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The Chicago Community Trust

Annual Giving
$1.5B
Grant Range
$5K - $5.0M
Decision Time
3mo

Quick Stats

  • Annual Giving: $1.5 billion (FY 2024)
  • Total Assets: $6.1 billion (as of September 2024)
  • Success Rate: Not publicly disclosed
  • Decision Time: Varies by program (typically 2-4 months from submission to decision)
  • Grant Range: $5,000 - several million dollars
  • Geographic Focus: Chicago region, primarily Cook County, Illinois

Contact Details

Address: 33 S. State Street, Suite 750, Chicago, IL 60603 Phone: 312-616-8000 Fax: 312-616-7955 Email: info@cct.org Website: www.cct.org Grants Email: grants@cct.org Application Portal: GrantCentral (https://trust360.my.site.com/grantcentral/s/login/)

Overview

Founded in 1915 by Norman Wait Harris and his son Albert Wadsworth Harris, The Chicago Community Trust is the third-oldest community foundation still in existence in the United States and the second-largest community foundation in the country. With consolidated assets of $6.1 billion as of September 2024, the Trust distributed $1.5 billion in grant commitments during fiscal year 2024 across 4,005 awards to organizations serving the Chicago region. Led by President and CEO Andrea Sáenz since November 2022—the Trust's first Latinx leader—the organization operates under the motto "Equity. Opportunity. Prosperity." In 2019, the Trust launched an ambitious 10-year strategic plan centered on closing Chicago's racial and ethnic wealth gap, focusing grantmaking across six core areas: Household Wealth, Community Wealth, Collective Power, Policy Change, Critical Needs, and Connecting Philanthropy to Impact. The Trust is recognized as the 10th largest foundation in the United States by annual giving and continues to expand its impact through innovative programs like Press Forward Chicago and the Pre-Development Fund.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

The Chicago Community Trust offers various grant opportunities, primarily through competitive Request for Proposals (RFPs) and strategic initiatives:

Pre-Development Fund

  • Amount: $100,000 per grant plus technical assistance
  • Focus: Early-stage neighborhood-scale development projects across Chicago's South and West sides
  • Application Schedule: Submissions accepted twice annually (December and June) for funding decisions in April and October
  • Requirements: Projects must demonstrate connection to neighborhood's physical and social environment

Press Forward Chicago

  • Amount: Grants ranging from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars
  • Focus: Building capacity of smaller newsrooms with budgets under $2 million
  • Total Initiative: $20 million goal over five years; $3+ million disbursed to date
  • Priority: Civic journalism and storytelling platforms that amplify community voices

Nuestro Futuro

  • Focus: Early childhood education and immigration within the Latine community
  • Type: Strategic grantmaking within affinity fund structure

Workforce Development Program

  • Application Timeline: RFP available every November, proposals due early January

Housing and Homelessness Programs

  • Preventing and Ending Homelessness: Proposals typically due in September
  • Preserving Home Ownership: RFPs released early March, proposals due early May
  • Historical Range: Previous programs awarded $25,000 - $75,000 for general operating support

General Grant Types

  • Competitive grants for general operating support
  • Responsive grants for specific community needs or opportunities
  • Multi-year grants to provide organizational stability
  • Application Method: Primarily through GrantCentral online portal on a mixed schedule (rolling for some programs, fixed deadlines for others)

Priority Areas

The Trust's grantmaking focuses on narrowing the wealth gap through several strategic priorities:

Household Wealth Building

  • Increasing Black and Latine homeownership and home equity
  • Boosting income and financial assets for households facing systemic barriers
  • Creating quality employment with security, worker voice, retirement accounts, and caregiving support
  • Promoting equitable and affordable postsecondary education outcomes
  • Expanding wraparound support services (childcare, transportation, barrier reduction funds)

Community Wealth Development

  • Place-based investments in underinvested communities
  • Shared ownership and public ownership models
  • Small business development and access to capital
  • Community asset building (businesses, land, homes, commercial real estate)
  • Neighborhood revitalization projects

Collective Power and Civic Engagement

  • Building capacity of grassroots organizations and community leaders
  • Supporting civic journalism and local news organizations
  • Strengthening community organizing efforts
  • Mutual aid networks

Policy Change and Advocacy

  • Reforming property tax and property tax sale systems
  • Reducing permitting and zoning barriers for vacant properties
  • Streamlining government grantmaking and procurement to foster equity
  • Supporting tax and public benefits reforms that promote economic mobility
  • Maintaining tax incentives for charitable giving

Critical Needs

  • Food security and emergency food access
  • Housing stability and homelessness prevention
  • Emergency clothing and supplies
  • Healthcare access
  • Legal services

What They Don't Fund

Geographic Restrictions

  • Projects or organizations outside of Cook County (with rare strategic exceptions)
  • Organizations not benefiting residents of the Chicago region
  • Discretionary grants to projects outside of the United States

Organizational Requirements

  • Organizations without 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status (unless they have a nonprofit fiscal sponsor)
  • Private foundations (as classified under IRS code)

Hate-Free Grantmaking Policy

  • Organizations that support or engage in "hateful activities" including violence, intimidation, harassment, or attacks on individuals or groups based on race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, immigration status, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, or other protected class

Program-Specific Restrictions

  • Pre-Development Fund: Projects seeking funding exclusively for acquisition expenses are not considered

Governance and Leadership

Executive Leadership

Andrea Sáenz, President and CEO (appointed November 2022)

  • The Trust's eighth President and CEO and first Latinx leader
  • Previously integral in establishing the Trust's 10-year strategic plan to address economic inequity
  • Background in community engagement and participatory design

Key quote from Andrea Sáenz: "Listening to communities, engaging communities and designing what kind of libraries and learning centers they wanted for themselves inspires a lot of how I've been thinking about what we can do with the Chicago Community Trust."

Governance Structure

The Trust operates under a unique dual governance structure:

Trustees Committee

  • Composed of chief executives from major financial institutions: Bank of America, BMO Harris Bank, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Northern Trust, and US Bank
  • Serve as trustees for the Trust's funds
  • Appoint members of the Executive Committee
  • Advise on development and community relations matters

Executive Committee

  • 17 community leaders providing strategic and fiduciary oversight
  • Chair: Jim Reynolds, founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Loop Capital

Jim Reynolds' assessment of Andrea Sáenz: "She has already proven to be a visionary leader and I've been very impressed with the way she's embraced many of the key issues and how she can crystalize these issues and make our goals more achievable."

Recent Executive Committee Members include:

  • Brett Hart, President of United Airlines
  • Jesse Ruiz, Partner, General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer of The Vistria Group
  • Bryan Traubert, Chairman of the Pritzker Traubert Foundation
  • Martin Cabrera, Jr., CEO and Founder of Cabrera Capital Markets
  • Gloria Castillo, President and CEO of Chicago United

Application Process & Timeline

How to Apply

Primary Application System: GrantCentral

  • Web-based, responsive grants management platform
  • Accessible at: https://trust360.my.site.com/grantcentral/s/login/
  • Grant seekers can create accounts to receive notifications about relevant funding opportunities
  • Organizations can research available grants and manage all grant activities in one platform

Application Process

  1. Create an account in GrantCentral
  2. Monitor for open funding opportunities (posted regularly in the portal)
  3. Review specific RFP guidelines for each opportunity
  4. Submit proposals through the online system by specified deadlines
  5. Technical assistance available via email at grants@cct.org

Eligibility Requirements

  • Must be a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization not classified as a private foundation, OR
  • Must have a nonprofit fiscal sponsor
  • Must serve or be based in Cook County, Illinois
  • Must demonstrate benefit to residents of the Chicago region

Pre-Application Contact The Trust is described as "a transparent and accessible funder" that invites contact with program managers to discuss organizational work and inquire about potential opportunities before formal application.

Decision Timeline

Decision timelines vary by program and funding opportunity:

Typical Timeline

  • 2-4 months from submission to decision for most competitive grants
  • Notification methods vary by program (typically through GrantCentral portal)

Program-Specific Timelines

  • Pre-Development Fund: December/June submission → April/October funding decisions (4 months)
  • Workforce Development: November RFP release → January proposal due → decision within 2-3 months
  • Housing Programs:
    • Homelessness prevention: September submission → Fall/Winter decisions
    • Home ownership: March RFP → May proposals → Summer decisions

Multi-Year Grants The Trust often provides multi-year grants as a best practice to afford organizations greater stability, which may involve longer initial decision periods but provides sustained funding commitments.

Success Rates

Application Statistics

  • Fiscal Year 2024: 4,005 awards made
  • Fiscal Year 2023: Over 3,800 grants awarded
  • Total applications received: Not publicly disclosed
  • Specific success rates/acceptance percentages: Not publicly available

The Trust does not publicly disclose success rates or competitiveness statistics. However, given the substantial volume of grants (4,000+ annually) and the Trust's position as one of the nation's largest funders, they maintain an active and robust grantmaking program across multiple funding streams.

Reapplication Policy

The Trust does not publicly specify a formal reapplication policy or waiting period for unsuccessful applicants. Organizations are encouraged to:

  • Continue monitoring GrantCentral for new funding opportunities that align with their work
  • Contact program staff at grants@cct.org to discuss future opportunities
  • Review feedback (if provided) to strengthen future applications
  • Consider that the Trust posts multiple funding opportunities throughout the year across different program areas

The absence of stated restrictions suggests that unsuccessful applicants may reapply to future opportunities that fit their organizational mission and capacity.

Application Success Factors

Strategic Alignment is Critical

Connection to Wealth Gap Strategy Successful applicants demonstrate clear connection to the Trust's 10-year strategic plan to close Chicago's racial and ethnic wealth gap. Applications should explicitly articulate how proposed work advances:

  • Black and Latine household wealth building
  • Community wealth development in underinvested neighborhoods
  • Systemic change through policy advocacy or collective power building

Program-Specific Success Factors

Pre-Development Fund Success Elements According to the Trust, successful applicants demonstrate:

  • Strong connection to neighborhood's physical and social environment
  • Ability to complement and be amplified by existing economic environment
  • Understanding that "projects that lack a strong connection to their neighborhood's physical and social environment often struggle to generate meaningful economic growth"
  • Detailed plans showing how development will benefit the local community

Relationship Building Matters

The Trust emphasizes accessibility and transparency. According to guidance for grantseekers:

  • "Developing a strong relationship with CCT can lead to many opportunities down the line"
  • Program managers welcome pre-application conversations
  • The Trust has "recently increased the number of grant opportunities available through an open application process"

Evidence of Community Engagement

Based on leadership philosophy and funding priorities:

  • Andrea Sáenz emphasizes "Listening to communities, engaging communities" as core to the Trust's approach
  • Projects should demonstrate community input and participatory design
  • Grassroots leadership and community voice are valued
  • Applications should show how communities helped shape the proposed work

Geographic and Demographic Focus

Cook County Priority

  • Grantmaking is "for the most part, limited to Cook County"
  • Must demonstrate clear benefit to Chicago region residents
  • South and West Side neighborhoods receive particular attention through specific programs

Racial Equity Lens

  • Explicit focus on closing racial and ethnic wealth gaps
  • Priority for work serving Black and Latine communities
  • Understanding of systemic barriers and historical disinvestment required

Recent Funded Projects as Models

2025 Pre-Development Fund Recipients (each received $100,000):

  • Bethel New Life Inc. for the Harvest project
  • Elizabeth L. Carter, Esq., LLC for the Wisdom Connection Initiative
  • 12 total grants to early-stage projects across South and West sides

2024 Press Forward Chicago Recipients ($1.6+ million total):

  • 13 local news organizations
  • Focus on newsrooms with budgets under $2 million
  • Civic journalism and community storytelling platforms

2020 Building Pathways to Stability ($2 million total):

  • 40 nonprofit organizations
  • Grants ranging $25,000 - $75,000
  • General operating support for housing, food security, healthcare access organizations

Language and Terminology to Use

Applications should incorporate the Trust's strategic vocabulary:

  • "Wealth gap" and "wealth building" (not just poverty alleviation)
  • "Household wealth" and "community wealth" as distinct concepts
  • "Underinvested communities" (rather than "underserved")
  • "Black and Latine" (the Trust's preferred terminology)
  • "Collective power" and "civic engagement"
  • "Systemic barriers" and "structural inequity"
  • "Place-based investments"
  • "Wraparound supports"

Technical and Operational Capacity

The Trust often provides:

  • Multi-year grants for organizational stability
  • Technical assistance alongside funding (particularly in Pre-Development Fund)
  • General operating support (not just project-specific funding)

Successful applicants demonstrate organizational capacity to manage significant investments and achieve measurable outcomes.

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

  • Align explicitly with the wealth gap strategy: Every application should clearly articulate how the proposed work advances the Trust's 10-year plan to close Chicago's racial and ethnic wealth gap. Generic proposals without this connection are unlikely to succeed.

  • Cook County focus is non-negotiable: Despite the Trust's significant resources, geographic eligibility is strictly limited to organizations based in or primarily serving Cook County. Do not apply if your work falls outside this geographic area.

  • Relationship building pays dividends: The Trust actively encourages pre-application conversations with program managers. Contact grants@cct.org to discuss your organization's work and potential fit before investing time in a full application. Multiple grantseekers report that developing relationships with CCT staff leads to multiple opportunities over time.

  • Demonstrate community connection and engagement: Leadership emphasizes listening to and engaging communities. Applications must show genuine community input, participatory design processes, and how residents helped shape the proposed work—not just how you'll serve them.

  • Use their language strategically: Adopt the Trust's terminology around "wealth building," "underinvested communities," "Black and Latine" populations, and "collective power." This demonstrates familiarity with their strategic approach and shows you've done your homework.

  • Monitor GrantCentral regularly: The Trust has expanded open application opportunities and posts new RFPs throughout the year. Create an account, set up alerts, and check frequently. Some opportunities have short application windows.

  • Think beyond project funding: The Trust values organizational sustainability and frequently provides general operating support and multi-year grants. Don't be afraid to request flexible funding or multi-year commitments if your track record supports it.

References

  1. The Chicago Community Trust. (2024). "2024 Annual Report." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/about/annual-reports/ (December 2024)

  2. The Chicago Community Trust. "Financials." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/about/financials/ (December 2024)

  3. The Chicago Community Trust. "How to Apply." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/grants/how-to-apply/ (December 2024)

  4. The Chicago Community Trust. "Opportunities." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/grants/opportunities/ (December 2024)

  5. The Chicago Community Trust. "What We Fund." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/grants/what-we-fund/ (December 2024)

  6. The Chicago Community Trust. "Executive Committee & Trustees." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/about/our-people/executives-trustees/ (December 2024)

  7. The Chicago Community Trust. "Leadership & President's Office." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/about/our-people/leadership/ (December 2024)

  8. The Chicago Community Trust. (November 2022). "The Chicago Community Trust Names Andrea Sáenz as President and CEO." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/press-releases/the-chicago-community-trust-names-andrea-saenz-as-president-and-ceo/ (December 2024)

  9. The Chicago Community Trust. "Our History." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/about/our-history/ (December 2024)

  10. The Chicago Community Trust. "Household Wealth." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/our-work/household-wealth/ (December 2024)

  11. The Chicago Community Trust. "Community Wealth." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/our-work/community-wealth/ (December 2024)

  12. The Chicago Community Trust. "Policy Change." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/our-work/policy-change/ (December 2024)

  13. The Chicago Community Trust. "Pre-Development Fund." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/grants/opportunities/pre-development-fund/ (December 2024)

  14. The Chicago Community Trust. (2025). "Pre-Development Fund: Helping Communities Realize Their Visions for Thriving Neighborhoods." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/stories/pre-development-fund-helping-communities-realize-their-visions-for-thriving-neighborhoods/ (December 2024)

  15. The Chicago Community Trust. "Press Forward Chicago." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/pressforward/ (December 2024)

  16. The Chicago Community Trust. "More Than $1.6 Million in Grants to 13 Local News Organizations." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/press-releases/more-than-1-6-million-in-grants-to-13-local-news-organizations/ (December 2024)

  17. The Chicago Community Trust. "Nuestro Futuro." Retrieved from https://www.cct.org/nuestro-futuro/ (December 2024)

  18. Wikipedia. "Chicago Community Trust." Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_Community_Trust (December 2024)

  19. Inside Philanthropy. "Chicago Community Trust." Retrieved from https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/find-a-grant-places/illinois-grants/chicago-community-trust (December 2024)

  20. Crain's Chicago Business. (November 2022). "Chicago Community Trust names Andrea Sáenz new president and CEO." Retrieved from https://www.chicagobusiness.com/nonprofits-philanthropy/chicago-community-trust-names-andrea-saenz-new-president-and-ceo (December 2024)

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