Application and Submittal Procedures

Application and Submittal Procedures for Community Grant Programs

Please read and review the Community Grant Programs Application & Submittal Procedures for the Community Grant Programs Online Application.

Application and Submittal Procedures for Initiatives and Give Together Grant Programs

Online Application Process:

Please follow the instructions below to access, complete and submit your application to the foundation.

  • To apply, go to SBFoundation.org/apply
  • On the Welcome to the Santa Barbara Foundation Grants Portal page, click on “Register” and complete the form to create an account for the Grants Portal. You will be asked to furnish an email address, create a password and state the name of your organization. We advise using a perpetual email address (such as info@orgname.com or grants@orgname.com) so that the organization’s profile is not exclusively linked to one individual’s email address.
  • IMPORTANT – You will receive an email confirming that your account is active and you will then be able to complete and submit a grant application. Please take this timing into consideration when reviewing application deadlines as you must allow time for your account to be created prior to submitting an application before the deadline. (If you are establishing an account on Friday, the registration confirmation will occur on the following Monday).
  • Once your account has been confirmed, you may login and complete the Small Capacity Building Grant application.
  • You may save your work and log out at any time.
  • To access the partially complete application again, you will log into the account you created and access the Small Capacity Building Grant you saved.

Submittal Procedures

  1. Applications will be accepted only through the online process. Paper applications will not be accepted.
  2. To submit the completed and saved application, while on the “Submit” page, click the “I agree” box under Proposal Authorization. A “Submit” button will appear at the bottom of the page for you to click. If you attempt to submit the application with any errors you will receive a “validation” box listing the errors. Once the errors have been corrected, you may resubmit the application. Please note, some questions have character counts (indicated beneath the question). While you will be able to continue entering text beyond these character counts, you will not be able to submit your application. Please ensure you do not exceed the character count in order to successfully submit your application.

You will receive an automatic email when your grant application has been received. Please retain this receipt for your files.

Downloading the PDF Application Form:

Visit our Grant Opportunities page to view the application and guidelines. Before starting your application, or completing any forms, please download and save the file to your desktop using Adobe Reader. Edits made to the form in the browser will not be saved. When the application is saved to your computer you may work on the application over an extended period of time, saving as you go.

If you experience technical difficulties downloading the application, please try the following:

  1. Click on this link: http://get.adobe.com/reader.
  2. Download the latest version of Adobe Reader (click on Install Now).
  3. Restart your computer.

The applications are intentionally formatted to limit the amount of text and expanding the text boxes will result in unreadable content. For the larger grant programs, organizations that move forward to the interview/site visit stage are invited to submit additional materials at that time. Thank you for your understanding.

Supplemental Documents for Fiscal Sponsor

A 501(c)(3) organization that agrees to serve as a fiscal sponsor on a grant request must provide additional forms as part of the grant application.

  1. A copy of the letter of agreement entered into with the sponsored organization is required.
  2. Additional forms must be completed by the fiscal sponsor as part of the application including a board roster and organizational financial summary.

When using Mac or a PC

Our grant applications are in Adobe Reader format, a universal and free program. After you have downloaded the most recent version of Adobe Reader (found on our website with the application), use the “File Save As” feature to save the application to your local computer. If you are using a Mac product, please ensure you have downloaded Adobe Reader to your computer as Mac Preview is not compatible with Adobe Reader fillable forms.

Submitting your Application

Once you have completed your application and are ready for submission, please adhere to the following instructions to ensure a successful submittal:

  1. Applications are accepted electronically via email.
  2. Attach your completed application along with any additional required documents in an email using the Attach File feature.
  3. Submission of unsolicited materials is discouraged as they will not be considered in the review process.
  4. Include the name of your organization and the name of the grant program or initiative you are applying to in the email subject line. (Example of an Invest in Youth grant submission: My Nonprofit Invest in Youth Grant Application).
  5. Attach and email the completed application to grants@sbfoundation.org. 

NOTE: You will receive an automatic response email when your grant application has been received. This will guarantee that your application has been submitted successfully. Please retain this receipt for your files.

DEADLINES: All applications must be received by 11:59 PM on the deadline date noted for each grant program on the Grant Opportunities page.

Paper applications are not accepted. If you are experiencing technical difficulties with your application or submission, please contact our Community Engagement Team at (805) 963-1873 or CommunityEngagement@SBFoundation.org.