Grant Application Process
STRATEGIC GRANT APPLICATION PROCESS
Below are the stages and steps involved in the Trust’s Strategic Grants process
Discovery
The Trust has multiple resources to help your organization determine grant eligibility.
- Carefully review the Guidelines for Grantseekers to determine if your organization meets geographical and tax status requirements, as well as the Trust’s funding priorities and limitations, to determine if your project meets Trust interests. Familiarize yourself with our Application Process map that outlines each step of the application process which is further outlined on this page.
- The Trust’s previously awarded grants are the best indicator of projects we are likely to pursue in the future. Read through the Grantee Stories and survey the Grants Awarded database to find similar projects.
- You may also reach out to the Trust directly to ensure eligibility or to ask any questions: info@murdocktrust.org or 360-694-8415
Submitting a Letter of Inquiry
A Letter of Inquiry (LOI) helps the Trust determine whether your organization and project are eligible and consistent with Trust practices. If so, you will be invited to submit a full application.
- Review the Letter of Inquiry Instructions to prepare your letter for submission.
-
Create your organization’s account and submit your LOI in the Grants Portal.
Updated February 8, 2024: At the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust, we are focused on making improvements to our systems, updating our application process, and expanding our staff capacity, all to better serve our grantees and the communities we support.
We have selected a new grants management system and we are pleased to share that we are in the final steps of the transition from our current system, Fluxx, to our new system, Submittable. Because we are now in our data migration period, Fluxx will not be accessible to prospective applicants, applicants, or grantees starting February 16, 2024. Once the data migration is complete, documents that were completed (not drafts) will remain temporarily available in Fluxx on a read-only basis until July 2024 when the platform will be fully decommissioned by the Murdock Trust.
We expect Submittable to go live in March 2024, and we will continue to update this site if there are changes to this timeline.
Organizations with an approved LOI, an active grant application, or an active grant with the Trust will be contacted directly when Submittable is live and available for their access.
Applicants who wish to submit a new LOI may do so in Submittable when the system goes live in March 2024.
We are grateful for the patience and support of the organizations we serve during this transition period. We are excited to be nearing the conclusion of this significant change and eager to share the process improvements and updates with organizations like yours.
Grant Application Submission and Review Process
If invited to submit an application, you will be able to create an application in the Grants Portal.
Application Submission
- Carefully review the Application Instructions for Strategic Projects.
- Browse Nonprofit Resources for Grant Writing Tips.
- Review Navigating the Grants Portal.
- Once you have completed the application, review, edit and double-check figures one last time. When you are satisfied with your completed application, you must click the Submit button.
Review Process
- Staff will do a preliminary review of your documents. If any additional information is needed, you will receive an email with the requested information.
- Once this document review is satisfied, a program director will be assigned to your application.
- The program director will schedule a site visit to discuss the project, leadership, the board, the plan for executing and sustaining the project, and how you will determine success.
- After completing analysis of your application, your program director will prepare a detailed report to present to the Trustees for a decision.
Final Decision
While merit is evident in nearly every application received by the Trust, only a fraction of the requests reviewed can result in awards.
Receiving approval
If the application is approved, carefully review the Grant Administration Overview to request payment and report on project activities and learnings.
Resubmissions
When an application has been declined, it will not be carried over for future consideration. Under normal circumstances, resubmission of an application that was declined is not permitted.
However, you can begin again when a new strategic need arises. The Murdock Trust has a wealth of Nonprofit Resources to help you on your next project. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions or need further help.