The following frequently asked questions are intended to help applicants know more about the process and content of Brindle Foundation’s grant-making. If these questions and answers do not address your concerns, please reach out to Mary Nell Wegner, Brindle’s Executive Director, at marynell@brindlefoundation.org.
Questions about eligibility to apply for a grant
Q: If my organization has never applied for a grant from the Brindle Foundation before, is there any kind of screening or pre-application process that I need to do?
A: There is no formal pre-application process, but please contact Mary Nell to schedule a conversation just to confirm your eligibility. Brindle does not want to waste your time if you do not meet our eligibility requirements. Email her at the address noted above and plan to have a brief conversation about your project, program, or service idea, as well as share your geographic location.
Q: If my organization has submitted a proposal in the past to the Brindle Foundation, are we eligible to apply again?
A: Yes, regardless of whether an earlier proposal was funded, the Brindle Foundation does not limit the number of times an organization can apply for a grant.
Q: My organization addresses early childhood through work in pre-K. Do you fund any pre-k programming?
A: The Brindle Foundation’s primary focus in its Early Opportunities Initiative is pre-natal to age 3. That said, if you can make the case that the work of your organization also addresses needs at an age earlier than pre-K, feel free to apply.
Q: My agency works in direct service for children 0-3 in a NM county other than the seven northern counties mentioned (Colfax, Mora, Rio Arriba, San Miguel, Sandoval, Santa Fe, Taos) and also not on tribal land. Are we still eligible to apply under the direct services track?
A: No, eligibility for direct services work rests on the specific counties listed, as well as tribal lands statewide.
Q: We are an organization that offers direct services in indigenous communities that cross over into other states. Is that a problem?
A: No. Brindle fully recognizes the artificial boundaries that counties and states represent, as well as the problematic genesis for how these lines were drawn. As long as services provided on tribal land include a portion of NM, then all contiguous territory is also considered within Brindle’s eligible funding, even if it crosses into neighboring states. Other tribal lands that are physically separate from NM, however, are not eligible.
Q: If my agency gets public as well as private funding, are we eligible to apply?
A: Yes, Brindle Foundation considers any nonprofit or public sector organization eligible to apply for a grant if recognized as nonprofit by the IRS (or with a fiscal agent or sponsor classified as such), or is a US government or tribal government entity. Please note that if you work with a fiscal agent, you will be asked for specific information on the portal that identifies the organization, a key contact there, how a check should be written and where it should be mailed if your application is successful.
Q: My organization is a nonprofit with a religious focus. Are we eligible to apply?
A: While Brindle funds organizations that have affiliations with religious institutions, the foundation does not fund organizations with an explicitly religious focus, and expects programs to be inclusive of people irrespective of faith.
Q: We would like to apply for Brindle support but do not have an organizational non-discrimination policy. Can we still apply?
A: If your organization does not yet have a policy that addresses its commitment to non-discrimination, you will be asked to submit a written policy signed by the board chair and executive director. We offer ideas for what this could look like here.
Questions about funding
Q: Is there a maximum amount of funding possible to apply for?
A: Organizations that are first-time applicants are usually eligible to apply for a grant of up to $20,000, however, this amount is contingent upon the size of the organization and the work proposed. Organizations that have already been funded once and successfully met the goals outlined in their proposal may apply for more funding.
Q: How many applications may one organization submit in a given year?
A: Two applications per year are allowed. One may be an individual organizational application and one may be a partnership application. For example, if you are organization A and are forming a partnership with organization B, you are allowed to submit two proposals: one from organization A and one from the partnership of organizations A and B.
Q: How do we apply as a collaboration or partnership if we also want to apply as an individual organization?
A: The registration process is the same regardless of whether you are applying as an organization or as a partnership. If you already have a login for your organization, you will need to register a second separate profile representing the partnership. You will need to choose a different username that is not your existing email login. (The same email address may be used in the email field for both individual and partnership applications. Only the username needs to be unique.) Please note that one organization is considered the primary partner and is responsible for the collaboration. On the portal, you will be asked to name that organization, as well as provide contact details for it.
Questions about two-year grants
Q: Does the Brindle Foundation fund multi-year grants?
A: The foundation is offering a limited number of two-year grants in addition to the standard one-year grant term. If interested in a two-year grant, please explain why this is beneficial in your proposal narrative.
Q: How do we specify that we are applying for a two-year grant?
A: You will be asked on the 4th step on the grant application portal to select either a one year or two year grant period from a dropdown menu. You will then indicate the requested project/program amount for each year, as well as need to provide budget detail for each year on the budget template. The column for year 1 is green and for year 2 is blue on the budget template.
Q: If my organization applies for a two-year grant, is there any expectation of a “step down” budget—or year 2 having a smaller budget than year 1?
A: No, there is no expectation that budgets will decrease over time. That said, Brindle actively encourages organizations to develop additional funding sources and to try to work towards sustainability.
Q: What are the reporting requirements for two-year grants?
A: Starting six months after the award has been received (and by July 1), you are asked to share information on your progress in the form of a short interim report submitted to our portal or to schedule a conversation with our Executive Director. At 11 months (in November) you are also asked to provide an update, this time including financial information, as well. This pattern continues until the end of the grant. For the final year, you do not need to schedule a conversation in November, but will be requested to write a final report that summarizes the project’s achievements and challenges, as well as accounts for the funds expended for the entire two-year grant.
Q: What if we do not make the progress we expect to in year one? Will we still receive year 2 funding?
A: In general, the funds from your year-one budget must be expended before Brindle will release more funds. In some cases, however, there may be exceptions made if you are only marginally underspent and need, for example, to use year 2 funds early in the second year. These decisions will be made collaboratively on a case-by-case basis.
Q: If we have an active two-year grant, may we apply during the regular RFP cycle for another grant?
A: While, generally, organizations can only have one active grant with Brindle at a time (or a second if involved in a partnership), we are always interested in learning more about emerging ideas. Please be in touch with us if you have an idea you want to discuss, regardless of your current grant status.
Q: What if we have a two-year grant and we realize, based on challenges or ideas that emerge in the first year, that we may want or need to change course?
A: The Brindle Foundation believes in the value of communication. Just let us know and we will discuss what you are learning, as well as see how we might be flexible if a course correction is warranted. In general, we ask for all grantees to err on the side of more communication, rather than less.
Questions about the grantmaking schedule
Q: When will we know if we have been successful in our grant application process? If successful, when will we receive the funds?
A: Decisions will be made by the Board of Trustees in the fall of 2025 and organizations will be notified of the decision made. If your application is successful, funds will be dispersed in late November/early December.
Q: What is the process for receiving the funds?
A: If successful, you will receive an award notification in the form of a letter with a contract on which the foundation will request an e-signature. Once the contract has been signed and returned, you will be sent a check.
Q: Does it matter if my organization’s fiscal year is different from the calendar year?
A: No, often organizations have different fiscal years and that does not affect how your application will be reviewed. Because our grant terms are based on the calendar year, we request you describe your grant budget across this period.
Grant reporting requirements by type of grant:
Single-year grant
:
July 1: interim information due
Feb 28: final report due (including information about financial expenditures)
Two-year grant:
July 1, year 1: interim information due
Nov 30, year 1: interim information due (including information about financial expenditures)
July 1, year 2: interim information due (including information about financial expenditures)
Feb 28 following year 2: final report due (including information about financial expenditures)
Questions about creating a budget to accompany the proposal
Q: Previously, the Brindle Foundation had three categories of funding that non-profit organizations could apply for, and now there seems to be only one. Is that correct?
A: Yes. Regardless of whether you are seeking support for a one-time equipment purchase; project(s), program, or service costs, or assistance with operating expenses, all applicants will use the same budget template. Please fill in the budget template using the instructions provided. If a section is not applicable to your application, leave that section blank.. The budget template is set up so that you can add or delete line items as needed.
Q: Does Brindle fund general operating expenses?
A: If selected as a grantee, Brindle is committed to supporting the work you do. If you are interested in receiving support with operating expenses, please frame your request in terms of costs to do the work you do. Brindle will automatically add an additional 15% of the funds requested to support indirect costs.
Q: How are you defining direct and indirect costs?
A: We are using the term direct costs to describe expenses that are directly incurred for the work described in your proposal or, in other words, the specific project(s), program, or services for which you are requesting funds. Examples of direct costs include salaries for program staff (or percentage time thereof), consultants, travel expenses, and materials or services required to execute the work. An easy way to think of direct costs are expenses that would not be incurred if the project(s) or program did not exist.
We are defining indirect costs as overhead and administrative expenses necessary to support an organization’s general operation - which are shared across projects or programs. Examples of indirect costs include rent and utilities, office furniture, computers (if used for more than one program or project) and information systems. Information technology is often considered an indirect cost unless specific information technology exists only to benefit a specific project or program (in which case it would be a direct cost.) The costs of functions like development, finance and accounting, human resources, etc, are also considered indirect costs. Some organizations also use services for cleaning or security, and those would fall under indirect costs, as would bank fees. If your organization is using a fiscal agent or sponsor, their cost would be included in indirect costs, too., Expenses like the ones listed above would be incurred in some amount with or without a specific project or program grant. While not incurred solely because of a project or program, they are necessary for the organization to execute their work.
Q: If Brindle will add 15% to the total grant request to cover indirect costs, do I have to list them?
A: No, you do not have to list indirect costs.
Q: I am applying on behalf of a program that I run within a much larger institution. Do you want to know the entire institution’s indirect costs?
A: If your program is within a large institution that has many departments or divisions (such as a university, community center, or hospital), please share the smallest relevant unit of administration. For example, if you have a department of early childhood education within a School of Education, we are interested in learning about departmental indirect costs - if more relevant than the entire school’s indirect costs. If you have a daycare within a community center, please consider the daycare as the unit that you describe. In a hospital setting, please describe the applicable program or service portfolio rather than the entire hospital’s indirect costs. In other words, we are asking what costs your program needs to cover, as opposed to what your larger organizational administration needs to cover.
Q: If our indirect costs are more than 15%, should I add that to our grant request?
A: No. Brindle automatically adds an additional 15% to the request to cover indirect costs. No amount above 15% may be submitted and, if your indirect cost is lower, please put any remaining funds towards general operating support.
Q: Do I need to use a template for my budget?
A: Yes, and we have provided a PDF template for you to use. On this form, there are some basic calculations done for you to total costs.
Q: What should I do if I cannot figure out where to add a line item for the budget?
A: Please feel free to reach out to Mary Nell at marynell@brindlefoundation.org. She will be happy to help you.
Q: If I am applying as part of a partnership, do I use the same budget template?
A: Yes, you will use the same budget template for the partnership, filling in budgets for direct costs. If successful, you will receive an additional 15% of the direct cost budget for indirect costs.
Questions about designations for applications
Q: I noticed that you request applicants to tick a box designating the funding track to which they are applying. If my project is relevant to more than one track, what should I do?
A: Please tick the box for the track that most applies to or best fits your project. We fully recognize that some projects may fit several tracks. For the purposes of the application, however, please select just one that best represents your primary focus.
Q: Is there a specific way you are defining “innovation”?
A: No, we are using the term broadly. We look forward to learning about ideas that demonstrate novel ways of thinking or acting in their approach to addressing critical issues or problems. If you believe your approach is innovative, we encourage you to explain how it addresses the identified issue(s) in a new way. Please note, however, that the innovative approach you are proposing must include clear potential for a ripple effect statewide. For example, Brindle would not consider an application under this track that proposed an innovative approach to service delivery in a southern county in the state that is not replicable or directly related to work statewide.
Questions about flexibility
Q: This has been an unusual year with significant unanticipated events and costs, as well as a lot of work that my organization has not been able to complete. As a result, I am worried that we may not ultimately be able to complete the work that I describe in the proposal.. If that happens, what should I do?
A: The Brindle Foundation understands that it has been a challenging and unpredictable time. For this reason, we have opted for flexibility when hearing from grantees that they have needed to change course. Our interest is in having open communication with all of our grantees so, if you find yourself having to deal with unanticipated events, please reach out to us. Mary Nell (marynell@brindlefoundation.org) will be happy to talk with you and assist in devising a solution.