www.mockingbirdfoundation.org/funding/g...

Notes¶

• focus is music education for children

Funding Guidelines¶

• Program Areas: The Mockingbird Foundation, Inc. (“Mockingbird”) offers competitive grants to schools and nonprofit organizations that effect improvements in areas of importance to the Phish fan community. Our programmatic focus is
  music education for children, defined as follows:

• Music: Mockingbird is particularly interested in projects that encourage and foster creative expression in any musical form (including composition, instrumentation, vocalization, or improvisation), but also recognizes broader and more basic needs within conventional instruction. Mockingbird encourages applications associated with diverse or unusual musical styles, genres, forms, and philosophies.

• Education: Education may include the provision of instruments, texts, and office materials, and the support of learning space, practice space, performance space, and instructors/instruction. Mockingbird is particularly interested in projects that foster self-esteem and free expression, but does not typically fund music therapy which is not education or music appreciation which does not include participation.

• Children: Mockingbird is interested in targeting children eighteen years or younger, but will consider projects which benefit college students, teachers, instructors, or adult students. Mockingbird is particularly (though not exclusively) interested in programs which benefit disenfranchised groups, including those with low skill levels, income, or education; with disabilities or terminal illnesses; and in foster homes, shelters, hospitals, prisons, or other remote or isolated situations.

Limitations:¶

• Funding Amount: Grants range in size from $50.00 to $5,000.00 and are made on a one-time basis.

• Geographic Focus: U.S., with an interest in geographic diversity throughout the U.S.

• Recipient Restrictions: Mockingbird is particularly interested in organizations with low overhead, innovative approaches, and/or collaborative elements to their work. Grants are typically made only to nonprofit organizations with tax-exempt status under section 501©(3) of the Internal Revenue Service code, or who have a sponsoring agency with this status. Organizations selected to submit a full proposal will be required to submit documentation of their status as a 501©(3) tax-exempt institution or as a public school. Public schools are tax-exempt and so eligible for funding, although school-based grantees cannot be independent of the school, must take place at the school, and must be supervised by the applicable municipality. Mockingbird does not normally consider grants to individuals or to fund research, fundraising organizations or events, programs that promote or engage in religious or political doctrine, or organizations outside the United States. It is hoped that nonprofit organizations who apply for support are operated and organized without discrimination in hiring staff or providing services on the basis of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, national origin or disability.

Application Process: Full proposals are by invitation only, and will not be considered if unsolicited.¶

• Letter of inquiry: Those interested in submitting a proposal should first submit a letter of inquiry via our web form at www.mbird.org/funding/inquiry.html. The form requests organizational details and allows for approximately 2.5 pages of narrative description. We prefer that a responsible officer from the applying organization fill out the form. Initial inquiries submitted via any other channel will not be considered.

• Supplemental Materials: We are unable to review any supplemental materials accompanying your LOI or proposal submission, such as books, videos, cassettes, etc. Please do not send any materials beyond those specifically requested by the Mockingbird Foundation.

• Acknowledgement: After submitting your letter of inquiry through our online form, you should receive an automated response acknowledging receipt. Due to the large volume of inquiries we receive, however, we are unable to provide you with any additional updates on the status of your inquiry. You will be contacted via email ONLY if your project is selected for further consideration, at which point you will be invited to submit a full and formal proposal. Please do not contact the Foundation asking for an update on our review process.

• Deadlines: Letters of inquiry are considered in two annual cycles, as follows:

For Letters of Inquiry submitted by:

The Funding Committee will invite proposals in:

And funding will occur by:

February 1

April

August 1

August 1

October

February 1

• Further Information: Please remember that we are an all-volunteer organization with no paid staff, so we would appreciate if you would keep additional correspondence to a minimum. If you have a crucial question regarding the grants process, however, you should email Kristen Godard at grants@mbird.org. (Questions regarding the likelihood of funding cannot be answered by an individual, as the Foundation’s decision-making process is collaborative.)

All other correspondence to the Foundation (not funding-related materials such as letters of inquiry or proposals, which must be submitted according to the above procedures) should be directed to Jack R. Lebowitz, c/o Lemery MacKrell Greisler, 60 Railroad Place, Suite 502; Saratoga Springs, NY 12866-3033.