Nonprofit Infrastructure Grant Program 2021 – 2023 Results

Today, as we send out a new request for proposals for the 2023 – 2025 round of the Nonprofit Infrastructure Grant Program (NIGP), we wanted to share with you some of the successes of the last round of funding.

NIGP supports the missions of small, culturally led organizations by strengthening their infrastructure. Building the capacity of small organizations that focus on historically underserved cultural communities helps position them to have greater impact in their community and increases their ability to secure and manage the requirements of public funding in the future. The first rounds of NIGP were successful and we are excited to continue this work.

2021 – 2023 Grantee Findings

The 2021 -2023 round of NIGP funding supported 38 organizations that connect ethnic minority populations, who are often isolated and marginalized, to needed services. Like other nonprofits, their services provide a social safety net and drive employment, community, and economic development.

• 113 staff or consultants were added this year; a 92% increase in the workforce for these organizations
• 34 upgraded operational, financial, accounting, and/or grants management systems; HR policies; procedures; and overall administrative processes
• Over 50% have initiated relationships with state and other public funding partnerships.
• 100% increased their understanding of administering a reimbursable grant and indicated readiness to seek state or other publicly funded opportunities in the future.

NIGP Program Overview

Funds for this program came from a $2,000,000 appropriation to Propel from the State of Minnesota for the 2-year period from July 2021 to June 2023. Each grant ranged from $22,000 to $48,520.

Geographic Scope of Grantees

• 64% of grantees are based in the Twin Cities Metro Area and serve this same area
• 18% of grantees are based in Greater Minnesota and serve Greater Minnesota
• 18% of grantees are based in the Twin Cities and have statewide services

Primary Use of Funding

• 80% of organizations focused on expanding programs and staff
• 20% of organizations built financial & organizational structures, policies, and procedures

What Grantees are Saying

“Mewinzha was able to secure its first state grant and quadruple its organizational budget this year. The resources provided by this grant have  been a springboard for building our organizational capacity and investing in community-led initiative.” -Mewinzha Ondaadiziike Wiigaming, Bemidji

“We’ve learned that funding for strong systems and operations is vital. When an organization has strong, stable systems (i.e. accounting, marketing, social media, funding, grant writing) the work does, in fact, get easier.” -The Park Place, Minneapolis (blog photo courtesy of The Park Place)

Learn more about the 2021 – 2023 grantees. 

2023 – 2025 RFP Available

The 2023 – 2025 RFP will be open from October 4, 2023 – October 26, 2023. NIGP grant awards are designed to support meaningful improvement in an organization’s infrastructure, including technology investments, staff development, relationship building, or other opportunities to increase nonprofits’ core mission support. We will make 50-70 grant proposals of up to $65,000 in multi-year reimbursement-based grants. Grantees are required to receive post-award technical assistance in financial administration, nonprofit finance, strategy, and governance topic areas. Grantees will be asked to share lessons learned through midterm and final grant reports and attend one annual grantee convening each year.  

Learn more and apply.