The Support Award Grantee Process

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At United Way of Lane County, we grant Community Support Awards every two years to organizations in our community that are helping to ensure kids succeed and we all thrive. Paired with COVID-19 and Wildfire Response grants, UWLC was able to invest over nine million dollars throughout Lane County last year. 

We are currently in the final stage of this year’s grant process, and want to share the need, the process, and the community support that is possible when we all work together.  

The 2021-23 grant review cycle began in December 2020, with 58 letters of inquiry and 38 full proposals were invited from across Lane County. These requests totaled over $1.49 Million dollars in need.  

Proposals were then reviewed by a panel of community volunteers exploring each organization’s need, populations served, implementation and evaluation plans, and budgets.   

The team of 20 volunteer reviewers contribute professional and lived experience, as well as expertise in our outcome areas, assessed each proposal and met with applicants in order to draft recommendations to present to the UWLC board in June.  

“Although I’ve written many grants, it was a fascinating experience to discover the funders’ challenge – choosing from so many outstanding programs and services. I’m grateful to United Way for modeling inclusion and using a lens of equity in decision-making for these awards, and for being so open to diverse perspectives in the review process. It was thoughtful and considerate, and I learned so much about how nonprofits are supporting children and families across Lane County.” – Andi Kemp, volunteer reviewer Nonprofit Development Consultant | Fundraiser - Upward Development, LLC 

Throughout this process, we saw trends in community need, many related to the compounding impacts of the pandemic and systemic racism and marginalization.  

While we have been able to raise and distribute $2,060,250 in additional support for COVID-19 and Wildfire response, the long-term needs of our community are still great, and the need for general funding is larger this year than it has been in recent years.  

Major themes of need are youth mental health support and suicide prevention, food security and basic needs in rural areas, prevention of child abuse and neglect, access to high quality childcare and preschool, access to safe shelter and affordable housing for families and youth, and services targeted towards historically marginalized communities, such as people of color, the LGBTQ+ communities, those who have disabilities, and rural communities.  

“Rather than relying solely on a numerical scorecard to assess written proposals, volunteers also spoke directly with applicants through informational interviews to better understand the impact of their work.” – Jared Pruch, UWLC Director of Community Impact  

As we prepare to announce our 2021-23 grantees, we know sharing the process and the greater need in our community, we can remain accountable and equitable in our investment to cultivate communities where kids succeed, and we all thrive.  

Please look out for our grantee announcement coming early June 2021