Grants available

I just got word of several grants that are available to congregations and clergy. I hope this is useful.

Louisville Institute Offers Sabbatical Grant Program for Pastoral Leaders

Through the Sabbatical Grant for Pastoral Leaders, the Louisville Institute offers pastoral leaders a chance to step out and step back from the pace and pressures of ministry through its Sabbatical Grant for Pastoral Leaders program. The program is designed to provide clergy with the opportunity for personal renewal, study, and reflection. The Louisville Institute will award up to forty grants for eight-week ($10,000) and twelve-week ($15,000) sabbaticals. Recipients must be released from all pastoral duties during the entire grant period. Recipients are free to use the grant award at their discretion. Previous grantees have used their awards for the purchase of books, research material and equipment, conference and seminary expenses, salary replacement, travel, etc. There are no residency or travel requirements or expectations, except for attendance at the preparation consultation in Louisville February 18-20, 2008. All expenses for that consultation are covered by the institute, over and above the grant award. Recipients of a 2007 Sabbatical Grant for Pastoral Leaders shall take this sabbatical between March 1, 2008 and August 31, 2009. The program is open to Christian clergy, church staff members, denominational staff, and others employed in recognized positions of pastoral leadership, ordained and lay. Seminary administrators and faculty members are not eligible for this grant program. In past years, most successful applicants have at least five years of pastoral experience, and anticipate five or more years of active ministry after the sabbatical. The program is open to pastoral leaders in the United States and Canada. Visit the Louisville Institute Web site for complete program and application information. Deadline: September 17, 2007


Fund for Theological Education Invites Congregations to Apply for Grants

The Fund for Theological Education is a national advocate for excellence and diversity in Christian ministry and theological scholarship. To help congregations identify and nurture the next generation of leaders for the church, the fund is offering competitive grants for grassroots programs that cultivate a sense of Christian vocation and the call to ministry among youth.

The grants are awarded through the fund’s Calling Congregations initiative, a national ecumenical effort to encourage and equip churches to play a leading role in the vocational discernment of young men and women and to increase the number of gifted young people considering ordained ministry as a profession. The Lilly Endowment, Inc. funds the initiative.

Grants are made to congregations and are intended to support the "culture of call" within congregations. However, grants may include support for activities that foster partnerships between the congregation and campus ministries, theological schools, camps, denominational bodies, and other congregations in strengthening the congregation’s capacity to nurture vocation and the call to ministry.

FTE will award $200,000 in total grants over three years, beginning in 2007. Grants will range from $5,000 to $12,000 each.

Program information and application forms are available at the fund's Web site. Deadline: October 15, 2007


Wolcott Family Foundation Offers Support for Social Change and Environmental Stewardship

The Wolcott Family Foundation focuses its funding in the areas of social change and environmental stewardship, with emphasis on supporting grassroots organizations for which a small grant can make a real contribution.

Priority is given to organizations that empower individuals and communities to organize for social change; seek to strengthen civil liberties and civil rights issues; build community development that seeks to break the cycle of poverty, create economic opportunity, and build effective leadership in distressed communities; and demonstrate linkages and interdependence of ecosystems and economics with win-win solutions and collaborative approaches.

Consideration will be given to projects that emphasize environmental preservation, advocacy, and community involvement aimed at root causes of societal problems.

Eligible groups are tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organizations. Organizations based in Colorado are given preference. The foundation does not fund groups with annual budgets over $350,000. Requests will be considered for either general support or specific project support. Grants are for one year and will generally range from $1,000 to $7,500 each. Visit the foundation's Web site for complete program information.