The Application Process

The Eisner Foundation supports organizations in Los Angeles County and New York City’s five boroughs, but the application timeline differs for each location.

For Los Angeles County, applications are accepted and site visits are conducted on a rolling basis year-round. For New York City, applications open at the beginning of January and are accepted through February, and site visits are conducted in the weeks following. Please note that this cycle is now occurring on a different schedule than in previous years. The Eisner Foundation board meets quarterly for review and possible approval of applications, with all New York City applications reviewed at the meeting following the site visits.

The first step of the application process is the Letter of Inquiry (LOI). Successful LOIs will clearly and succinctly demonstrate how the applicant organization incorporates intergenerational programming into their work. Please review our criteria to ensure your organization is eligible before submitting an LOI. You can learn about our grant programs here and submit an LOI here.

All LOIs are reviewed by our CEO and our program staff. If all agree that the project is a good match for The Eisner Foundation’s goals and objectives, the applicant is then invited to submit a full proposal with the relevant application paperwork, including financial statements. All proposals are then reviewed, and if the proposal is still considered to be strong with a high potential for success, the applicant moves on to the third stage: a site visit.

A site visit is required for all applications, even if the organization has previously received funding from The Eisner Foundation. This visit is usually conducted by Foundation management and program staff.

Afterward, we prepare a recommendation to be considered by The Eisner Foundation board for review and possible approval. The Eisner Foundation board meets four times a year, and organizations will be notified of their application status following each meeting. If an organization’s grant application is denied at any stage in this process, it is welcome to apply again in the future, but must wait one year before reapplying.

An Eisner Foundation grant to a nonprofit organization is not the last step of the process. In some ways, approval is only the first step in our work. Once the grant is approved and disbursed, our relationship with the nonprofit partner truly begins.

One year after a grant is approved, we request either a final report or a progress report, depending on if the grant is a single or multi-year term. This allows the organization to learn and grow, and allows us to learn from our grantees’ successes and challenges and share that knowledge with others.

Once a grant term is completed and the final report submitted, an organization is welcome to submit a new grant application and begin the process again.