Bowling Green Community Foundation Grants

The Bowling Green Community Foundation provides grant funding to strengthen nonprofit organizations serving Bowling Green, Ohio. The Foundation describes its broader mission as partnering with residents, donors, and nonprofits to create lasting positive change through strategic philanthropy, community-focused ideas, and compassionate action. Its grantmaking supports organizations addressing local needs and is intended to help nonprofits expand their reach and deepen their impact. Areas specifically described by the Foundation include education, youth development, health, arts, and community wellbeing, along with programs and partnerships that enhance quality of life and address emerging community needs. The grant program is geographically focused on Bowling Green. Eligible applicants are 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations located in and serving the 43402 and 43403 ZIP codes and the Bowling Green school district area. The Foundation does not make grants directly to individuals except through scholarship funds specifically established for that purpose. The application instructions also recognize fiscal sponsorship by allowing an applicant, when applicable, to provide the tax-exempt determination letter of its fiscal sponsor. The supplied information does not state additional organizational size, operating history, faith-based, political activity, debt reduction, or other use restrictions. Annual grant awards generally range from $500 to $7,500. The supplied information does not state the total amount available for the grant cycle, the expected number of awards, a required cost share or matching contribution, or a defined grant performance period. Although the website contains the statement "60 Invested annually in local nonprofits," the supplied text does not provide sufficient context to establish whether 60 represents a dollar amount, percentage, number of organizations, or another measure. Therefore, it should not be treated as total program funding. Applicants should rely on the Foundation's Grant Guidelines for any additional rules governing allowable expenditures or grant administration that are not reproduced in the supplied material. Applicants are instructed to confirm eligibility and review the Grant Guidelines and Scoring Rubric before applying. They must gather a copy of the organization's 501(c)(3) tax-exempt determination letter or, when applicable, the fiscal sponsor's determination letter; a list of board members and key staff or volunteers involved in the project; and a signed Grant Application Signature Page. The signature page must be signed by the applicant and the organization's CEO or President, or by the fiscal sponsor as applicable. The Foundation also provides a Grant Application Questions Reference document so applicants can prepare responses in advance, but explicitly states that this reference document is for planning purposes only and will not be accepted as the submitted application. Applications must be completed and submitted through the Foundation's online grant form by the stated deadline. Only applications submitted through the online form will be considered. Applicants needing assistance or without access to a computer may contact Christine Cook, Development Coordinator, at bgcf@bgohcf.org or (419) 352-0281. The Foundation directs applicants to review its Grant Guidelines and Scoring Rubric to understand how proposals are evaluated, but the supplied material does not reproduce the individual scoring criteria or weights. Consequently, no additional evaluation factors should be inferred beyond the Foundation's stated community focus and the referenced scoring materials. The 2027 grant cycle is currently open and has a final deadline of October 9, 2026, at 5:00 PM. Because no time zone is stated, the deadline is treated as Eastern Time for data-entry purposes, while the stored deadline is October 9, 2026. The Foundation states that grant applications open yearly from the middle of August through the first week of October and that awards are made in January of the following calendar year. This establishes an annual recurring cycle. For the current 2027 cycle, applications are due October 9, 2026, with awards expected in January 2027. No separate letter of intent, concept paper, pre-proposal, notice of intent, or other pre-application gating requirement is identified in the supplied material.

Confirm eligibility before applying; review the Grant Guidelines and Scoring Rubric to understand evaluation; gather required documents before beginning the online application; use the Grant Application Questions Reference to prepare responses in advance but do not submit it as the application; ensure the Grant Application Signature Page has the required signatures; submit through the online grant form by the deadline because only online submissions will be considered.