Special Interest Grants (Ernest and Selma Rosenblum Fund for Music and the Performing Arts)

Special Interest Grants (Ernest and Selma Rosenblum Fund for Music and the Performing Arts) is sponsored by The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee. This fund supports music and the performing arts, including dance, in Middle Tennessee.

Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee | Inside Philanthropy OVERVIEW: The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee funds education, the environment, the arts, health and social services in 40 counties in Middle Tennessee and three counties in Southern Kentucky. Grant applications are accepted annually.

IP TAKE: Although it’s based in Nashville, the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee (CFMT) funder supports a large service area across the state. It is open to nearly any nonprofit need in the region through both discretionary and competitive grantmaking processes.

It accepts unsolicited applications from nonprofits via the Community Impact Grants program and prioritizes organizations with annual operating budgets below $5 million in particular. However, this is not a multi-year funder preferring instead to give a wide range of organizations a chance at funding.

CFMT does not publish an accessible grants directory, which can make it somewhat difficult to identify which grants the foundation makes via competitive applications cycles as opposed to pre-selected organizations through a variety of donor-advised and field-of-interest funds. That being said, this is an essential community foundation for nonprofits located in the Greater Nashville areas and the entire region.

PROFILE: The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee (CFMT) is located in Nashville, Tennessee, and supports a 43-county region. It seeks to work “with people who have great hearts, whether or not they have great wealth, to craft solutions that reflect their intentions and goals. ” The foundation was created in 1991 by civic leaders, and today it serves 40 counties in Tennessee and three in Southern Kentucky.

The rest of the counties in the state are served by the Community Foundation of Greater Memphis, the Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga, and the East Tennessee Foundation. CFMT oversees more than 1,600 funds and granted more than $796 million in its first 25 years. CFMT’s Community Impact Grants focus on three key areas: Arts & Creative Culture, Child/Youth Development & Education, and Positive Mental Health.

Other interests include employment and training, housing, animal welfare and economic and community development. Grants in these more limited areas often come from the Special Interest Grants program. These grants support new programs, emerging and unmet needs, and innovative services for community benefit.

Grants for Arts & Culture CMFT’s Arts & Creative Culture grants “invests in and partners with nonprofits committed to ensuring greater cultural participation and equitable access to artistic experiences. ” These grants seek to expand cultural opportunities for low-income communities, support better representation in the arts and make the arts more sustainable.

This funder also has a number of DAFs and discretionary funds serving the arts in Tennessee. Recent grantees include Centennial Park Conservancy, Nashville Children’s Theatre and Nashville Public Library Foundation. The Ernest and Selma Rosenblum Fund for the Performing Arts, a Special Interest program, priotizes arts exposure and education.

It offers nonprofits up to $15,000 in annual funding. The William N. Rollins Fund for the Arts , another Special Interest program, supports visual arts programs, arts education programs and art therapy programs.

It offers nonprofits up to $15,000 in annual funding. Positive Mental Health grants “support nonprofit organizations that provide mental and behavioral health services for vulnerable populations, especially children and youth, seniors, disabled/differently-abled communities, and caregivers. ” Through this competitive program, CFMT makes grants for addiction services, peer support, and crisis intervention.

It also strengthens collaboration and partnerships with local schools, healthcare providers and social services. Recent grantees include Renewal House, Williamson County Child Advocacy Center and Mercy Health Services. Grants for Education and Youth Development Grants typically range between $1,000 and $30,000.

Grants made to pre-selected partners can be much larger. In a recent year, the funder has granted around $77. 8 million to nonprofit organizations annually.

Community Impact Grants open for submission between July 1 and July 31. Successful applicants are notified sometime in late October or early November. Multi-year proposals are not accepted.

See CFMT’s FAQ and the Community Impact Grants homepage for more information. Community Impact Grants prioritize nonprofits with operating budgets below $5 million, with tiered maximum grants totals based on said budget.

CFMT also has nine affiliate foundations that support targeted geographic areas: Community Foundation of Rutherford County, Cheatham County Community Foundation, Community Foundation of Wilson County, Cumberland Plateau Community Foundation, Community Foundation of Clarksville/Montgomery County, Goodlettsville Area Community Foundation, Tullahoma Community Foundation, Community Foundation for Dickson County, Community Foundation of Christian, Todd and Trigg Counties Grant seekers can keep up with the foundation and its grantees by following the Stories page.

Events , such as awards luncheons, benefit concerts, and fashion week fundraisers, are posted on the website too. General questions can be directed to the staff at givingback@cfmt. org or (615) 321-4939.

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