Eligibility
Who is eligible for the New England Food Vision Prize?
- K–12 schools, school districts, colleges, universities, and schools with 501(c)(3) public charity status
- Governmental entities or affiliated organizations that are eligible to receive 501(c)(3) funding
- Federally recognized Tribes
- Indian Tribal governments (IRS, section 7871)
- Organizations applying via a 501(c)(3) public charity fiscal sponsor
- While for-profit businesses may participate as project partners, they may not serve as the primary applicant.
I’m not a 501(c)(3), municipality, or state government. Can I still apply?
Entities that do not fit into one of these categories may not serve as the primary applicant, but may apply as part of a team, with the primary applicant meeting this criterion. If you need help finding (a) partner organization(s) please send us an email at info@kendall.org! We’ll be happy to connect you with one of our partners to assist you.
Do projects need to include academic institutions?
Yes. We require a commitment from at least one K-12 and/or higher education institution as part of each application. This may include: private colleges/universities, public colleges/universities, community colleges, public K-12 schools/districts, private K-12 schools.
If I am applying as an academic institution, do I need another institutional partner?
No.
Can a project team include non-academic institutions, like corrections or hospitals?
Yes, as long as the requirement of at least one educational institution partner is met.
I don’t have an existing educational institutional partner. What should I do?
The team at Farm to Institution New England is available to help connect you with a school or higher education institution interested in partnership: tania@farmtoinstitution.org
Can Early Childhood Centers apply as primary applicants?
Prize impact should be focused on K-12 and higher education institutions. If there is an opportunity for an early childhood center to partner with a K-12 school or college/university on sourcing local products, they are welcome to be a part of a Prize team.
Can I collaborate with an organization outside of the six New England states?
All applicants and partners must be based in New England.
Do you consider food from Pennsylvania, New York, or other nearby states “regional”?
No. The food associated with the project must be grown/sourced/caught within the six New England states.
Is there a maximum number of partners, including educational institutions, that can be part of a project?
No, there is no maximum number of partners allowed on a single application. Applicants should keep in mind that the primary applicant will be responsible for distributing funds between partner organizations.
Application & Selection Process
What are the Letter of Interest submission requirements?
Letters of Interest should address the four Prize criteria and a few specific questions. See the Prize application page for full information and instructions.
If we are invited to submit a full application, what will we need to submit? What will the application entail?
Full applications will expand on the original idea to include responses to a series of prompts associated with the criteria. In addition to these responses, applicants will be required to submit a letter of support from each educational institution, a project budget, and documentation of 501(c)(3) or similar status.
What can Prize funding be used for? Is there anything that funding cannot be used for?
Funding may not be used for recurring purchases of food. Allowable food expenses include one-time expenses for limited recipe development, taste tests, and promotional events. If food expenses are included in the budget, they should be less than 2% of the total budget.
Funding may be used in the following ways:
- Infrastructure investment
- Equipment purchase
- Revolving Fund
- Capacity and staffing
- Training and certification
- Your idea here!
Can we submit more than one application with different partners?
An organization may submit only one application as the primary applicant, but may also participate as a partner on other Prize applications.
How can I measure the impact of my Prize idea?
You can select from many different kinds of metrics to measure your project’s impact, depending on the project. Examples of potential metrics used in past Prizes include: number of farmer relationships built, dollar amount of regional food procured, number of schools and students reached, programs offered and attendees, etc. Feel free to contact us or the team at FINE for assistance in determining appropriate metrics for your project.
Are Letters of Interest expected to address all four Prize criteria? What if I don’t yet know how my project will address one of these criteria?
We do ask that Letters of Interest address all four Prize criteria – Impact, Collaborative, Sustainable, and Equitable – but understand that ideas may not be fully fleshed out at this initial stage. If you do not yet know, for example, how your project will be measurable, say so and provide an example or two of how you might reach this criteria.
Who is part of the review team for letters of interest and applications?
Letters of Interest will be reviewed by staff of the Henry P. Kendall Foundation. Full applications will be reviewed by Henry P. Kendall Foundation staff and up to five external reviewers. Reviewers are selected after proposal invitations are made, reducing conflict of interest and ensuring that reviewer expertise matches focus areas of prize applications.
What kind of recognition, announcement, ongoing press will come with an award?
The Foundation will issue a public email and web announcement of the winners of the Prize. We also feature Prize projects on the Stories from the Field page of our website.
What are the reporting requirements for Prize awards?
Reporting and check-ins with grantees help the Foundation team learn about what’s working, build relationships and expand our network, and develop increasingly responsive grant making programs for future grantees.
Prize winners agree to provide the Foundation staff with:
- A six month verbal update
- If multi-year Prize, a one-year written report (1-2 pages) and grant budget update.
- End of grant term: A final verbal check in, written report (1-2 pages), and financial statement confirming grant funds were spent as agreed upon.
Written reports should answer the following:
- What have been the key accomplishments during this grant period?
- What have been the key challenges you’ve faced and how have you addressed them?
- What have you learned during this grant period that is of importance to your work?
- Additional questions may be added before the application launch
Financials
How much financial information will be necessary to include in the budget? Are there limits to the use of funds for indirect and overhead costs?
A budget for the project should be included showing the associated activities and expenses. Indirect costs (i.e. fiscal sponsor percentage taken) may not exceed 10% of the project budget. “Indirect” costs do not refer to staff time or other operations necessary. You are welcome to use this budget template or submit your budget using your own format. Please use a notes column to add detail on your expense lines. It is important that reviewers unfamiliar with your organization, school, or project fully understand the expenses proposed.
Does the application have to specify how funding would be distributed amongst partners?
Yes, the budget must specify how funding would be distributed amongst partners if applicable. The applicant – if successful – will have full responsibility for proper disbursement of the prize funds, including ensuring that funds are accounted for by each partner.
How will the prize be awarded?
The prize funding will be awarded to the primary applicant shortly after award announcements. You may consider having project partners execute a memorandum of understanding stipulating how funds will be managed, distributed, and expended in accordance with the proposed project.
Will selected projects ever be awarded partial funding?
No – applicants will either receive the full amount of funding applied for or no funding. We therefore encourage you to request the full amount of money required to make your project a success.
Does the prize need to be spent or can it be used to establish a revolving fund, for example?
As long as the funds are utilized in a manner consistent with the priorities of the Prize program, they do not have to be spent right away. A revolving fund would be permissible. In this instance, please include details on how the fund would be replenished and managed after the Prize term expires.
Can the prize award be used as seed funding, or partial funding for a bigger project?
Yes.
Can the prize award be used to fund an existing project?
Yes, a project being new is not required, as long as it meets the goals of the Prize and the eligibility requirements.
Is there a match requirement?
No.
What organizations and projects have been funded previously by the New England Food Vision Prize?
You can see a list of all the past winners here on our website.
Questions
Do you have a question that isn’t answered here?
Please feel free to reach out to us for assistance.