Office of Research & Sponsored Programs

Funding Search Tools

A number of web-based tools exist which will help you to find funding for your project. In conducting a search for funds, there are a couple of key points which should be considered.

  1. Most agencies have well established areas of interest, and they fund proposals which help them achieve their goals. Study potential funding agencies closely to become familiar with their interests.
  2. A very valuable source of information with regard to charitable foundations is their IRS Tax Form 990. This tax document is publicly available and will contain information on their actual charitable giving. This information typically includes recipient names, locations, amount of award, project name, etc. This type of information, examined closely, reveals whether or not the foundation typically gives to institutions similar to ACU, the types of projects funded, geographic giving boundaries, and the typical monetary range of awards. Form 990’s can be accessed via GuideStar and Foundation Directory Online (see below).
  3. Some of the sites listed below have the capability to provide RSS feeds and/or set up user profiles which will then automatically send customized information regarding new opportunities. SPIN has some particularly powerful capabilities in this regard.

 

Following are a number of web-based search tools and other sites which should be useful in a search for funds.

Foundation Center Directory Online
This is a very powerful search tool. ACU has subscribed to this service, but with license restrictions. Faculty and Staff may also access this website on a designated computer in the ORSP.

Government Funding Sources:

 

Non-Government Funding Sources: (Foundations/Corporations)