The Illinois Prairie Community Foundation (IPCF) General Grants program provides funding for initiatives focused on education, health and wellness, or youth. These grants are designed to support new or existing programs that benefit residents of McLean, DeWitt, Livingston, or Logan Counties. The foundation emphasizes projects that are innovative, cost-effective, and have the potential for long-term sustainability beyond the grant period. Applicants must select one primary category—education, health and wellness, or youth—even if their project overlaps multiple areas. Organizations cannot apply for the same program under multiple IPCF grant categories but may submit applications for different programs under separate grant opportunities.

Grant applications open on February 1, 2025, and must be submitted online through the IPCF grant portal by February 28, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. Central Time. No paper applications are accepted. All applicants must use a standardized budget document, available in Word and Excel formats, which is required as part of the application. Notification of grant awards will occur by the end of April 2025, with funding available for use from June 1, 2025, through May 31, 2026. Awarded organizations must sign a Grant Agreement, which must be approved by their Executive Director, CEO, or Board President.

Funding requests must be at least $500, with the typical grant range in 2024 falling between $500 and $5,000. The average award amount was $2,300. Grant funds cannot be used for non-program-related expenses, endowment campaigns, capital expenditures, fundraising events, conference or continuing education expenses, or scholarships. While personnel expenses are not outright prohibited, the IPCF Grant Committee prefers not to fund such costs.

Eligibility for the grant requires applicants to be a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, operate under a fiscal sponsor with 501(c)(3) status, be a government entity, or be a tax-exempt religious organization recognized by the IRS. Programs must comply with anti-discrimination laws and cannot be used to promote religious or political beliefs. Additionally, organizations that have previously received IPCF funding must be up to date on their final grant reports.

Applications are evaluated based on their potential for long-term sustainability, creative and innovative approaches to addressing community needs, use of measurable outcomes with clear reporting methods, and cost-effectiveness relative to the number of participants served. Due to funding limitations, not all projects will receive support, and application denials do not necessarily reflect on the quality of the program.

Applicants can access the online grant portal at https://www.grantinterface.com/Home/Logon?urlkey=ipcf to begin or manage their application. For further inquiries, applicants can contact Michele Evans, Grants & Communications Director, at 309-662-4477 or mevans@ilprairiecf.org.