The Foundation’s charitable funds are available to 501(c)(3) nonprofit New Mexican children’s organizations with budgets under $300,000.

Other requirements are:

1. The amount of funds requested must not exceed $5,000.
2. Funding can be for only three successive years.
3. Requests for funds for Operating Expenses are considered.

How to Apply

All children’s organizations interested in applying for an NMCF grant must submit a proposal which includes:

1.   A Proposal Summary Sheet which includes:

1. Organization Name
2. Address, City, Zip
3. Phone/ Fax:
4. Name of Contact Person and Title
5. Email Address of Contact Person
6. If you have received prior funding from NMCF, list years and amounts.
7. Amount Requested
8. Project Title
9. Geographic Area to be Served
10. Number of Children Affected
11. Project Period

2.   A Proposal Narrative, no longer than 2 pages, which includes:

1. Description of the project’s goals and scope (proposed activities)
2. Statement of need for the project
3. Description of how the project includes collaboration with at least one other organization
4. Starting and ending date
5. Number and characteristics of the children to be   served
6. Expected results

3.   Other information to  include:

1. Line  item budget and budget justification for the requested funds
2. Plans for evaluating the success of the  project (1 page)
3. Plans for continuation of the project after the grant (1 page)

4.   Supporting Documents

1. Proof of 501(c)(3) tax status
2. List of current Board of Directors, indicating officers and professional, business or  community affiliations
3. Copy of organization’s most recent Form 990 IRS Report

5.    Please mail by April 16, 2012:  

1. An original and 8 copies of your grant proposal, including supporting documents and summary sheet; total of 9 sets of your grant proposal.
2. Do not include any additional materials such as newspaper articles, photographs or videos.
3. Failure to include the requested information and the proper number of copies will lead to disqualification of the proposal.
4. Mail to New Mexico Children’s Foundation, P O Box 8182, Santa Fe, NM  87504-8182   NOTE:  Our offices have moved and all mail is received at the Post Office.  Addresses on search engines such as google are incorrect and your application will not reach us.

6.    Deadline:   Applications must be postmarked byApril 16, 2012.

7.    Please email any questions to:  nmchildrensfound@qwestoffice.net or call 505-986-2043.

8.    Proposals will be judged by the following criteria:

1. is the project child centered,
2. is the project needed in the community or does it duplicate existing services,
3. will this grant lead to other funds,
4. is the project innovative,
5. does the project show proper evidence of collaboration,
6. how many children will the project affect, and
7. does it appear that the organization has the capability to carry out the project.

2012-2013 Grant Schedule

1.  Proposals must be postmarked by April 16, 2012.

2.  The Grants Committee of the Foundation will meet to review the proposals as a group in May  and make recommendations to the Board of Directors at the June Board Meeting.

3.   Grants are approved for one year.

4.   One-half of the granted funds will be disbursed with the signed Grant Agreement in July.* The remaining monies will be disbursed upon the receipt of a mid-year progress report which is dueDecember 30, 2012. Failure to submit the mid-year report may lead to termination of the grant.

*Organizations whose programs take place only in the summer will receive their full grant on or about July 1st.  A final report will be due at the conclusion of their summer program.

On Wednesday, January 18th, the New Mexico Children’s Foundation was honored by the New Mexico House of Representatives. Representative Nate Gentry presented a certificate to the Foundation.  President Sara Armstrong and Executive Director Carol Robertson Lopez were in the chamber for the reading.  Representative Brian Egolf also congratulated the NM Children’s Foundation. This event began the year long celebration of the Foundation’s success of helping children in New Mexico for 20 years.

A reception followed later in the afternoon at the Nedra Matteuci’s Fenn Gallery.  Several legislators, spouses, friends and members of the Board of Directors attended. Katrina Koehler, Executive Director, and Owen Kunkle, Board Chair, of Gerard’s House spoke about the contribution the NM Children’s Foundation has made to the success of Gerard’s House.  Kelly Egolf and Erin Gentry co-chaired this event.  What a great way it was  to kick off the 20th Anniversary!!!

New Mexico Children’s Foundation announces it will change its grant cycle to match its fiscal year beginning in 2008 (July 1 to June 30). Any organization wishing to apply for a grant must submit an application by April 1st. Members of the Foundation’s grant committee will review all applications in April and the board will vote on the committee’s recommendations at its May board meeting. Checks will be sent to the successful applicants on July 1st. A final report will be due by June 30, 2009. Organizations wishing to apply should either contact the office by phone, email or print out the Application Guidelines from the website.

Please feel free to call the foundations with any questions about filling out the application.