Grants Management

NorthLight uses the JustFund portal for our grants management. JustFund is an innovative grants platform that connects funders and grassroots organizations. Any proposal you submit will be available not only to the NorthLight Foundation, but to hundreds of funders using JustFund, saving you time and increasing the visibility of your work to new funders and networks. The JustFund team will contact our grantee partners with information about grant approval notifications, grant agreements, and payment instructions. 

Grant Cycles

NorthLight has quarterly grant cycles throughout its fiscal year (January-December) that align with our quarterly board meetings. While the exact dates of those board meetings may vary, our grant cycles typically follow this schedule:

  • Quarter 1: January - March 

    • Grant decisions typically made in mid-March

  • Quarter 2: April - June

    • Grant decisions typically made in mid-late June

  • Quarter 3: July - September

    • Grant decisions typically made in late September

  • Quarter 4: October - December

    • Grant decisions typically made in mid-December

While our grantmaking typically follows these cycles, we understand that urgent funding needs may arise unexpectedly, and thus we can work to move funds off-cycle to meet the needs of our grantee partners.

Grant Approval Process

Once a grant to your organization has received formal approval from NorthLight’s Board of Trustees, the JustFund team will notify you of approval and provide instructions for how to proceed with payment. JustFund partners with Amalgamated Bank to disburse grants, and both checks and ACH transfers are available. 

Grant Terms

JustFund will provide a grant award letter and grant guidelines from Amalgamated Bank upon notification of grant approval that will stipulate the terms of the grant and whether the grant is for general operating support (GOS) or project support. The grant terms are fairly straightforward, and mainly confirm that the grantee organization is a 501(c)3 tax-exempt non-profit organization, and that none of the funds will be used or earmarked for lobbying purposes. Each organization agrees to the grant terms when they accept the grant payment. 

Reporting Requirements

NorthLight aims to embody principles of trust-based philanthropy in our grantmaking practices. In an effort to reduce the burden on our grantee partners, we have waived formal reporting requirements. We only ask that grantee partners provide one “oral report” per grant term (e.g. if your grant term is one year, you will need to provide one oral report; if it is two years, one oral report per year is required, two total). This “oral report” can be an informal Zoom or phone conversation with one or more of NorthLight’s staff. We ask that you reach out to NorthLight staff to schedule this conversation near the end of your grant term. Written materials and reports are welcome but not required. 

Renewals

Current grantees are welcome to submit proposals to renew their grants after receiving an invitation from NorthLight staff. Once invited to submit a renewal, the JustFund team will reach out to each organization with instructions for how to re-submit their proposal to NorthLight’s current grant cycle on the portal. We do not ask that you rewrite a new proposal for your renewal grant; you are welcome to re-submit your proposal from the previous grant cycle to the new cycle on the JustFund portal, or use a proposal you have developed for another funder. We do ask, however, that you provide an up-to-date budget and list of current/prospective funders so NorthLight staff can accurately assess your funding needs.