North Carolina Community Progress Fund

info@zsr.org
336.725.7541

The Community Progress Fund offers grants for organizations in rural North Carolina to meet direct needs, test new ideas, or expand promising efforts.

Proposal criteria:

• Demonstrate how the project will move an idea, issue, organization, or project forward to improve the community
• Demonstrate that there is existing momentum within the community to move the idea, issue, organization, or project forward, and how the grant will accelerate, test, or grow the momentum
• Be able to begin implementation of a project immediately upon award of the grant
• Have a proposal that aligns with the Foundation's core values

Priority will be given to proposals that:

• Have the greatest potential to achieve local impact and make progress
• Are community-driven, community-led, and community-centered
• Are from organizations that are led by and primarily serve people of color

Examples of past grantees and projects:

• Food banks
• Family shelters
• Childcare centers
• Transition/succession planning
• Pilot programs
• Facility repairs

Eligibility criteria:

• Have 501(c)3 status or be government or religious entities operating in North Carolina
• Be located in one of North Carolina's 78 rural counties
• Use the grant for work that serves the people of the rural community
• Not have received a Community Progress Fund grant within the last 2 years

Award ceiling: $30,000
Award floor: $20,000 per year
Project period: 1-2 years

A link to the online application is available on the program website.