Please note:

• Grants within this focus area are typically one-year and one-time only. When writing your proposal, indicate the timeframe and cost for achieving a specific level of health gains for your target population. We understand that your project and the long-term health gains it will produce may be on-going but the results sought from this investment should not extend significantly past one year of work.
• There are two grant cycles per year within the Healthy Active Communities focus area; the application deadlines are February 15 and August 15. Applications must be received by 5:00 pm.
• There is a separate application for equipment requests.
• With the exception of the $5,000 maximum for Equipment Requests, there is no maximum limitation for this focus area.  However, the BCBSNC Foundation pays close attention to the gain relative to the cost. Average grants are $60,000 with grants ranging from $10,000 - $100,000.

How To Apply – Step by Step

1. REVIEW THE BLUE CROSS AND BLUE SHIELD OF NORTH CAROLINA (BCBSNC) FOUNDATION'S ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES and FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS.

2. REVIEW THE DETAILED FOCUS AREA DESCRIPTION.  

The results from your project should achieve one or more of the measurable results for the focus area. Watch our 15 minute video; it gives an overview of the Foundation, our approach to grantmaking and specific elements of the proposal.

Please feel free to call us to discuss your project if you have questions about how it aligns with the measurable results we're seeking in this focus area.

3. SUBMIT A PROPOSAL.

The proposal must be completed using the provided application form. You may find it useful to review sample responses from current and past grantees as you write your own proposal. Each organization may submit no more than one proposal per grant cycle. Please note that the proposal should be typed in 12-point font.

If you are interested in applying for equipment only (up to $5,000), consider making an Equipment Request.

Submit one signed original proposal (including the budget spreadsheet), along with one copy of the required attachments to the mailing address listed below. Please also submit one electronic copy of the proposal and budget spreadsheet (but not the attachments) via email to jennifer.macdougall@bcbsncfoundation.org.

Send these documents to:

BCBSNC Foundation
Grant Review - Jennifer MacDougall
5901 Old Durham Chapel Hill Rd.
Durham, NC 27707-0718
919-765-2128

Proposals must be received at the Foundation office by 5pm on the established cycle deadline. The proposal deadlines for this focus area are February 15 and August 15 of each year. If you are interested in confirming that your proposal was received, you must send your packet using a method that allows for tracking (e.g., return receipt, FedEx). NOTE: If the 15^th falls on a weekend or holiday, grant proposals will be due the following business day.

We will send an acknowledgement e-mail within 10 business days of receipt of the proposal. There is more information on what to expect next in the process, and our reporting requirements for funded programs here.

CHECKLIST FOR PROPOSALS TO THE HEALTHY ACTIVE COMMUNITIES FOCUS AREA:

• Confirm organization meets eligibility criteria.
• Be sure that your program can achieve the results we are seeking in the Healthy Active Communities focus area.
• Complete the proposal and compile the required attachments.
• Save the date for our "New Grantee Outcomes Workshop." The next workshop is scheduled for June 19 from 9 am - 3 pm in Durham.
• Submit one electronic copy of the proposal (including the budget spreadsheet) via email to jennifer.macdougall@bcbsncfoundation.org.
• Submit one signed original with the required attachments to:
  
  BCBSNC Foundation
  Grant Review - Jennifer MacDougall
  5901 Old Durham Chapel Hill Rd.
  Durham, NC 27707-0718
  919-765-2128