USA FUNDS

Contact information:
9998 Crosspoint Boulevard
Indianapolis, IN 46256

Website: http://www.usafunds.org/COMMUNITY/Pages/default.aspx

Type of foundation: Nonprofit organization operating a grantmaking program.

Types of grants: Project grants, event sponsorships

Description: USA Funds was established in Indianapolis in 1960 to help families finance rising college costs. USA Funds is a guarantor of federal education loans and invests resources in helping borrowers avoid default. The mission of USA Funds is to enhance postsecondary education preparedness, access and success. Grantmaking focuses primarily on the target populations of low-income and first-generation students, students of color, foster youth and adult learners.

In its grantmaking, USA Funds is strongly interested in “meaningful and measurable” impact. The three focus areas of its grantmaking are:

• Post-Secondary Education Readiness – USA Funds will support projects and initiatives that eliminate barriers to post-secondary education readiness such as:
  • Inconsistent attendance leading to dropping out of high school.
  • Limited rigor of educational course work or relevance of the education experience.
  • Inadequate formal educational guidance (family, community).
  • Limited exposure to technology and career information.
  • Poor transition points from elementary to middle school and from middle school to high school.
• Enrollment – USA Funds will support projects and initiatives that advance or promote a broad approach to increasing the postsecondary education enrollment levels of students by eliminating barriers to postsecondary education entry, such as:
  • Students’ financial limitations (perceived and actual).
  • Lack of access to all forms of financial aid.
  • Inadequate academic preparation.
  • Barriers related to postsecondary education advising, such as determining where to apply and completing all the application steps.
  • Inadequate student support services.
• Success – USA Funds will support projects and initiatives that work to improve students’ retention, progression and completion of a postsecondary education with manageable debt, as well as projects and initiatives that eliminate barriers such as:
  • Student’s financial limitations (perceived and actual).
  • Inadequate student support services.
  • Poor transition points from high school to postsecondary education and from two-year postsecondary education institutions to four-year postsecondary education institutions.

Sample grants:

• $190,000 to Nevada System of Higher Education (Reno) for Project Navigation 101 Program for Clark County School District. The funding supports the implementation of Navigation 101, a Web-based college and career readiness program, in at least 10 Nevada high schools (2011).
• $100,000 to Indiana Latino Institute (Indianapolis) to support a program to help students make career choices and provide the framework for them to succeed in postsecondary education (2012).
• $77,000 to The Regents of the University of California (Oakland) for Project Puente Project Ninth Grade Student Leadership Conferences. The conferences motivate ninth grade students to aspire to higher education by providing them with the opportunity to experience a college-going culture (2011).
• $70,000 to Arizona Community Foundation (Phoenix) for College Depot, which provides free full-service college planning through outreach, guidance, resources and referrals (2012).
• $60,000 to Admission Possible (Milwaukee) to provide low-income students with guidance and the necessary basic tools to graduate from high school and enter college (2012).
• $40,000 to GEAR UP Mississippi (Jackson) to support Mississippi’s College Goal Sunday events, which help students and families in completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (2012).
• $30,000 to Glow Foundation (San Francisco) to support postsecondary education access for low-income students through financial literacy and mentoring (2012).
• $30,000 to Boys II Men, Inc. (Indianapolis) to support a community program for African-American male students to develop skills for success in high school and postsecondary education (2012).

Fit for public broadcasting: USA Funds’ grantmaking is explicitly focused on post-secondary education readiness, access and success. Grantmaking includes support for several areas that converge with public media activities, including outreach, exposure to technology and career information, relevance of education, and dropout prevention. While no grants to public media were found, USA Funds has supported online initiatives. They have funded projects aimed at all ages, from elementary through high school. This may be a good prospect, especially for stations involved in American Graduate and/or stations that run youth media initiatives.

Eligibility: USA Funds makes grants to national programs and to regional, state and local programs throughout the United States. Applicants must have 501(c)(3) tax status. The Funds generally do not support building projects, capital expenses, debt retirement or solely operating expenses.

Deadline: Applications and letters of inquiry are accepted on a quarterly cycle. See this page for specific submission windows.

How to apply: Detailed and helpful guidelines (Information for Grant-Seekers) can be downloaded from this page. After reviewing the guidelines, interested applicants should begin by completing the online eligibility quiz. First-time applicants will be asked to submit a letter of inquiry. Questions can be directed to the program staff. Grants are generally made for a one-year period. Grantees may reapply for funding in subsequent years. Renewal grants will depend on the impact and effectiveness of the previous funding.

Giving range: While some grants are as high as $1,000,000, most are in the $30,000 – $100,000 range.

Total giving: Not found, though USA Funds awarded over $1,000,000 in the spring quarter of 2012.

View 2011 Annual Report here.