CIM Grant

The CIM Grant Application is the funding application used to request support from the Standing Committee on Community and Institutional Ministries of the Iowa Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church. The program supports Shalom Zone ministries, emerging ministries, connectional agencies, and health ministries, including parish nurse programs. The Iowa Annual Conference describes this funding within its Conference Connectional Ministries grant process, which is intended to strengthen fruitful and sustainable ministries and improve alignment between ministry needs, Conference priorities, and available Conference resources. Applicants are asked to describe their ministry and its goals for 2027 and explain how those goals align with the strategic priorities of Iowa United Methodists. Those priorities are to Grow as Disciples in the Wesleyan Way, Strengthen Congregational Vitality, Develop and Sustain Thriving Leaders, and Build and Embody Beloved Community. The application also asks applicants to describe the process used to set ministry goals, the benchmarks that have been or will be used to measure progress, and the criteria used to evaluate the ministry's effectiveness. The Beloved Community priority expressly includes the ongoing work of dismantling racism. The application requires organizational and project information, including the local church or organization, project, Iowa Annual Conference district, requested dollar amount, and the number of consecutive years the applicant has received CIM funding. Applicants must disclose whether they are also requesting Matthew 25 Funds for the ministry, the applicable district and requested amount, whether they will receive funds from their district's District Askings, and the amount of those funds. Applicants must also disclose additional grant requests being submitted for this or other ministries during the year, including the groups receiving those requests and the amount requested from each. Payment information identifying the ministry or payee, mailing information, and email address is also required. Financial documentation is part of the application. Applicants must attach or insert a copy of the ministry's budget and list other sources of funding for the ministry together with the amounts received from those sources. The application accepts common document, spreadsheet, image, presentation, and PDF formats for the budget upload, with a stated maximum file size of 25 MB. The source does not establish a minimum grant amount, maximum grant amount, total amount available through the program, number of awards, or a required matching contribution. Grants greater than $1,200 are disbursed in 12 equal monthly payments, and all grants are one-year grants. The application registration period opens June 30, 2026, and applications are due September 30, 2026. The CIM timeline indicates an August 30 application-deadline reminder and communication sent by districts, followed by the September 30 submission deadline. The committee is scheduled to meet October 30 to review applications and determine grant recipients and amounts, with letters of approval and letters of regret sent to applicants by November 30. The grant year begins January 1, after which monthly checks are sent to grant recipients. The application does not identify an LOI, concept paper, pre-proposal, or other pre-application gate that applicants must complete before submitting the CIM application. Recipients are subject to post-award reporting requirements. A ministry receiving CIM funding must submit year-end reports to the granting agency, and failure to submit the required report makes the ministry ineligible for future funding. The CIM timeline additionally identifies February 28 as the date by which recipients are required to submit year-end reports to CIM. The application must be signed by an authorized person from the church or organization. For questions about the CIM grant, the official information sheet identifies Christine McFarland at (515) 867-3197 and camcfarlandscot@gmail.com.

Align ministry goals directly with the four Iowa United Methodist strategic priorities; provide concrete benchmarks and effectiveness criteria; disclose other grant requests and funding sources completely; prepare and attach the ministry budget; plan for required year-end reporting to preserve future funding eligibility.