The California Endowment’s grantmaking is broadly guided by our Building Healthy Communities (BHC) work and by the guidelines of each of our grant types. We award single and multi-year grants and Direct Charitable Activity (DCA) contracts. Through our Program-Related Investment (PRI) program we provide financing that advances our programmatic goals via loans and other financial products.
In collaboration with our grantees and partners, we seek to use our grantmaking to expand access to affordable, quality health care for underserved individuals and communities, and to promote fundamental improvements in the health status of all Californians.
For more information, see the map below.
The California Endowment’s funding opportunities are by invitation only.
All requests for funding must include a completed application, any required supplementary documents, and a current GuideStar profile.
When your application has been successfully submitted, you will receive an e-mail confirmation.
All prospective grantees undergo a legal, financial, and programmatic review to ensure eligibility and financial health. Typically, the application review process is completed within 6 to 8 weeks. If a request is approved, grantees will receive an e-mail notification and award documents via DocuSign, The California Endowment’s electronic signature tool.
CONTINUE APPLICATION
Once a grant is approved, the authorized signer for the organization will receive an email. This email will link to an Award Letter and/or Award Agreement, and other grant-related information. The authorized signer should review, sign, and promptly return these documents.
Once executed award documents are received, The California Endowment will issue an electronic payment via an ACH credit directly to the grantee’s bank account. Fees of $0.10-$0.20 may be imposed by the receiving bank for each ACH transaction. Grantees should contact their bank representative for details.
Upon request, The California Endowment will issue a paper check for a first payment that will be mailed via U.S. Postal Service.
Grantees should refer to their executed Award Agreements for details on their reporting schedules and requirements. It is the responsibility of the grantee to notify The California Endowment about any potential delays in reporting.
Grant reports typically include a narrative progress report and a project expenditure report, and are due at specific intervals during the grant period.
Click here to access your reporting portal.
If you have questions regarding online reporting, please contact gms@calendow.org or your grants analyst.
START REPORT
The California Endowment enters into Direct Charitable Activity (DCA) contracts with for-profit and non-profit entities by invitation only.
Direct Charitable Activities are those activities that are consistent with The California Endowment’s mission, but are conducted by The California Endowment (or itsDirect Charitable Activities are those activities that are consistent with The California Endowment’s mission, but are conducted by The California Endowment (or its contractors) and whose primary and significant purpose is to achieve The California Endowment’s charitable purpose, though the activities may produce an incidental, shared or mutual benefit to a third party.
The California Endowment’s Program Managers are engaged with their respective campaigns and are responsible for identifying prospective contractors who could provide services and assistance to achieve or advance The California Endowment’s charitable purpose. Prospective contractors selected to apply will receive an email that contains a link for submitting their contract application and supplemental documents for review.
Our Program, Finance, and Legal teams will review the submitted application and documents to determine the prospective contractor’s capacity and eligibility to complete the proposed contract deliverables.
In addition to an internal review, The California Endowment also conducts an external review of the prospective contractor. As such, the prospective contractor may be asked to provide additional documents and information to establish the organization’s legal name and/or independent contractor status and budget information as it relates to the proposed project.
If The California Endowment elects to enter into an agreement, contractors will receive an e-mail notification and contract documents via Adobe Sign, The California Endowment’s electronic signature tool.
HELPFUL LINKS
The Matching Gifts program reinforces The California Endowment’s mission by encouraging members of the Board of Directors and employees to contribute to qualifying charitable organizations.
The California Endowment matches individual contributions of $25 or more by donating three dollars for every one dollar contributed by participants to eligible charitable organizations. An eligible organization’s mission statement must include “health” or have a specific program related to health in California that is consistent with The California Endowment’s mission.
The California Endowment’s mission is to expand access to affordable, quality health care for underserved individuals and communities, and to promote fundamental improvements in the health status of all Californians.
The organization’s mission statement shall be verified by the eligible Participant prior to applying for the Matching Gifts.
The California Endowment will match tax-deductible contributions made by an eligible participant in cash, check, or credit card to an Eligible Organization ranging from a minimum of $25 to a maximum of $25,000. Three dollars will be matched to every dollar contributed.
The “minimum” refers to a contribution to a single eligible Organization within The California Endowment’s fiscal year, and the “maximum” refers to the aggregate contribution to one or more eligible Organizations within The California Endowment’s fiscal year. Any non-deductible portion of a contribution will not be matched.
The California Endowment’s funds may not be used:
For questions or comments on the Matching Gifts program, please contact:
The California Endowment has committed $100 million of our corpus to Program-Related Investments (PRIs). PRIs are one tool in The California Endowment’s continuum of philanthropic capital available for advancing its programmatic vision and supporting its current work through Building Healthy Communities (BHC).
Specifically, our PRI capital is intended to address market failures, fill financing gaps, and promote innovative ideas that affect the health of vulnerable populations and low-to-moderate-income communities in California. As such, we seek to support innovative opportunities that not only demonstrate social impact but also deliver financial returns. We typically structure our PRIs as financial instruments that must be repaid but also provide more favorable terms to our partners than traditional financial institutions. The California Endowment’s current portfolio of PRIs consists of loans but we will consider other financial products which advance The California Endowment’s mission.
Our PRI activity is structured to complement and support The California Endowment’s programmatic priorities and advance our current 2020 goals. Current priority issue areas include:
The California Endowment made its first PRI in 1999 as part of a significant investment in a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI): Rural Communities Assistance Corporation (RCAC). As of March 31, 2016, The California Endowment has made program-related investments totaling $65.5 million. In addition to RCAC, our PRIs have supported a range of programmatic priorities including:
The California Endowment PRI program has also achieved significant programmatic impact as of March 31, 2016, including:
PRI recipients should refer to their executed legal documents for details on their reporting schedules and requirements. It is the responsibility of the PRI recipient to notify The California Endowment about any potential delays in reporting.
Please note that PRI recipients must create online accounts to access PRI and reporting information. Your account will be generated based on the Monitoring Form that goes out with the PRI documents.
If you have questions regarding online reporting, please contact impactinvesting@calendow.org.
