In lieu of our traditional in-person Grant Awards Ceremonies, we invite you to join us for a special broadcast that will air on KGW Channel 8 on Thursday, June 17th at 8:00 PM.
The broadcast is not live. It was pre-recorded over the last two months. You can also watch the ceremony on our website, CommuniCareOR.org/ceremony, starting Monday, June 21st.
At our in-person ceremonies, each student group has the opportunity to share on stage. They talk about their mission, how their process and fundraising went, and why they selected their recipients. They then present checks directly to nonprofits. We have so many groups, we have to split them up into 5-6 different evenings!
Our virtual ceremony is a nod to our traditional ceremony, but there just isn't enough time to feature each group. So, instead, four groups will take you on a tour of their communities and speak more broadly about their experience. They do mention their recipients, but they don't go into detail. Think of this as a little road trip after a year of being cooped up because of the pandemic. The broadcast also features special messages from Jordan Schnitzer, the President of the Harold & Arlene Schnitzer CARE Foundation, and a few messages of gratitude from nonprofit recipients.
Schools were selected based on geographic representation, mission statement diversity, whether they were on an alternative timeline due to COVID, and whether they were featured in last year's broadcast. The students selected their roles and contributed ideas for the script. Availability, personal comfort, and COVID safety restrictions limited the number of students who could participate.
Several nonprofits were asked to record short messages for the virtual ceremony. These organizations were selected for mission diversity, school diversity, and because they were all awarded grants by groups on alternative timelines. We normally don't learn final decisions from our full-year groups until the end of April, which was not enough turnaround time for video production.
We always strive for equal representation among our schools and participants. Students from our other groups will be celebrated in local newspapers in early June, on our social media, and in our Annual Report. Each group was also given the option to record their own ceremony message. These videos will be made available in June on our Instagram.
Not at this time, but if you would like to send a message of gratitude to the students who selected your organization, that would be awesome! Posting a short video on Instagram and tagging the school is the best way for students to see it. Please also tag @communicareor.
Yes! CommuniCare is fully prepared to support the remote learning needs of all schools in the upcoming school year. Please note, however, that some groups are not on the traditional full-year timeline. Groups doing the program in a quarter or semester will do their own nonprofit research and invite organizations to apply directly to them.
All 501(c)3 nonprofit organizations in the State of Oregon are eligible to apply. Please keep in mind that the student mission statements will often identify a specific geographic service area for their grants.
Yes, you can apply for a CommuniCare grant. When final grants are awarded, the funds will go directly to your fiscal sponsor and will be earmarked for your program/group.
Yes. You are welcomed to apply to any school whose mission statement aligns with your organization's work. You can select multiple mission statements at a time and submit the same materials for each of them or you can tailor your materials to individual mission statements and make multiple submissions.
Please note that schools are expected to grant to new organizations each year. If you received a CommuniCare grant from a school during the 2019-2020 school year, they must request a special exemption letter on your behalf.
The public submission window is open from November 16th to December 31st, 2020. If your organization is invited by a student group to apply and the application window has closed, please send your materials directly to the group's contact person and defer to the deadline set by the group.
We cannot receive applications after the public submission window closes on December 31st, 2020. Individual student groups may reach out to invite nonprofit organizations to apply directly to them. Please do not solicit schools directly.
To make it easier for applicants to identify which mission statements align with their work, we have numbered the statements and divided them into general service areas. Please note: mission statements will appear in multiple categories if students have more than one focus or their issue is intersectional.
The CARE Foundation asks students to award minimum grant amounts of $1,000, but we do not restrict the number of organizations that students can select. When asking for a dollar amount, keep in mind that students often try to increase their impact by spreading their funds around the community. A very large request may discourage students if they feel they cannot meet your needs.
Students want to see their mission statement priorities reflected in your cover letter. Extra care with your language will let them know you really read their statement.
Lastly, professional and industry-specific vocabulary may be second nature to you but can sometimes obscure the good work being done. Cover letters should not be more than 750 words, and thoughtful visual aids and photographs will make your materials more accessible to all learners.
High school students are your primary audience. You can address them directly as "Dear Students" or "CommuniCare Grantmakers." You can use The CARE Foundation address in lieu of a school address:
All submission materials will be made available to students in mid-January. You will hear directly from the students or The CARE Foundation in February or early March. Once a student group has contacted you, you can engage with them directly.
Fundraising is a very important part of the CommuniCare student experience. However, due to the constraints of COVID-19, The CARE Foundation has made fundraising optional. Each group has been given a baseline of funds for their grantmaking for the 2020-2021 cycle, depending on group enrollment and the socioeconomic needs at the school.
In a typical year, students shoot to raise $1500. Every dollar the students raise up to that goal is matched with $10 by The CARE Foundation. If your organization receives a grant from a school, it already reflects the Foundation's match. That amount is the final amount for the grant.
If you need to make changes to your submission before the grant application window closes (December 31, 2020), please re-submit the entire application through the Submit Application page and indicate in the message box that you will be replacing your earlier submission.
After you download the application form, open it up using an application from your desktop. If you complete the PDF in a web browser tab, it may not save your information.
The Harold & Arlene Schnitzer CARE Foundation does not require any follow-up reporting from CommuniCare recipients. However, the students who awarded the grant may ask for a report or letter if they choose.
If you have questions not addressed on the website, please contact Kristen Engfors-Boess, CommuniCare Program Manager, at kristen@schnitzercare.org or 503.973.0241.
