← Back to US Funders Directory

Vermont Community Foundation

Annual Giving
$39.7M
Grant Range
$1K - $0.0M
Decision Time
3w

Vermont Community Foundation

Quick Stats

  • Total Assets: $370.6 million
  • Annual Giving: $39.7 million (FY 2024)
  • Grant Range: $500 - $25,000 (public programs); invitation-only programs can exceed this
  • Geographic Focus: Vermont statewide
  • Total Grants Awarded: 840 grants (2023)
  • Decision Time: 20 business days (SUN program); 2 months (Capacity Building)

Contact Details

Address: 3 Court Street, Middlebury, VT 05753

Phone: 802-388-3355

Email:

Website: vermontcf.org

Fax: 802-388-3398

Overview

Founded in 1986, the Vermont Community Foundation is the state's largest grant-making foundation, with total assets of $370.6 million and annual giving of $39.7 million (FY 2024). The organization manages funds that put over $60 million to work in Vermont communities each year through donor-advised funds, committee-advised funds, discretionary grants, and mission investments. The Foundation has made closing the opportunity gap the heart of its work, focusing strategic resources on ensuring all Vermonters have access to affordable, high-quality early care and learning; affordable pathways to college and career training; strong family support resources; and communities that offer hope, connection, and meaning. As President & CEO Dan Smith explains, "the value of a community foundation is the ability to see across communities, regions, and sectors over time—to learn, to adapt, and to act." The Foundation's approach blends local knowledge with statewide perspective, serving all 14 Vermont counties.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

Spark Connecting Community

  • Amount: $500 - $5,000
  • Focus: Grassroots projects that foster local engagement and build social capital
  • Application: Rolling basis through online Grants Manager
  • 2024 Awards: $153,934 to 35 organizations across Vermont
  • Examples: Community meals series, pollinator gardens, art projects, climate resiliency work, radio stations

Regional and Local Impact (RALI) Grants

  • Amount: $15,000 - $25,000
  • Application: Invitation only
  • Focus: Community-driven ideas aligned with Foundation's five key impact areas

Special and Urgent Needs (SUN)

  • Amount: Varies (typically under $10,000)
  • Focus: Unexpected, unbudgeted expenses for nonprofits serving basic human needs
  • Application: Rolling basis through online Grants Manager
  • Decision Time: 20 business days
  • Priority: Organizations with operating budgets of $500,000 or less serving social services, food access, housing, and health-related services

Nonprofit Capacity Building

  • Amount: Up to $5,000
  • Focus: Consultant fees for organizational capacity building
  • Application: Rolling basis (reopens February 2026 after November 2025 closure)
  • Decision Time: Approximately 2 months

Arts & Social Cohesion Fund

  • Amount: Up to $10,000
  • Focus: Creating opportunities for positive social interaction, engagement, and collaboration through the arts

Additional Programs: The Foundation also houses supporting organizations including the J. Warren and Lois McClure Foundation (postsecondary education access), Vermont Women's Fund, LGBTQ-focused Samara Fund, Walter Cerf Community Fund, and Let's Grow Kids (child care crisis).

Priority Areas

The Vermont Community Foundation focuses on four strategic issue areas:

1. Early Care and Learning

  • Quality childcare and early education programs
  • Educator workforce development and diversification
  • Advancing early education as a recognized profession
  • Connection to Let's Grow Kids and The Curtis Fund initiatives

2. College and Career Training

  • Multiple viable paths to well-paying, in-demand jobs
  • Access to training and credentials for promising careers
  • Scholarships for non-degree credentials
  • Creative promotion of Vermont's most promising jobs

3. Family Supports

  • Resources that strengthen families and communities
  • Services addressing basic human needs

4. Community Vitality

  • Projects that strengthen social connections and community bonds
  • Climate resiliency initiatives
  • Arts and cultural programs that bring people together
  • Food access and community gardening

What They Don't Fund

  • Budget deficits or funding shortfalls: The SUN program is designed for unexpected expenses, not revenue shortfalls or unmet budget projections
  • Work already completed: Applications must be for future expenses
  • Organizations outside Vermont: Must be located in or serve Vermont residents
  • Organizations without 501(c)(3) status (unless they have a fiscal sponsor)

Governance and Leadership

President & CEO: Dan Smith

Dan Smith has been a prominent voice on Vermont's social and economic challenges. He candidly acknowledges: "Realistically, Vermont is old, small, and poor," noting that 12 of 14 counties never fully recovered from the 2009 financial crisis. On the Foundation's role, Smith states: "At the VCF, we have always strived to be in the 'hope' business. Giving is infused with hope, and the act of giving is core to sustaining Vermont's potent sense of community." He emphasizes mission investing alongside grantmaking: "Making a grant says, 'I see the need.' Making an investment says, 'I see your potential.'"

Board of Trustees: The Foundation is overseen by volunteer boards. Recent 2024 additions include:

  • Elizabeth Catlin: Investment advisor and attorney (Dummerston)
  • Alex Hernandez: President of Champlain College (Burlington)
  • Eric Miller: General Counsel and Senior Vice President at University of Vermont Health Network

Staff: Organized into departments including grants and community impact, philanthropy, finance, marketing, communications, and operations. The team combines expertise, passion, and local knowledge to serve donors, nonprofits, and community leaders.

Application Process & Timeline

How to Apply

All grant applications must be submitted electronically through the Vermont Community Foundation's online Grants Manager. Applicants must first create an account at vermontcf.org.

Eligibility Requirements:

  • Organizations must be located in or serve Vermont
  • Must be tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3), or be a public agency/municipality in Vermont
  • Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status may apply with a fiscal sponsor

Application Guidance:

  • Set up your online account well before the grant deadline
  • The online Grants Manager allows you to track application status, file grant reports, and edit/submit applications on your own timeline
  • Different funds and programs have varying deadlines and requirements
  • If your application aligns with priorities but raises questions, staff may reach out for clarification or share your application with funding partners if more suitable

Decision Timeline

Varies by Program:

  • Special and Urgent Needs (SUN): Decisions within 20 business days of receiving application
  • Nonprofit Capacity Building: Approximately 2 months from submission
  • Other programs: Timelines vary by specific fund

Notification: Approved and denied applications are communicated by email to the address used for submission.

Success Rates

While specific acceptance percentages are not publicly disclosed, the Foundation awarded 840 grants in 2023, 656 in 2022, 635 in 2021, and 664 in 2020, demonstrating consistent grant-making activity. The 2024 Spark program alone awarded grants to 35 organizations from available applications.

Reapplication Policy

Specific reapplication policies for unsuccessful applicants are not publicly documented. Applicants should contact grants@vermontcf.org or 802-388-3355 ext. 6 for guidance on reapplying to specific programs.

Application Success Factors

What the Foundation Looks For:

  1. Mission Alignment and Community Need: The grant must preserve or enhance the organization's ability to meet its mission, with well-documented community need.

  2. Community Support: Demonstrated support for both the project and organization from the community.

  3. Financial Sustainability: Complete financial information that shows organizational stability. The Foundation evaluates financial sustainability and overall health.

  4. Strategic Alignment: Projects that connect to the Foundation's four priority areas (early care and learning, college and career training, family supports, community vitality) have stronger chances.

  5. Geographic Reach: The Foundation values statewide reach—Spark 2024 grants reached all but one Vermont county.

  6. Size and Scale: Some programs (like SUN) prioritize smaller organizations with operating budgets of $500,000 or less.

  7. Unexpected vs. Planned Needs: For SUN grants, expenses must be unbudgeted and unexpected, not revenue shortfalls or planned work.

Recent Funding Examples from 2024 Spark Program:

  • H.F. Brigham Free Library (Bakersfield): $1,296 for community connection projects
  • Vermont Cooperative for Practice Improvement & Innovation (St. Albans): $5,000
  • Vermont Village School (Bellows Falls): $1,000
  • Community meals series, pollinator gardens, radio stations, climate resiliency projects

Foundation's Perspective on Community: Dan Smith writes: "The heart of community is a sense of common experience. We build vital connections around those shared experiences." Applications that demonstrate how they build these vital connections through shared experiences are particularly compelling.

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

  • Apply early for rolling deadlines: The Foundation encourages organizations to apply as soon as the need and plan are identified, particularly for SUN grants with 20-day turnaround.

  • Focus on opportunity gap: Align proposals with the Foundation's core commitment to closing Vermont's opportunity gap through early learning, career training, family supports, and community vitality.

  • Size matters for some programs: SUN and other programs prioritize smaller organizations ($500K operating budget or less), giving grassroots groups a competitive advantage.

  • Geographic diversity valued: The Foundation works to reach all Vermont counties—emphasize how your project serves underserved areas.

  • Unexpected expenses only for SUN: Don't apply to Special and Urgent Needs for budget shortfalls or revenue gaps—only for genuinely unexpected, unbudgeted expenses.

  • Community connections central: Whether through Spark or other programs, demonstrate how your work builds "vital connections around shared experiences" and strengthens Vermont's sense of community.

  • Financial transparency critical: Provide complete financial information that demonstrates organizational stability and the specific need for funding.

  • Multiple entry points: With numerous funds and programs (some public, some invitation-only), explore which best fits your organization's work and scale.

References

All sources accessed December 2024

← Back to US Funders Directory