Frequently Asked Questions

  • The McElhattan Foundation does not fund:

    • Individuals or families seeking private financial assistance

    • Scholarships

    • Organizations without 501(c)(3) status, according to the Internal Revenue Service (which includes organizations operating primarily outside the U.S. and for-profit entities)

    • Lobbying

    • Political campaigns

    • Conferences

    • Repairing, replacing, or installing safety equipment

    • CPR classes, etc.

    • Equipment purchases, unless they are tied to a larger project that fits within our grantmaking strategy

    • Medical bills

    • Economic and community development projects that do NOT benefit Franklin and/or Knox, PA.

    • Proposals claiming to fit into one of our program areas that bear no real connection to them

  • No, we accept proposals on a rolling basis.

  • The geographical requirements are different for each program area. Please refer to your program area’s page for more information.

  • Exceptions can be made, however, we generally do not like to go over 10%.

  • That depends. In general, we are most receptive to large requests ($50K+) from organizations we have worked with before. If you are entirely new to us, we'd suggest a smaller initial request; if that grant goes well, you'll be in a much stronger position to make a larger request during a future grant cycle.

  • When creating your profile in the grant portal, please name your organization with your fiscal sponsor called out in parentheses (i.e. Your Organization Name [fiscally sponsored by Fiscal Sponsor Organization Name]). Letters of Inquiry as well as proposals should be signed by a representative of your organization as well as a representative of the fiscal sponsor. Finally, when submitting supporting documentation within the proposal (i.e. financial documents, budgets, etc.) we require your organization’s information, not the fiscal sponsor.

  • You will receive an automated confirmation via email when your RFI is submitted. If eligible, Foundation staff will be in touch shortly after your submission to schedule a call with you to discuss your request. If the request aligns with our priorities, Foundation staff will invite you to submit a proposal.

    If you are asked to submit a proposal, you will once again receive an automated confirmation email after submitting. At this point, Foundation staff will reach out to schedule a site visit to further discuss your proposal. Applicants will be notified as soon as possible about the Board of Directors’ decision—generally within a week.

  • Please don't go out of your way to prepare for us—we just want to see your facility in person on a typical day and spend time talking to your team. If it's possible for us to observe the specific program you're asking us to fund, that would be very helpful. We'd like to meet with your CEO or Executive Director, key team members of the project you'd like us to fund, and, if you like, one of your board members. You'll be meeting with at least one member of our staff, and in many cases, one or two of our board members.

    We prefer to conduct site visits in-person. Should it be deemed appropriate, we may conduct site visits via Zoom.

  • Please click the blue “Forgot your password?” on the grant portal log-in page to reset your password.

  • Please contact info@mcelhattan.org.

  • Grantees are eligible to receive funding from McElhattan Foundation once every 12 months. Past grantees must be in good standing and have satisfied all grant requirements from the past grant agreement.

  • It's MAC-el-hat-en. Like Manhattan .(We get that a lot.)

How to Apply