In order to most effectively fulfill its philanthropic responsibilities in its grantmaking region, the Rising Sun Regional Foundation operates in accordance with the following guidelines and policies:
- Grants will be made only to organizations whose projects and programs benefit the residents of Ohio and Ripley counties and the Cities of Aurora and Batesville in the State of Indiana.
- Grant applicants must qualify as exempt organizations under the Internal Revenue Service 501(c)(3) status or be sponsored by such organizations or qualify as governmental or educational entities or possess similar attributes.
- Grants will be made only for organizations that provide adequate administrative and financial accounting and reporting procedures.
- No grants will be made specifically for sectarian religious purposes but can be made to religious organizations for general community programs.
- No grants will be made to attempt to influence legislation or to intervene in any political campaign (including the publishing or distribution of statements) on behalf of any candidate for public office.
- Applications from organizations with outstanding grant reports will not be considered unless a request for an extension of the grant reporting deadline has been submitted and approved.
- Grants will not generally be made for projects, programs, and/or equipment that were committed to prior to the grant application being submitted.
- Grants will not generally exceed $40,000 other than on rare occasions due to their exceptional merits in terms of extreme emergencies, unusual and broad community benefit, and/or major leveraging of other financial resources.
- Preference will be given to grant applications that seek the participation of other contributions by using challenge, matching, or similar grant techniques.
- Grant applicants are expected to make serious efforts in exploring additional funding for their respective projects through their own organizational resources, state and local government support, community and/or private foundations.
- Preference will be given to change-oriented and problem-solving grants with an emphasis on "seed" money and/or one-time grants rather than for ongoing, general operating support (salaries, wages, office supplies, etc. are considered operating support).
- Grant recipients will sign and abide by the respective conditions as set forth in the Foundation's Grant Award Agreement.
Note: Because the foregoing grant guidelines, policies and procedures are brief and do not cover every aspect of the Rising Sun Regional Foundation grant making program, prospective grant applicants are encouraged to contact the Foundation with any questions regarding the application and/or application process.