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Grants

Welcome to Grants 2.o

Ashland County Community Foundation has redesigned its grants process to be simpler, faster, and more flexible—based on feedback from local nonprofit leaders and our 30 years of grantmaking experience.

What’s new for nonprofits

  • Shorter, clearer applications
  • Year-round opportunities for smaller requests
  • Multiple chances for funding with a single application
  • Faster decisions and fewer administrative hurdles
  • New guidance on programmatic operating support requests
  • Clearer guidelines for requests from religious organizations

What We Fund

We fund programs and projects that improve the quality of life in Ashland County by educating and developing youth and talent; promoting arts, culture and recreational opportunities; meeting needs of Ashland County residents; and positioning our county as a desirable place to live and conduct business.

Please be aware that we do fund projects, program development, equipment, building/renovation, capital campaigns, seed money and matching/challenge grants. We will also consider requests for programmatic operating support on a short-term (not ongoing) basis. Click here for further guidelines on requests for programmatic operating support.

We don’t fund grants to individuals, for ongoing general operating expenses, annual campaigns, existing endowment funds not held at ACCF, cash reserves, debt reduction.

Religious Organizations

We do provide grants to religious organizations if the program or project has community-wide benefit. Grants will not be made to religious organizations for programs or projects that are solely, or mostly, for the benefit of one church congregation or a religious institution’s membership.

Types of Grants

We have three types of competitive grants awarded throughout the year— Quick Action Community Grants, Quarterly Community Grants and Teacher Mini-Grants.

Note: To apply for a 2026 Women’s Fund Grant (May 15 deadline), click here.

What it’s for:
Projects, programs, or equipment needs of $10,000 or less.

Timeline:

Applications are accepted year-round starting July 1, 2026, and funding decisions are made more quickly than for Quarterly Grants.   

How it works:

  • Submit a simplified application at any time during the year.
  • Your request will first appear in ACCF’s online grants catalog, where donor advisors can choose to fund projects that match their interests.
  • If the request is not fully funded by donor advisors, ACCF staff will review it for possible support through available foundation grant funds.

Limits: Up to two Quick Action Community Grant applications per year

We’re Here to Help: We encourage applicants to have a conversation with ACCF staff before beginning the application, or early in the process.

What it’s for:
Larger initiatives, new programs, capital needs, or collaborative projects requiring more than $10,000.

Timeline:
Applications are accepted four times per year on quarterly deadlines with Sept. 30, 2026: March 31, June 30, September 30 and December 31.

How it works:

  • Submit a more detailed application (still simpler than past years).
  • Requests are reviewed and evaluated by an ACCF grant decision committee.
  • If not fully funded through ACCF grant dollars, remaining needs may be shared with donor advisors through the online catalog.

Limits: Up to two Quarterly Community Grant applications per year

We’re Here to Help: We encourage applicants to have a conversation with ACCF staff before beginning the application, or early in the process.

Teacher Mini-Grants allow K-12 teachers to pursue innovative ideas outside the scope of school budgets.

Eligibility: K-12 teachers in accredited Ashland County public and private schools can apply for grants of up to $2,000 from Ashland County Community Foundation. Ashland City Schools teachers can also use the same application to apply for grants of up to $2,000 from Ashland City Schools Foundation.

Deadline: September 15 (first semester) and January 15 (second semester)

Process: We will review your application and notify you by November 1 (first semester) and March 1 (second semester) if you are chosen to receive a grant.

View Recent Grants

Preview Application

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Applying for a Grant

To apply for any of our grants, you will need to create an account and log into our Online Grants System. If you are chosen to receive a grant, you will use the same system to submit your grant agreement form, your final grant report and any additional follow-up forms. Check out our Grant Applicant FAQ page for help with the system.

If you’re applying for an ACCF grant for the first time, or if it’s been a while, review our Getting Started page before applying. We encourage applicants to have a conversation with ACCF staff before beginning the application, or early in the process.

Register or log in

Grant Reporting

If you’ve already received a grant, congratulations! You can log into our Online Grants System to complete your grant agreement, follow up forms or final report. Check out our Grant Applicant FAQ page for help with the system.

You can also visit our Publicizing Your Grant page for information about how to promote your grant-funded program or project while recognizing the foundation’s support.

Log in

Getting Started

Grant Application FAQ

Publicizing Your Grant

Kristin Aspin

Chief Operating Officer

Have a question about grants? Contact Kristin Aspin.