We learn about the community’s greatest needs, and through pooled investments and individual designations, direct our giving to make the greatest impact in the areas important to us collectively and individually.
All members are invited to participate in the grant evaluation process and encouraged to vote on which organizations receive funding.
IWCF members contribute each year to a pooled fund from which we collectively award grants to nonprofit organizations serving southwestern Idaho.
In an annual Grants Cycle we award grants:
The Grants Committee is open to all IWCF members. The IWCF grants cycle begins in September and ends in May. The bulk of the volunteer time runs from January to April.
To select which grants to fund, IWCF sorts applications by Interest Areas for evaluation by six committees consisting of volunteer IWCF members. The Interest Area committees meet regularly to evaluate and discuss each submitted grant proposal. The full Grants Committee meets at several stages during the process to guide volunteers on the evaluation process and ensure consistency across all Interest Areas. Each evaluation committee selects 3 – 5 proposals for site visits. After site visits, the Grants Committee recommends two to three projects per Interest Area for placement on the member ballot.
The entire IWCF membership receives the ballots each spring and votes on the final funding decisions. At least one grant is awarded in every Interest Area. Occasionally, we’re able to fund additional grants. This depends on the size of IWCF’s pooled fund, as well as the amount of funding sought by the applications on the ballot.
For more information on the grants program or to join the Grants Committee, please contact our grants committee chair