Application Process
The John William Pope Foundation accepts proposals for general funding and special project requests throughout the year. However, we only act on proposals twice a year. The board may consider proposals that fall between meeting times at their discretion.
Timeline & Review
Annual Giving (Spring and Fall)
Public policy and higher education ‘Annual Giving’ proposals should be submitted by the last Monday of February. Decisions are typically made by late May.
Human services, K-12 education, and arts ‘Annual Giving’ proposals should be submitted by the last Monday of August. Decisions are typically made by late November.
Joy W. Pope Memorial Grant (Fall)
Joy W. Pope Memorial Grants in the Arts and Human Services are accepted annually between June 15 – September 15.
Application Links
We encourage applicants to use our online portal. A save and resume feature is available at the bottom of the application. Documents do not attach until the form is submitted, so they will not be saved as a part of the save and resume feature.
Frequently Asked Questions
Our focus is on the people of these communities, regardless of location. Because of that focus, we occasionally grant funds to organizations that are physically located elsewhere but are doing work for North Carolina and Wake and Vance County residents.
The Pope Foundation does not respond to letters of inquiry. Interested organizations may apply without any advance work.
We do not require meetings or phone conversations for organizations – neither before nor after application submission. We will reach out to you if we have additional questions or need to discuss your application further.
The Pope Foundation considers both general operating (operating support) and program (project-specific) requests. However, the Foundation does not make direct aid grants to individuals or loans of any kind. All recipients must be fully compliant with nonprofit IRS rules and regulations.
Interested organizations may apply at any time of the year. However, our board considers proposals twice a year — spring (public policy and higher education) and fall (human services, K-12 education, and arts).
We consider all request amounts for the Annual Grant program. The Foundation meets grant proposals in part and in full. In the Joy W. Pope Memorial Grant program, we cap requests and grants at $100,000 per fund. You can see our previous year’s grants on our ‘Grant Priorities’ page.
We do not limit or cap the number of times your organization can apply. You are welcome to submit again, and we will most likely consider your proposal during the next applicable grant cycle.
You are welcome to request funding for more than one need. However, we ask that you condense your requests into one proposal package and detail the multiple asks in the narrative section.
The Foundation will consider your proposal regardless of whether or not your organization performs an annual audit. However, you should plan on submitting your most recent year-end financial statements that include a balance sheet, income and expenses, and a basic cash flow signed by your board chair.
The Foundation makes all attempts to keep reporting simple. We ask project-specific grant recipients to share the progress of their projects in narrative form. We ask all recipients to share financial information, including both audits/financial statements and 990s, and a copy of the annual report for the year in which the grant is received.