The first step for catalyst applicants is to submit a catalyst grant application using Impact Austin’s online grants management system. [See below for link and log in instructions.] Follow the instructions on the main page to complete an agency profile for your organization and then submit your grant application. Proof of your 501(c)(3) status is a required attachment to your agency profile. Information on application deadlines and other key dates in this year’s grant cycle are shown below. Impact Austin members serving on the catalyst Grant Review Committee evaluate the submitted grant applications and, by late March, select several organizations for site visits.
Organizations eligible to apply for a catalyst grant must submit their applications including all attachments via Impact Austin’s online grants management system. Impact Austin requires submission of the standardized grant application and a number of required documents, including, but not limited to:
For an overview of the grant, see the Catalyst Grant Guidelines. This will give you an overview of the eligibility requirements and the types of initiatives and activities which Impact Austin funds.
For an overview of the full catalyst grant application and the required attachments, see the Catalyst Grant Application Overview.
After you have created an AGENCY PROFILE and are ready to submit your grant application, please log in HERE and use your contact email and password to create your grant application.
You will receive acknowledgment of receipt of your application within one week. By early April, Impact Austin Grant Review Committees will select and notify 3-4 semifinalists.
Impact Austin reserves the right to reject a grant application for any reason, including a missed deadline or incomplete information. See the Catalyst Grant Application Overview for details.
Impact Austin will select several semifinalists for the catalyst grant and conduct site visits during designated dates in April.
The objective of the site visit is to complete a general due diligence review and to investigate and resolve any remaining questions regarding the organization or the proposed initiative. Site visits require approximately two to three hours of dedicated time, and we require the participation of the executive director, the manager of the catalyst initiative, a board member and a financial representative. An agenda and interview schedule will be established prior to the visit.
By early May, the Impact Austin Grant Review Committee will select two finalists for the catalyst grant.
We email information about each finalist to every Impact Austin member before voting takes place at our annual meeting. We also invite representatives from each of the finalist organizations to make a five-minute presentation to the membership regarding your organization and the proposed catalyst initiative. Impact Austin’s members then vote for one finalist for the catalyst grant (along with one for each focus area for program grants) with the majority deciding the grant recipients for each category.
Terms of grant acceptance form: Prior to receiving the grant money, the grant recipient must execute a terms of grant document substantially similar to the sample terms of grant, which can be downloaded here.
| Activity | Date |
| Annual Impact Austin Nonprofit Workshop | 10/26/2016 |
| Catalyst grant submissions open | 12/05/2016 |
| Catalyst grant applications due | 01/19/2017 by 5:00 PM |
| Announcement of available grant amounts | 01/27/2017 |
| Applicants notified of selection for site visit | 03/31/2017 |
| Site visits to catalyst grant semifinalists | 04/10/2017 – 04/12/2017 |
| Grant finalists selected and notified; all other applicants declined by this date | 04/28/2017 |
| Finalists meet with Impact Austin to receive presentation instructions | 05/02/2017 |
| Impact Austin Annual Meeting with finalist presentations and member vote | 06/05/2017 |
| Grant presentations to 2016 Community Partners | 06/14/2017 |
The list below shows downloadable versions of documents used in the grant application process. The actual grant application form is provided only to organizations invited by Impact Austin.
Please review to the FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS page where you will find answers to many commonly asked questions.
Impact Austin requires grant recipients to submit periodic progress reports. We do this to provide evaluation tools to measure program progress and outcomes, to promote learning from experience, to improve program performance and to encourage our grantees to build effective self-evaluation plans into their projects.
