Community Fund Guidelines

Program Eligibility Criteria

United Way of Eastern Idaho (UWEI) has established certain criteria that you, the agency, must meet before your Letter of Intent is considered.

• Be a 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization as determined by the Internal Revenue Service.
• As a condition of a program grant award, it will be expected that you attend monthly meetings with United Way of Eastern Idaho and other funded nonprofit partners.
• Have as your primary mission the provision of health and/or human services.
• Agency resources are directed towards programs that support families, individuals, seniors that fall within the A.L.I.C.E. (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) demographic.
• Be under control of a local governing board which is organized and functioning to provide policy direction and fiscal management oversight.
• Can demonstrate outcomes in the goals under the impact areas of Youth Opportunity, Healthy Community, and Financial Security. Our funding priorities under the three impact areas are:

Youth Opportunity – Ensuring children and youth thrive in school and in life

• Early Learning
  • access to and promote quality childcare and early learning
  • Increase awareness about school readiness
• School Age
  • Increased access to and expand out-of-school learning opportunities
  • Promote programs that provide whole-child support (health, social, emotional and academics)
  • Literacy Development

Healthy Community – Improving Health and well-being for all

• Nutrition and Food Security for children and seniors
• Ensure access and promote behavioral health services/supports.
• Improving access to quality health care

Financial Security – empowering individuals and families towards financial security

• Housing & Financial Education
  • Increase access and promote prevention efforts that stabilize individuals/families keeping them housed.
  • Promote eviction prevention efforts
• Financial Attachments 
  • Be able to provide an independent financial audit of most recent fiscal year (if organization annual revenue is over $500,000) 
  • OR an independent financial review of most recent fiscal year (if organization annual revenue is $1 to $499,000), 
  • AND a copy of the most recent 990 filed with the IRS
• Provide services to residents of and have a physical service delivery location in eastern Idaho, including the counties of Bonneville, Clark, Fremont, Jefferson, Lemhi, Madison, and Teton.

Program Investment Guidelines

• The minimum grant amount will be $5,000.
• Grant awards are not made for capital projects.
• Outcomes will be reviewed quarterly to ensure that investments are making an impact.
• Any new applying agency/program grant shall not exceed $5,000.  
• UWEI grant awards should not exceed 20% of a program’s budget.

2025-26 Community Fund Grant Process

United Way of Eastern Idaho is accepting Letters of Intent (LOI) from 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations beginning March 31, 2025, through noon on April 4, 2025.

Community Investment Fund Grants are awarded to organizations with programs that align with the goals of United Way of Eastern Idaho in the areas of youth opportunity, healthy community, and financial security. Grant recipients must provide annual outcomes and demonstrate measurable results as part of the grant process.

ALL LETTERS OF INTENT MUST BE SUBMITTED BY NOON ON FRIDAY, APRIL 4, 2025.

Letters of Intent (LOI forms) are reviewed by our Community Solutions Panel Chairs who determine which programs will be invited to apply for our annual grant process. Please see the annual grant process timeline below for more details.

Please submit grant questions to Carol Mercau at cmercau@unitedwayif.org or by calling (208) 522-2674.

Grant Schedule of Events