Thank you for your interest in applying for an OSPC grant.  The Oberlin Student Philanthropy Club offers financial support to charitable organizations through competitive and/or noncompetitive grants, providing an opportunity for Oberlin students to improve the Oberlin community and become acquainted with the grantmaking process.

What we’re looking for

OSPC seeks to support projects that will have lasting, positive effects. Grant applications from organizations throughout Lorain County will be considered, but preference will be given to projects that have the greatest impact on the Oberlin area.We will consider the following items when evaluating grant proposals:

• History of the organization and key staff members
• Feasibility and specificity of the project
• Plans for implementation and evaluation
• Anticipated short and long-term impact of the project on the organization and community
• Number of beneficiaries
• Size of the requested grant relative to organization’s annual budget
• Other sources of support for the project

Who should apply

Grant applicants must be 501(c)(3) charitable organizations.  Grants will not be awarded to:

• individuals (unless supported by a 501(c)(3) organization acting as a fiscal agent);
• organizations within or representing Oberlin College;
• support lobbying, political campaigns or other political activities.

Grant Application Process

OSPC uses the Common Grant Forms developed by the Ohio Grantmakers Forum.  All of the OSPC Grant Application forms are available in Word and Excel format on the Ohio Grantmakers Forum website, http://www.ohiograntmakers.org/page11466.cfm.

OSPC has a two-part application process.  Before your organization decides to complete the entire grant application, please submit a Letter of Inquiry (Part 1 of the application).  OSPC will contact you within two weeks of receiving your Letter of Inquiry, and may request that you submit Part 2 of the application.

Please download the following application forms in Word or Excel format:

Part 1

1) Letter of Inquiry

Part 2

2) Budget Form for Fiscal Year (for your organization’s current fiscal year)
3) Program Request Budget or Capital Budget Form (the budget for the proposed project)
4) Statement of Revenue/Support and Expense (same as the Budget Form for Fiscal Year, but for your organization’s previous fiscal year)
5) Common Grant Form (Attachments (2), (3) and (6b) listed in Section Seven are the same as items (2), (3) and (4) above, respectively, and should be submitted only once.)

For the 2007-08 academic year, Letters of Inquiry will be accepted Tuesday, September 4, 2007 through Friday, November 9, 2007 (postmark).  Part 2 of the grant application will be accepted Tuesday, September 18, 2007 through Friday, December 7, 2007 (postmark).

All forms, attachments, and any supplemental materials may be either emailed to ospc@oberlin.edu or mailed to OSPC, Wilder Box 49, 135 West Lorain Street, Oberlin, OH 44074.  If submitting hard copies, please submit one copy of each form and attachment.

Grant Awards and Evaluation

Grants will be awarded no later than Friday, March 21, 2008.  A total of $10,000 in grants will be awarded, each no larger than $2,000.  Grant funds must be spent in full by grantees during 2008.

OSPC requests that each grantee submit two progress reports.  These reports allow OSPC to evaluate its role in the community.  Progress reports should address the following items:

• Adherence to the original project budget, timeline and evaluation plan
• Measurable impact of the project on the organization and Oberlin community so far
• Ongoing impact of the project on the organization and Oberlin community

The first progress report for each project funded by OSPC must be submitted two months after receipt of the grant.  A second Progress Report must be submitted to OSPC by Friday, February 1, 2009. (postmark)

Timeline for 2007-2008 Grant Cycle

Contact OSPC