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Supporting arts and culture,
community and higher education
in Northeast Ohio.

GRANTS

Please contact the Foundation offices to determine the eligibility of your organization or to obtain current grant application forms and instructions for submitting them. This is especially important if your organization has not received a grant from us in the past as we accept a very limited number of new applicants each year.

The Board of Trustees customarily meets four times annually to consider grant requests. Please contact our Grants Manager for a schedule of upcoming meeting dates and deadlines.

All grant applications are acknowledged in writing when received, and the applicant is informed of the meeting at which the Trustees will consider it. Applicants typically are notified of the disposition of their grant within two weeks of the meeting.

FOUNDATION GUIDELINES

All grant applications are acknowledged in writing when received, and the applicant is informed of the meeting at which the Trustees will consider it. Applicants typically are notified of the disposition of their grant within two weeks of the meeting.

Who and What We Fund

  • 501(c) (3) tax-exempt corporations in good standing with the Internal Revenue Service

  • Nonprofit organizations and institutions within Cuyahoga County, Ohio and, to a lesser extent, its contiguous counties

  • Programs and services

  • Select capital campaigns

Who and What We DO NOT Fund

  • Individuals or for-profit corporations

  • Nonprofit organizations outside of Northeast Ohio

  • Local chapters of national nonprofit organizations

  • Endowments

  • Debt reduction or elimination

  • Program-related investments or loans

  • Salaries or other forms of compensation for staff or independent contractors

  • Special events sponsorships or the purchase of tickets or tables

Additional Guidelines

  • Grants must be expended in accordance with the request as approved by the Board of Trustees. Funds not spent in that manner must be returned to the Foundation.

  • The Foundation has the right at any time to postpone, reschedule or cancel grant payments, especially if there is a substantive change in the condition of the grant recipient, such as changes to its financial condition, tax or legal status, management or governance.

  • The Foundation rarely publicizes its grants and expects that grant recipients will consult with us before doing so.

  • All guidelines are subject to change with the discretion of the Trustees, who are wholly responsible for the preservation of the Foundation endowment bequeathed by Mr. and Mrs. Murphy and for the distribution of income from the endowment.

REGULAR GRANTS

The Trustees of the John P. Murphy Foundation have a strong preference for funding the direct costs of programs and services that are closely related to the applicant’s mission. They are less inclined to provide general operating support. The amount requested should represent an equitable share of the total budget with similar support provided by other sources, including foundations. Additionally, requested amounts should be in line with an organization’s recent history of grants.

 

In considering requests for capital campaigns, the Trustees look closely at how the project will impact the organization and the community which it serves. That is, how will the project help the organization to better fulfill its mission and what will be the benefit for the community that it serves.

 

Qualified nonprofit organizations can obtain a grant application form and instructions for completing and submitting it by contacting our Grants Manager, Christine Porter, at the Foundation offices.

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