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Types of Support

The John R. Oishei Foundation places its emphasis in several areas as defined elsewhere on this website: stable neighborhoods, economic self-sufficiency, academic performance, community health, medical research, and strengthening regional assets.  Support is provided in three broad categories:            

• Expansion or improvement of existing, demonstrably successful programs, including support for new staff and equipment related to those programs;
•  Creation and implementation of new, innovative approaches to issues related to the Foundation’s interests; and 

• Core Operations Improvement. This category comprises requests that result in strengthening the internal operations of organizations that help to better fulfill their missions. Fundable activities may include, but are not limited to:  

• Capacity Building and Technical Assistance including:

                       Professional development and training of board and/or staff

                       Strategic planning and implementation activities

                       Consultant assistance with improving financial or other  

                       managerial processes

                       Shared services, facilities, or personnel with other agencies

• Capital expenditures and/or improvements related directly to an organization’s mission and programs which may include purchase or upgrade of equipment or limited renovation of facilities to improve service. Support for the purchase and/or extensive renovation of buildings may be considered. Organizations are encouraged to contact the Foundation for additional guidance. 

Grants may be short-term or multi-year (usually no more than four years in length). Multi-year grants are generally in decreasing amounts each year, and interim report(s) are required by the Foundation. Grants for longer periods of time are possible, and may be considered in light of the organization’s progress during the initial grant period. However, the Foundation in all cases strongly encourages grantees to seek and secure funding from other sources to ensure the continuation of the work. Organizations may include reasonable administrative or overhead expenses as a percentage of the overall budget, but must justify the amount requested.

Generally, support is not provided for:

• Deficit funding
• Individual scholarships or fellowships except within specific Foundation programs
• Single-occurrence conferences, seminars, or workshops except as they relate to core operations improvement requests as defined above
• Fundraising events, including annual dinners, tournaments, and the like
• Endowments, except in rare cases