OVERVIEW: The Harrison County Community Foundation supports arts and culture, education, community development and human services in Indiana.
IP TAKE: The Harrison County Community Foundation has “a unique history” for a community foundation—it was created by a riverboat gambling casino, which continues to make sure the foundation coffers are full. It makes a big priority of nonprofit capacity building and spreads its attention across many different funding areas. This accessible funder has an open application system and makes its recent financial reports available to grantseekers on its website. Be sure to contact foundation staff with questions or to discuss your project before you apply.
PROFILE: Established in 1996, the Harrison County Community Foundation (HCCF) is a community foundation based in Corydon, Indiana. An initial donation of $5 million from Caesars Riverboat, LLC (now called Horseshoe Southern Indiana) launched the foundation, and the casino has contributed additional funds to the foundation since then. The foundation aims to “inspire and assist everyone to experience philanthropy, producing positive and sustainable growth in Harrison County.” It funds local efforts for arts and culture, education, community development and human services.
Grants for Community Development
The Harrison County Community Foundation awards grants in a broad variety of fields for local nonprofits. It focuses on programs that benefit children, youth and adults, while also helping nonprofits become more sustainable and effective. HCCF also funds academic and vocational Scholarships in the county. Special projects and initiatives include Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library Project, the Dictionary Project and the Youth Philanthropy Council.
Open Cycle Grants are made to improve the quality of life throughout Harrison County in the broad areas of: Arts & Culture, Government, Education, Human Services, Historical Preservation, Health & Safety, Recreation, Community Projects, and Environment.
Grants do not have a deadline and online grant applications are accepted anytime.
Applications must be submitted no fewer than 90 days before the proposed project’s start date.
HCCF does not accept grant requests less than $5,000.
Requests over $200,000 are subject to additional review by the Finance Committee.
Notifications to successful applicants can take up to 120 days from submission.
Field of Interest Fund grants provide support for a specific interest area designated by the fund’s donor. Grant requests up to $5,000 must use the Field of Interest Grant Request Form. Grants over $5,000 must use the open cycle online grant application.
Youth Philanthropy Council is a way for teenagers to learn about philanthropy while making a difference in their community. Grants through this program support young people aged 13-19 by creating healthy activities in safe environments. Grants are typically for $2,000 or less.
Previous community development grants include a $1.88 million grant to the Town of Corydon in 2019 for Stellar projects. Other grantees include the Battle of Corydon Memorial Park Committee, Town of Palmyra, Indian Creek Trail, Harrison County Parks Department, Harrison County Commissioners, Boys & Girls Club of Harrison-Crawford Counties, Town of New Middletown, Lanesville Youth Baseball and Softball League, Harrison County Community Services, South Harrison Community Development, and the Region 10 Workforce Board.
Grants for Arts and Culture
The foundation supports arts and culture organizations throughout the county, and it accepts Arts Grant requests anytime through its grant application portal. Additionally, the foundation will match funds to organizations receiving an Indiana Arts Commission Arts Project Support Grant award.
HCCF matches grants to Harrison County arts organizations up to $20,000.
It matches grants to Harrison County Schools up to $25,000.
Applicants must forward a copy of their Arts Project Support application to HCCF before the deadline.
All HCCF arts applicants are encouraged to apply for Arts Project Support to maximize funding.
Previous recipients of HCCF arts grants include Hayswood Theatre, North Harrison Band Boosters, Harrison County Arts, Historical Society of Harrison County, Harrison County Public Library, Harrison County Arts, Corydon Presbyterian Church, Friends of Corydon Capitol State Historic, Corydon Capital Preservation Alliance, and Arts Council of Southern Indiana.
Grants for K-12 Education and Arts Education
The foundation supports all types of education, including public schools, private schools, and education services organizations, throughout the county. It accepts education grant requests through its online grant application portal.
The Harrison County Community Foundation awards three types of Grants to Schools:
Capital Project support goes to help schools and districts purchase long-term capital goods; however, HCCF accepts requests for capital project funding “only as a match to other cash funding sources of up to fifty percent (50 %) of the total Capital Project cost and for an amount not to exceed $250,000.”
Program Projects grants support the purchase of short-term goods or services by schools and districts. Applicants should consider acquiring other sources of funding in addition to HCCF grants.
Arts Programming support matches grants up to $25,000 to Harrison County Schools receiving an Indiana Arts Commission Arts Project Support Grant award. (See Arts Grants above.) HCCF also accepts applications for arts education grants anytime through the grant application portal.
Past education grantees include South Harrison Community Schools, Lanesville Community Schools, Corydon Elementary, Saint Joseph School – Corydon, North Harrison Community Schools, St Johns Lutheran Church, North Harrison Band Boosters, Harrison County Lifelong Learning, Leora Brown School, and Harrison County Alternative Education Center.
HCCF also offers a range of scholarship opportunity for Harrison County residents.
Important Grant Details
Grants range between about $5,000 and $50,000. Grantmaking focuses on Harrison County, Indiana.
This foundation accepts grant applications from nonprofits that have at least one board member complete a HCCF-approved nonprofit board governance training.
HCCF accepts online grant applications all throughout the year.
Applicants must request a grant application review prior to submission.
Requests of $200,000 or more are subject to additional finance committee review.
Successful applicants will be informed within 120 days of submission.
Look over the foundation’s Grant Policy and Application Guidelines documents before applying.
See current deadlines and apply here.
Direct general questions to the staff at 812-738-6668 or via online form.
PEOPLE:
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