Apply for a Grant
CFSNM houses various grants opportunities to support the needs of Southern New Mexico. Please review the following grant descriptions and dates listed below. Deadlines are subject to change at the discretion of the grant agreement and committee decisions. Grants will open for applications beginning in December. Please look for announcements on our Facebook Page, CFSNM Newsletter and local press releases to stay updated on specific grant openings.
Questions? If you have any application questions please reach out to our team by phone at (575) 521-4794 for immediate assistance or email info@cfsnm.org for detailed inquiries.
ADVANCING
SOCIAL EQUITY
INITIATIVE
The Advancing Social Equity Initiative- Fellowship, provided by the Aprendamos and Covarrubias Family Foundation led by Ivy Child International, invites applications for the support of organizational capacity building resulting in impactful work and engagements that advance racial and social justice in Southern New Mexico.
The Advancing Social Equity Initiative’s goals are to build the capacity of emerging nonprofits in Southern New Mexico to align with evidence-informed equity models. This initiative aims to seed a pilot demonstration model to ground equity in the fabric of local nonprofits, thereby increasing well-being among staff and constituents with exponential impact in the community. This model may serve as inspiration for other area human service organizations to build collaborative power to ground equitable well-being efforts in the region.
Eligible Organizations:
• Any Human Services nonprofit in Southern New Mexico, those located in Las Cruces and Doña Ana County area, will be prioritized, with an annual operating revenue under $1.5 million.
• All applicants must have a 501 c3.
• Tribal, native and indigenous-led organizations in the area with a 501c3 are strongly encouraged to apply.
The Advancing Social Equity Initiative- Fellowship , Opens – TBD
Devasthali Family Foundation
Drs. Ammu and Rama Devasthali created the Devasthali Family Foundation Fund in 2011 in support of the arts, education, and child hunger in southern New Mexico. This fund seeks to support both new and existing projects that positively impact those living throughout the twelve counties CFSNM serves. Non-profit organizations located in Catron, Chaves, Doña Ana, Eddy, Grant, Hidalgo, Lea, Lincoln, Luna, Otero, Sierra & Socorro Counties of New Mexico are encouraged to apply for funding.
Grants typically range from $1,500 to $4,000
The Devasthali Family Foundation Fund is accepting applications for the Spring/Summer cycle of 2024 from March 1 to May 5 at 5:00 p.m. The Fall/Winter cycle of 2024 opens August 31 and closes September 30 at 5:00 p.m.
The Dr. Robert Palmer Grant Fund
The Dr. Robert Palmer Grant Fund is offering an opportunity for grants to assist non-profit organizations in improving outcomes in Luna County, NM. Your Community Foundation seeks to support both new and existing projects that demonstrate improvement in the well-being of Luna County residents; to support healthy environments where Luna County residents live, work, and play. The purpose of this funding is to provide non-profit support and demonstrate improved outcomes for Luna County residents as broadly defined by including one or more of the following causes:
- Animal Services
- Arts & Humanities
- Capital projects – Seed funding
- Collaboration & Coalitions – May have a fiscal sponsor if needed
- Direct non-profit services
- Education
- Health & Wellness
- Programs that support Luna County residents
The Dr. Robert Palmer Grant Fund is accepting applications for 2024 from March 14 to May 20 at 5:00 p.m.
The
Wellness Fund
The Wellness Fund Grant supports non-profit organizations in their efforts to improve maternal/child health and wellness outcomes in southern New Mexico. Non-profit organizations located in Doña Ana, Hidalgo, Grant, Lincoln, Luna, Otero and Sierra counties of New Mexico are encouraged to apply for funding. Maternal/child well-being is defined broadly and may include one or more of the following area focuses:
- Education (cognitive, language, or social-emotional learning)
- Direct services
- Prevention/wellness (emotional, mental, or physical heath)
- Programmatic support (includes positive relationship groups that pertain to parents/caregivers and children)
- Social determinants of health (defined as the conditions that influence the places where we live, work, and play–such as our environment, housing, food, education, jobs, etc.)
Grants typically range from $3,000 to $10,000 annually. Multi-year grant opportunities open in 2024 range from $20,000-$30,000.
The Wellness Fund is accepting applications for 2024 from March 14 to May 20 at 5:00 p.m.
LGBTQIA+ Grant
This grant is provided by the Charles. T. Townley and Victor T. Roberts LGBQIA+ Fund. The criteria and guidelines for the grant is as follows:
- Provide grant support to local LGBTQIA+ groups in Doña Ana, Hidalgo, Lincoln, Luna, Otero, and Sierra counties for ongoing programs with a focus on social support, including background research, for all ages in the queer community.
- Distributions for programs will support LGBTQIA+ programs in the arts, humanities, and social sciences including, but not limited to human rights, public health, sex education, art, theater, music, and literature. Preference will be given to queer initiatives supporting programs that address the greatest need in the queer community.
- Minimum grant amount is $500 and maximum grant amount is $2,000.
- Any organization awarded this grant must recognize the contribution provided by the Charles T. Townley and Victor T. Roberts LGBTQIA+ Fund in all publicity and acknowledgements.
The Charles T. Townley and Victor T. Roberts LGBTQIA+ Grant opens in May 2024.
Rainbow Fund Grant
The Rainbow Fund serves as a vehicle for people to make a lasting impact on the quality LGBTQIA+ life in our region. Supported by a base of individuals, families, businesses, and organizations with the desire to improve Southern New Mexico, through CFSNM, awards will be granted annually to organizations that serve the LGBTQIA+ community. Supported grant making will look to improving quality of life through the arts and humanities, improving mental and physical health, encouraging self-awareness, recreation and addressing youth and elderly needs in the twelve counties we serve, Catron, Chaves, Dona Ana, Eddy, Grant, Hidalgo, Lea, Lincoln, Luna, Otero, Sierra, and Socorro.
The Rainbow Fund will grant dollars to LGBTQIA+ nonprofit organizations in Southern New Mexico with a primary focus on supporting, lifting up and providing needed services to our queer communities. The Rainbow Committee strives to continue raising funds, awareness, and collaboration within LGBTQIA+ groups.
Grant funds can support direct programming while also helping individuals and families that may be in need within our queer communities.
The Rainbow Fund Grant opens in May 2024.
Economic Development Retention and Revitalization Grant 2023
The purpose of this grant is to support private businesses, projects and organizations that make or will make a measurable difference in achieving economic growth and development, expanding and diversifying the tax base, and creating new quality jobs within Doña Ana, Luna, and Otero Counties-with the possibility of expanding throughout New Mexico, if the need arrives. New businesses, the expansion of existing businesses, and individual entrepreneurs can be considered.
Small businesses could be defined as businesses with less than 50 staff members. These funds could assist the following:
- Fund small businesses and entrepreneurs that would like to open a business but were unable to over the past two and half years due to the pandemic.
- Fund small businesses and entrepreneurs that have been negatively impacted by the pandemic and have lost staff, market share and had to close pieces of their businesses.
- Fund small businesses and entrepreneurs that would like to expand staff and focus on getting individuals back to work.
- Fund nonprofit organizations that assist with entrepreneurial education, business development and developing thriving families in southern New Mexico.
- Partner in collaborative funding with WEEST, LiftFund and like groups to identify businesses that want to start a business, need assistance getting back to work and increasing employees. These dollars could be matched to make a larger impact. These funds will be used through a grant process developed by CFSNM. Businesses, nonprofits and individuals will be able to apply to a short grant application for needed funds. The CFSNM will review applications on a quarterly basis in partnership with Mesilla Valley Economic Development Alliance (MVEDA), LiftFund, WEEST and other nonprofit groups that focus job expansion in southern New Mexico.
The project MUST:
- Show a clear demonstration of public purpose and economic benefit through advancement of the region’s economic goals which include.
expanding the tax base, creating quality economic-based jobs, increasing private capital investment in the community, and spurring development. - Include solid evidence provided by the business that demonstrates the business’s financial stability and capacity to complete the project
- Be in compliance with all local, state and federal laws.
Applications open on August 31st and are due by September 30th, 2024; these are reviewed by our Grants Committee. You will receive a response within 30 days after submitting your application.
Grant Review Process
Once the grant application closes, a multi-stage review process will begin, which occurs over the course of about one month. Some applicants may receive phone calls and/or site visits during this process.
How do we evaluate your application?
Our grant committees consider the following criteria when making final grant funding decisions:
- Compatibility with grant guidelines
- Ability for the non-profit organization/program/project to meet the grant’s mission
- Demonstrates a community need
- Financial sustainability of the project/program, as well as financial stability of non-profit organization
- Increased likelihood that the grant would assist the non-profit organization/leverage additional funding
- Strength of staffing & partnerships
- Proposed outcomes/measures of success
- Proposals will be assessed based on the applicant’s overall organizational strength, community involvement, project timeliness, & successful fiscal management experience
Please contact your Community Foundation team about what activities are eligible and ineligible for grant funding by calling (575) 521-4794 or email info@cfsnm.org