Application Process
We recognize how important your time is and want to make applying to the Dresher Foundation as straightforward as possible. Listed below is each step of our grant-making process, along with additional details to guide you. Feel free to contact the Foundation’s office should you have any questions or need additional guidance.
How to Apply
CALL
Once you’ve reviewed our grant guidelines and confirmed that our priorities align, please reach out so that we can get the conversation started! Contact Patti Sterling, our Executive Director, at 410-933-0384 or psterling@dresherfoundation.org. Through this conversation, we’ll determine if your project is a good fit for the Dresher Foundation, discuss an appropriate request amount, and answer any outstanding questions.
From there, you will either be invited to submit a Letter of Inquiry (LOI) or encouraged to apply elsewhere.
Please note that this and all following steps are required, even if you have previously received funding from us.
INQUIRE
When you are invited to submit a Letter of Inquiry (LOI), you’ll be sent a link to access our online portal along with a submission deadline. Your LOI will provide additional details about your project and your organization's scope. It is NOT the full application — simply a way for the Foundation to get a better sense of your goals and priorities. See our sample LOI for the information that we’ll request.
Within 60 days of submission, we will notify you as to whether your organization has been invited to submit a full grant proposal or if the LOI was declined.
APPLY
If you’ve been invited to complete a full grant application, we’ll send you details on how to apply via our online portal. For an idea of what the Dresher Foundation's grant application looks like, please click here.
Grant applications are thoroughly vetted by Foundation staff and the Board of Trustees. As part of the review process, you may be asked to provide supplementary information regarding the project for which you’re seeking funding. We may also schedule a site visit, either virtually or in-person, with members of our board and staff to further our understanding of your request.
DECISION
Approximately two months after your application is submitted, the Dresher Foundation's Board of Trustees will review and vote upon your completed proposal. Board meetings are held quarterly, and you will be notified immediately afterwards whether your proposal was funded, and if so, at what amount.
Should your proposal be approved, you will receive an award letter and a grant agreement that outlines the terms of the grant. Grant agreements must be signed and returned to the Foundation’s office. A countersigned copy of the Grant agreement, check, and a final reporting form will be sent to you within four weeks from the Board meeting.
REPORTING
Recipients of Dresher Foundation grants are required to submit a final report within one year of the award date. In some instances, interim reports may be required. This information will be provided in your grant agreement.
Under certain circumstances, a report provided to another funder for the same project/program may be accepted to fulfill this reporting requirement. Please call our office to determine if this exception applies to your grant.