Grantmaking
Since our inception, the Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg has awarded more than $31 million in grant funding to local organizations working to improve health and racial equity in our community.
Now Accepting Applications: Capacity Building
The Foundation has partnered with Orlando Health Bayfront Hospital to launch a new funding opportunity — Capacity-Building: Strengthening Organizational Infrastructure. Through this program, we will award 20 capacity-building grants of up to $10,000 each ($200,000 in total) to nonprofits working to advance racially equitable health outcomes in the three zip codes of the South St. Petersburg Community Redevelopment Area (33705, 33711, 33712).
In addition to grant funding, the 20 organizations selected for the cohort will participate in a Core Capacity Assessment administered by the Nonprofit Leadership Center (NLC). The NLC’s Core Capacity Assessment Tool* (CCAT) will evaluate information provided by each organization’s key decision-makers and then generate custom recommendations for building organizational capacity in leadership, adaptability, management, technical capacity and/or culture. CCAT assessment results will be used to inform how groups should use their funding award.
Click the buttons below to read the grant application and apply.
Read the Application Apply Now
*CCAT is a registered tool ® of the TCC Group, administered by Nonprofit Leadership Center.
What is Capacity-Building?
Capacity-building is the process of improving a nonprofit’s ability to achieve its mission. By
bringing a nonprofit to the next level of operational, programmatic, financial, or organizational
maturity, the organization becomes more capable of operating efficiently and effectively. The
organization, as a result, becomes more resilient, adaptive to change, and effective.
Capacity-building is not just about strengthening individual organizations; it’s also about creating a
robust, interconnected ecosystem that is resilient, equitable, and innovative.
Examples of capacity-building can include: purchasing technology or tools to make you more efficient in your work; developing or refining a communications plan; attending a conference or other forms of professional development; developing a website; improving financial practices; and more.
RELATED RESOURCES
The Foundation offered the following research resources and events in support of our RFP and grantmaking process.
SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS
Scoring Rubric
Recording of Grant Event
What is a CCAT
CCAT Sample
SUPPORTING VIDEOS
Fluxx Overview: All applicants must register in the Fluxx grants portal to complete their application. We made this video to help guide you through the process.
Fluxx Application Tutorial: We made this short video detailing the use of Fluxx in completing this specific grant application and its required fields.
In Person Application Tutorial: Portions of the grant application are allowed to be submitted via video, in person, or by Zoom.
TIMELINE AT A GLANCE
RFP Release Date
February 26, 2025
Application Submission Due Date
March 31, 2025, by 5 PM EST
Award Notifications
Week of June 18, 2025
Funded Partner Orientation
July 9, 2025
NUMBERS AT A GLANCE
Grant Amounts
Up to $10,000 available to 20 organizations
Total Funding Available
$200,000
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Were two grant opportunities presented that day? One that is for any type of organization, and then one involving the CCAT® process that you must have certain tax designations to enroll in?
A. There is one current funding opportunity available at this time, Capacity-Building: Strengthening Organizational Infrastructure. To be eligible for this opportunity, an organization must be a designated 501(c)3 at the time of submission.
Two additional grantmaking opportunities that will become available in 2025 were also briefly mentioned. Those opportunities will occur throughout the year. Please, sign up for our newsletter to remain up-to-date with all funding opportunities.
Q. I’m curious if there’s room for collaborative applications submitted in partnership with more than one organization? Our mission is to build coalition/alignment among organizations. While we certainly have our own internal processes that could benefit from capacity building funds, us working with other organizations is also an area that would benefit from these funds.
A. The current funding opportunity focuses on building the capacity of an organization to fulfill its mission. If, during the CCAT® process, a recommendation is made to take action to deepen collaborative efforts and implement organizational change to do so, the funds may be requested accordingly.
Q. We may be working to raise funds, volunteer, etc. with a clinic. The project would take place in the summer of 2026. Preparation will begin shortly. It is basically a pop-up clinic over the course of a weekend. We are targeting a Foundation priority zip code and working in partnership with other organizations. The actual clinic will take place in summer 2026. The funds would be used to prepare for the event: food, volunteers, transportation, etc. Preparation would be starting in the next few weeks as it will take about a year to prepare for this. Would this qualify for this opportunity?
A. No, as your proposed activities are programmatic in nature and already projected to occur. The capacity-building grants will focus on the internal process, procedures, and policies of an organization that may be improved to increase the organization’s ability to fulfill its mission. The recommended improvements will be derived from completion of the CCAT® in partnership with Nonprofit Leadership Center and funding will be issued to address the identified recommendations.
Q. In the description of the CCAT® for the upcoming capacity building opportunities, it states that leadership and board members will be completing a survey. Do you know which members our leadership and how many board members will be participating in the survey?
A. Participants are best determined by the organization and leader. The only suggestion is to have a balance of staff and board/senior volunteers, and that people selected have knowledge enough of the organization to be able to answer the 146 questions without leaving too many unanswered questions. We need a minimum of 3 participants but recommend it to be closer to 8-10 or more depending on the size of the senior staff and board.
Q. How long will it take to complete the CCAT® process?
A. It is estimated that the process will take approximately 5 cumulative hours or 1 hour for each phase of the process.
Phase 1: Orientation
Phase 2: Staff and board members complete CCAT® survey
Phase 3: Initial meeting with organizational main point of contact to review survey results with Nonprofit Leadership Center
Phase 4: Nonprofit Leadership Center meeting with entire group to review survey results
Phase 5: Development and review of final recommendations
Q. Are you allowed to have a fiscal agent?
A. No, the organization must be an active 501(c)3 at the time of application.
Q. What if the agency has completed the CCAT® before?
A. The Nonprofit Leadership Center will review the organization’s prior CCAT® results and use them as a baseline to determine the best course of action to take to identify funding recommendations. An organization may be asked to complete another CCAT®, if warranted. This decision will be solely based on CCAT® best practices, not a forced requirement of the grant award.
Q. Will this grant cover operational cost on new construction or is it limited?
A. Construction costs are ineligible expenses for this funding opportunity.
Q. I have a question regarding the 2025 application for capacity building. Our agency is still in the process of our 2024 audit. We do not have a final Total Revenue amount or 2024 Statement of Activities. Can I use our 2023 total revenue and financial statements? Our CFO is uncomfortable with providing this information as the numbers are not final until after the audit is completed.
A. Yes, please share the organization’s most recent completed financials.
Q. Can an LLC apply with a fiscal sponsor?
A. For this funding opportunity, a fiscal sponsor is not allowed as the effort focuses solely on active nonprofit organizations
Q. If granted, can that fiscal sponsor also receive funding simultaneously?
A. For this funding opportunity, a fiscal sponsor is not allowed as the effort focuses solely on active nonprofit organizations
Q. Question for you re: the grant referenced above … I’m unclear on how to complete the project title and short description for this application. Since it’s not program related, we can’t name a program that it is going to support. And since the actual capacity focus won’t really be determined until the CCAT is completed, I’m wondering if these are supposed to be more generic answers to these two questions. For example: Title: Capacity Building for ABC Organization
A. This is fine.
Q. Description: We will use this funding to help strengthen our organization infrastructure including Board training and budgeting. (Should this answer include some things the org would like to work on even without the CCAT recommendations?)
A. The description will not describe the capacity-building activities since they will be identified in the CCAT process; instead, the description will focus more on the organization’s ability to participate in the CCAT process and implement its recommendations. Please, note, the description is not scored as part of the grant review process. It is used to provide a short executive summary of the application and used for the Foundation’s 990 tax documents.
Q. Is there a minimum amount of staff, board members, and/or volunteers an organization must have in order to be eligible to apply for this grant?
A. The only minimum number is that NLC needs three people in order to be able to complete the CCAT.
Q. In the application, there is a question regarding the name of the person who is overseeing the project. Additionally, the application also asks to identify the name of the President and chief of the organization.
A. We understand that many nonprofits have the same individual serving in multiple roles, particularly if it is a small nonprofit. For this reason, you may need to place the same name in multiple roles. This is okay to do.
Q. Are a minimum of 3 Participants required to attend each of the orientation dates listed? Or is a minimum of 3 participants required to attend one of the dates listed?
A. A minimum of three participants must participate in the CCAT process, including attending the orientation. The three persons the organization identifies may attend any orientation. They do not need to attend the same orientation session or attend more than one each.
Q. What are the typical CCAT recommendations from years past for other non-profits who have been awarded this grant? I ask because I want to make sure they align with our bylaws and such before applying just to make sure we can apply.
A. The best course of action would be to review the sample CCAT findings report.
Q. If we are applying on behalf of one of our departments, would it be best or more appropriate to get a letter for the Department Leadership or do you recommend for us to still obtain the letter from the board chair?
A. Please, obtain the letter from the board chair. This will keep the process and requirements consistent for everyone.
Q. As both the senior executive and the board chair of your organization, should you complete the board chair letter of commitment or ask someone else on your board to provide the letter?
A. Someone else with executive authority to commit the organization to carry out the work should provide the letter.