Each grant cycle is four months long with the following stages, all completed through our online portal:

• Letter of Intent - This is where you give a brief description of your project, the dollar amount being requested, and the project’s anticipated start and end dates. Don’t worry, you don’t have to send us an actual letter–just fill out a short list of questions in the portal. Once we determine eligibility, you’ll receive an email invitation to the full application.*
• Application - The application allows you to go into more detail about the project. We’ll ask questions about the project impact, budget, and sustainability. Be prepared to provide an income statement and a balance sheet. See the Financial Statement Guide for more information.*
• Evaluation - Board Members evaluate every proposal then meet to discuss and determine which will move on to the final stage. If your grant proposal moves on, you’ll most likely receive an email with board member questions.
• Decision - In the final stage, the Board does a second evaluation of the remaining proposals, then meets to discuss and vote on awards. Awards are determined in April, August, and December each fiscal year.

*Staff may reach out with questions to strengthen your proposal between the LOI and application stage, and again before the first Board Member evaluation.

No. Applicants must have a valid 501(c)3 or 501(c)19 status under US IRS Code or be a governmental entity to apply for a grant with BCHGA. An applicant’s nonprofit status gets verified through GuideStar.

*If your organization has a new 501(c)3 status, we may request an IRS Determination Letter before moving your LOI on to the application phase.

Benton, Black Hawk, Bremer, Butler, Buchanan, Chickasaw, Grundy, and Tama counties. Note: Our primary focus area is Black Hawk County because it’s the Isle Casino and Hotel’s host community. We can only award up to 10% of our revenue to projects outside of Black Hawk.

The Board prefers projects that can show fundraising efforts and/or have money available in their budget. For capital requests, the Board requires shared funding with a minimum match of 50%. For capacity-building requests, the Board will review the budget and make a decision on a case-by-case basis.