The Grant Process
The Americana Foundation supports partner organizations primarily through financial grants. Grants typically range between $10,000 and $25,000 and usually are awarded for a one-year period. We will consider grants larger than $25,000 and/or grants awarded for more than one year when necessary to the success of a project or program, and only when the grant directly aligns with the Foundation’s priority interest areas. Grants awarded for a single project or program rarely exceed $50,000 in total. Requests for general operating support are approved only in extraordinary circumstances.
Eligibility Criteria
Americana awards grants only to
- Nonprofit organizations that have been recognized as tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the IRS Code.
- Nonprofit organizations under the fiscal sponsorship of an organization recognized as tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the IRS Code.
- Municipal government entities, such as cities, townships, and villages.
To be successful, a request for support must align with our mission and program areas. Before contacting us or submitting a concept letter, please review our program areas, current priorities, and eligibility criteria carefully.
We do not buy tickets or tables, contribute to capital projects or campaigns, advertise fund-raising events, or fund research or sabbaticals. We do not provide scholarships or other financial support directly to individuals. We generally do not sponsor conferences. Grants may not be used for political purposes.
Geographic Focus
Only nonprofit organizations doing work that impacts Michigan are eligible to apply for grants under our Agriculture and Food Systems and Natural Resources program areas. Nonprofit organizations from anywhere in the US are eligible to apply for grants under the American Heritage program area.
How to Apply
Step 1: Register in the Online Application Portal
Organizations interested in applying for a grant from the Americana Foundation must complete the registration process in our online grantmaking platform. You can access the platform and begin the registration process at the following link: https://www.grantinterface.com/Home/Logon?urlkey=americanafoundation.
Step 2: Choose an Open Grant Opportunity
Americana's grant application process has two stages: a letter of intent (LOI), and a full application. LOIs can be submitted any time a grant opportunity is open or available on our grantmaking platform. The board considers full grant applications four times per year, usually in February, May, August, and November. The 2025 due dates for submitting full grant applications are as follows:
- February meeting – applications must be received by January 6
- May meeting – applications must be received by April 1
- August meeting – applications must be received by July 14
- November meeting – applications must be received by October 1
After completing the registration process and logging on to our online grantmaking platform, you will be directed to an account dashboard that displays Americana’s available grant opportunities. To begin the application process, choose the opportunity that corresponds to the board meeting at which you would like a grant application to be considered (if an application is invited). Click Apply to open the form.
When choosing an open grant opportunity, please consider whether you will have enough time to prepare a full grant application by the applicable due date if an application is invited. We do the best we can to respond promptly to LOIs and generally respond within a week or two after submittal. Nevertheless, the LOI review process can take several weeks.
Step 3: Submit a Letter of Intent
The first form in the application is the letter of intent (LOI). The purpose of the LOI is to help us understand whether and how your project or program aligns with Americana's program interests and priorities. The LOI requests the following information:
- Basic information about your organization and its mission,
- A brief description of the need for the project or program, how the project or program will fill the specified need, and the expected outcomes, and
- the amount requested.
After we review the LOI, you will receive an email that advises whether or not a full grant application will be invited. We may ask to meet with you to discuss a project or program before we decide whether to invite an application. We generally respond to LOIs within a week or two after submittal.
Step 4: Submit a Full Grant Application
If you are invited to submit a full grant application, you will receive an email with instructions for accessing the application form. Applications must include a current IRS determination letter indicating the applicant’s tax-exempt status, an annual operating budget, and the applicant organization’s most recent financial information. Applications also must include a grant budget that explains how grant funds would be used if a grant is awarded. You can review our preferred grant budget format in advance.
Click here to view the budget as a PDF.
Click here to view the budget as an Excel document.
To maximize the possibility that applications will be successful, we encourage applicants to contact us with any questions about the form or content of the application. Likewise, we may contact you after the application is submitted for clarification and context. We may request an in-person interview or site visit so we can get to know you better.
Step 5: Review and Decision
The board of trustees evaluates full grant applications and decides whether or not to award grant requests at quarterly board meetings. We generally notify applicants of the board's grant decisions within a week after board meetings. If the Board approves your grant request, we will email you an award letter, grant agreement, and other documentation for review and signature. Once we receive signed documents, we can release the grant award via check or ACH distribution.
Step 6: Implementation and Reporting
We welcome check-ins and conversations with grantee partners at any time and enjoy receiving newsletters, emails, and other updates. At the end of a project, grantees are asked to report on outcomes, lessons learned, and future plans regarding an approved project or program. We also request a report on how the grant funds were used. Depending on the type of grant or length of the grant period, we may also ask grantees to submit a progress report at the mid-point. Reporting requirements are shared with the grant agreement and are usually submitted using an online report form.
We understand that the circumstances of a project may change as work takes shape, so grantees should feel free to reach out to us at any time to request a modification or extension to an approved grant. We generally respond quickly to such requests.
A Note about Indirect Costs
The Americana Foundation aims to structure grants in a way that makes financial sense for the grantee, encourages grantees to deliver project outcomes efficiently, builds strong partnerships based on trust and transparency, and maximizes the impact of our grant funding.
With this aim in mind, Americana may award grants that include expenses directly attributable to project outcomes and outputs (direct costs) and a reasonable amount of the grantee’s administrative and general expenses (indirect costs). The Foundation typically limits the award of indirect costs to a maximum of 15% of direct costs, but the actual indirect cost rate applied in a grant award may be higher or lower depending on the type of project, the level of administrative effort required, the grantee’s organizational cost structure, overall grant size, and other factors. Grantees that seek to include indirect costs as part of a grant award must separate direct costs from indirect costs in the project budget. Americana generally does not provide general operating support, but exceptions may be made in extraordinary circumstances.
Ready to Begin?
The button below will redirect you from our website to our online application portal. If you are new to our system, click the Create New Account button to begin the registration process. If you have already registered in the system, you can log on with your email and password to access available grant opportunities or to view drafts or previously submitted LOIs and applications.
If you experience technical issues while working on your application, please contact us at [email protected]. If you have reviewed our mission, program areas, priorities, and guidelines and still have questions about whether your project or program aligns, feel free to contact us at [email protected] or schedule a 30-minute intro meeting. We will be happy to address any questions you may have.
CONTACT US
If you have reviewed our mission, program areas, priorities, and guidelines and still have questions, feel free to contact us or schedule a 30-minute intro meeting. We will be happy to address any inquiries you may have.