How to Apply

HOW TO APPLY

Step 1: Letter of Inquiry

Step 2: Formal Proposal

Step 3: Review Process

To review the Foundations grant making guidelines, please click here.

The Joyce Foundation accepts grant inquiries online throughout the year. Applicants should anticipate the application process to take approximately four to six months from the initial submission of the letter of inquiry to the receipt of funding.

Recently, the Foundation transitioned to a new online grants management system, Fluxx. Applicants will benefit from streamlined application and communication processes. If you need help logging in, please review the How to Log In Reference Sheet.

CLICK HERE TO LAUNCH FLUXX GRANTEE PORTAL

Step 1: Letter of Inquiry

If you do not have an existing account, please click Create an Account Now to start the registration process for your organization. If accepted, you will receive an email notification from the Foundation within five business days with log-in credentials.

If you have an existing account and password, begin a letter of inquiry (LOI) by logging in here. Before starting, we encourage you to download a Word version of the letter of inquiry form and refer to the How to Apply Reference Sheet.

If you are applying for the Joyce Awards, you can download and work from this Word version of the letter of inquiry form (though must still submit your formal letter of inquiry through Fluxx).

To access an existing saved application and resume or review your LOI, please log in here.

Letters of inquiry should be submitted at least six to eight weeks prior to the proposal deadline for a given grant cycle. Program officers will respond in a timely manner and advance all grant proposals expeditiously.
If you have questions regarding the online application process, please email applications@joycefdn.org.

Step 2: Formal Proposal

Letters of inquiry must precede any formal grant proposal to the Joyce Foundation; formal proposals are accepted by invitation of the foundation after review of the LOI. We encourage you to download the formal grant proposal in Word format before completing it online and refer to the How to Submit a Grant Proposal Reference Sheet.

The required attachments are:

• Itemized project budget and narrative with amount of funds requested from Joyce, the proposed uses, and the time period over which funds will be expended
• Names and qualifications of people involved in the project
• Board members, their title, outside affiliation, and telephone number
• Organizational expenses and income for previous, current, and upcoming fiscal year
• Audited financial statements for the most recently completed fiscal year
• Internal Revenue Service Form 990 plus attachments for the most recently completed fiscal year
• Internal Revenue Service verification that the organization is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization and qualifies as a public charity as defined in IRS Code section 509 (a)(1), (2), or (3). A copy of the IRS tax-exempt determination letter if this is NOT already uploaded to the grantee portal.

If you have questions regarding the online application process, please email applications@joycefdn.org.

Step 3: Review Process

When applying for financial support, grant seekers can expect a four-step application process:

• Letters of Inquiry: The applicant submits an online letter of inquiry six to eight weeks before the proposal deadline. If additional information is needed, applicant will receive an email with instructions on how to provide LOI feedback.
• Initial Review: If the project does fit within the guidelines, the program officer may invite the applicant to submit an online full proposal. If the project does not fit within the guidelines, the program officer sends the applicant a decline email.
• Review and Recommendation: Once the program officer receives the full proposal, an internal review process begins.
  • If the proposal is not recommended for funding, the program officer sends a decline email.
  • If the proposal is recommended for funding, the program officer prepares a recommendation for consideration by the Joyce Foundation's Board of Directors.
• Board Action: The Joyce Foundation Board of Directors meets and votes on recommended grants.
  • If the proposal is not approved for funding, an email is sent declining the proposed grant.
  • If the proposal is approved for funding, the program officer will email a grant contract to grantee.
  • Grant payments are normally made at the end of the month following the board meeting at which the funding decision was made.