrive a few weeks after a grant has been approved.

How does Ford monitor grants?

During the course of a grant, the program officer usually visits with the grantee on site or at a foundation office, reviews periodic financial and narrative reports, shares them with a grants administrator, and occasionally with a lawyer, for review. The grantee may be asked to attend meetings the foundation convenes to discuss current and future program strategy. Often, Ford hires consultants to help monitor groups of grants or a single grantee’s work. Monitoring is designed to ensure that the funds are used for approved and lawful purposes, and to see whether the grant is contributing to progress toward the larger goal—for example, reducing poverty or injustice. Ford staff members understand that the work the foundation and its grantees undertake together is difficult, that success often results from multiple efforts over a long period, and that setbacks are likely. The monitoring process encourages candid exchanges about how things are going and whether the strategy might be adjusted to get better results over the long term. In the course of its work, the foundation regularly convenes program officers and grantees working on similar problems around the world in order to compare strategies and advance learning. Ford also helps with the creation of Web sites for the exchange of ideas, and grantees’ travel to observe each other’s work. These various supports for comparative analysis help identify global principles of success, as well as local variations that must be taken into account. Grant renewals are frequent since the foundation supports long-term strategies. After the completion of a grant, the program officer and administrator approve final reports, and the grant is closed. The grant file is then moved to Ford’s archive in the United States. Ten years after grant completion, these archived documents may be opened for research by scholars.

top of the page