Finding the Funds You Need: 
A Guide for Grant Seekers

Table of Contents

Publications and Services of the Foundation Center

Reference Materials Found at Center Libraries  
* Forms 990-PF: Internal Revenue Service information returns are filed annually by more than 40,000 U.S. private foundations. These forms are often the only primary source of information on the many foundations that do not issue annual reports. Information provided on 990-PF forms includes fiscal data, grants awarded by a foundation, and the names of the foundation's officers and trustees.

* Grantmaker Materials: Each library maintains an extensive collection of foundation annual reports and corporate giving reports, as well as newsletters, press releases, and application guidelines.

* Directories, Books, and Periodicals: Foundation Center-operated libraries have available for public use multiple copies of the Center's publications, in addition to hundreds of other directories, books, and periodicals on such topics as fundraising, board relations, corporate responsibility, foundation salaries, nonprofit management, and program planning.

* Foundation and Nonprofit Literature Online: The Center's bibliographic database contains listings for more than 12,000 books and articles, many with abstracts, relating to philanthropy and the nonprofit sector.

Congressional Research Service Resources  
Since 1985, the Center has regularly provided the Congressional Research Service (CRS) of the Library of Congress with eight complimentary sets of its core publications. These collections are located in the Congressional Reference Division, in two Congressional Reading Rooms, and in four House and Senate Reference Centers, where they are available to congressional staff responding to constituent requests for grants and funding information.

The Center also collaborates with the CRS on presentations about foundation funding. In the spring of 1995, representatives from the Foundation Center in Washington conducted a special training session for CRS staff on how to respond to congressional inquiries, and throughout 1995 Center staff are participating in the CRS quarterly workshops for congressional employees.

Cooperating Collections  
The Center's Cooperating Collections are located in public libraries, community foundation offices, and other nonprofit agencies in all 50 states. Cooperating Collections offer a core collection of Center publications free to the public, and their

staffs are trained to direct patrons to appropriate resources on funding information. Many CCs also have directories and reports on local funders as well as copies of IRS information returns for private foundations in their state or region. For the address and telephone number of a Cooperating Collection in a given location, call the Center at 1-800-424-9836.

Publications  
The Foundation Center annually issues more than 60 publications, among them directories of foundation and corporate grantmakers, grants lists, research studies, bibliographies, and authored works on subjects relating to fundraising, foundations, and non-profit management.

All Foundation Center publications, including The Foundation Directory and The Foundation Directory Part 2, are available for free use in all Center libraries and Cooperating Collections.

A Sampling of Center-Issued Books  
* The 1996 edition of The Foundation Directory features current data on the nation's largest funders, those that hold assets of at least $2 million or distribute $200,000 or more in grants annually. The volume includes information on more than major foundations, which hold combined assets of $170 billion and donate well over $10 billion annually. Designed as a companion volume to the Directory, The Foundation Directory Part 2 covers 4,200 mid-sized foundations with annual grant programs ranging from $50,000 to $200,000. The Foundation Directory Supplement is issued six months after the Directory and the Directory Part 2 and provides useful updates to the information contained in those volumes.

* The Foundation 1000 provides comprehensive, multi-page profiles of the 1,000 largest foundations in the United States. Profiles include grantmaker addresses and contact names, reviews of program interests, purpose and giving limitations statements, application guidelines, and the names of key officials. Also included are in-depth analyses of grant programs, extensive lists of sample grants, and cross-referenced indexes.

* The 1996 edition of the Guide to U.S. Foundations, Their Trustees, Officers, and Donors has current information on every active private grantmaking foundation in the United States ˜ more than 37,500 foundations in all. Arranged by state and local giving, the Guide to U.S. Foundations helps users identify both large and small foundations in their geographic area, while the comprehensive trustee, officer, and donor index offers information on the affiliations of board members, donors, and volunteers.

* The 1995 edition of the National Directory of Corporate Giving offers information on more than 2,300 corporate philanthropic programs, including detailed portraits of over corporate foundations and more than 600 direct-giving programs. Grantmaker entries include application information, the names of key personnel, types of support generally awarded, giving limitations, financial data, and purpose and activities statements.

* The 1996 edition of The Foundation Grants Index lists grants of $10,000 or more awarded by more than 1,000 of the largest independent, corporate, and community foundations in the United States. Containing more than 74,000 grant descriptions, the book is divided into 29 broad subject areas such as health, higher education, arts and culture, and the environment. Within each of these fields, grants are grouped by state.

* The Foundation Center's Guide to Proposal Writing offers a comprehensive look at the steps involved in preparing an effective funding request and gives advice on such subjects as proposal formats, budget preparation, and follow-up. It also includes advice from grantmakers themselves on the do's and don'ts of proposal writing.

* The 1996 edition of Foundation Giving: A Yearbook of Facts and Figures on Private, Corporate and Community Foundations, a comprehensive overview of the latest trends in foundation grantmaking, documents the growth of and changes in grantmaking from 1975 to the present. More than 100 charts and tables illustrate such topics as foundation grants by subject area, foundation assets and gifts received, and the geographic distribution of foundations and the grants they awarded.

* Other recently published research studies published by the Center include reports on national funding in the arts; giving by New York City foundations; giving by foundations in the southeastern United States; and a study of program-related investments made by U.S. foundations. To see an online version of the Center's publications catalog, click here.

Services  
Whether they visit a Center library to find out about a foundation's giving guidelines, about recent changes at foundations in their region, or about grants in specific areas of interest, people turn to the Foundation Center for information on the foundation field.

Fees
While many Center resources and services are available on a complimentary basis, for others a fee corresponding to the cost of online time or the amount of staff time required to fill a request is charged. For more information, please call or write the Foundation Center.

Referrals
Among the questions most commonly asked by novice grantseekers are: Which funders might be interested in my nonprofit organization or project? And, Where can I find information about proposal l writing and other fundraising skills? The Foundation Center encourages people with these kinds of questions to call or visit a Center-operated library or Cooperating Collection, where staff trained in the funding-research process can help them get started.

Custom Research and Database Searching
Center staff also provide custom services ranging from photocopying to telephone reference to database searching. Staff consult with customers to identify their needs and determine the most cost-effective and timely way of obtaining the information they require.

The Foundation Center's database contains comprehensive information on more than 40,000 grantmaking foundations and direct corporate giving programs. The contents of the Center's database are available to subscribers through DIALOG Information Services. Custom searches performed by Center staff are conducted using DIALOG files or the Center's internal database, depending on the nature of the information request.

Research Advice  
When people wish to conduct their own research, they often call or visit the Center for advice on how to proceed. Center staff can recommend the best online and other sources of regional and national information, offering assistance in performing a variety of searches.

Foundation Center Offices  

This publication is available in alternative media upon request

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