As a general rule, grants in Culture focus on two areas: 1). Community-based outreach programs targeting economically disadvantaged individuals who would not otherwise have access to cultural programs and institutions, and 2). Limited capital and programmatic support of major cultural institutions, particularly where small grants can significantly address critical physical infrastructure needs or can play an important role in the development of creative, new programs whose efforts focus on economically disadvantaged individuals who otherwise would not have financial means to participate.

Requests for arts education programming should be made directly by a partnering Chicago public school.

The Field Foundation's program for primary and secondary school education is designed to encourage and support the efforts of individual public schools, clusters of schools or initiatives that promote collaboration amongst stakeholders within the Chicago Public School System to improve education and help educationally or economically disadvantaged children achieve academic success.

The Foundation is interested in helping publicly funded Chicago schools work on the most pressing issues as defined by the individual schools, as well as with the goals of the Chicago Public Schools education plan. Specifically, the Foundation is interested in supporting educational best practices that creatively address pressing issues of a particular school – be it the increasing rates of asthma among the student body, a change in the neighborhood demographics or providing cultural and/or arts activities where there are none. To this end, grant dollars will be awarded for a variety of purposes including, but not limited to, convening internal stakeholders, working in collaboration with other schools, developing programming with external partners, hiring a facilitator, consultant or other service contractor so as to advance or implement the work on an identified issue, concern or program.

The Foundation seeks to have its grant dollars foster the creation of communities of learning which may be sustained beyond the life of the grant. Therefore, the Foundation will give preference to those projects that:

• Focus on a specific school or clusters of schools which have the full involvement and commitment of school leadership including staff, parents and students;
• Include an evaluative component or dissemination strategy which illustrates how programmatic learning will be shared;
• Are aligned with the goals of the Chicago Public Schools education plan; and,
• Demonstrate how the proposed program will positively impact students.

Grants generally will not be awarded for citywide advocacy efforts, or efforts to assist the overall administration of the Board of Education or directly to external partners working in schools. Grants will not be made to support the general operating needs of schools or local school councils, scholarships, new building construction, repairs or improvements to public schools, endowment campaigns, or degree granting programs for teachers. From time to time, when the health and safety of children are jeopardized and when a grant from the Foundation would have an immediate impact on the problem, grants will be considered to private schools for capital improvements.

Note: Individual Chicago public and charter schools are not required to submit an audit to the Foundation as stated in the guidelines and self-certification checklist. However, a specific project budget is required. Additionally, the Local School Council is considered the same as the school’s board of directors. Information (names, affiliations, ethnic and gender breakdown) about its members must be included. No grants will be made to individual schools to support on-going teacher training.

The Field Foundation will consider proposals from new and emerging environment organizations for general operating and organizational capacity-building support. Established organizations (those in existence longer than five years) will be considered for program support in public policy, advocacy, site-based projects and public engagement that:

• prevent and reduce pollution of the natural environment;
• protect, preserve and restore the natural environment; and,
• promote growth management strategies to reduce or address urban sprawl.

Priority is placed on projects that:

• address geographic areas with highly concentrated environment hazards;
• extend work into communities historically neglected due to race and class;
• employ a multi-disciplinary approach that recognizes the connection between environmental health, public health and economic health;
• pursue long-term results; and,
• involve collaboration and partnerships.

The Field Foundation of Illinois defines health broadly, recognizing the multiple factors (socio-economic, racial/ethnic, environmental, biological, and behavioral) that determine the health of individuals and communities. The Foundation also recognizes the diversity of organizations that provide health care and health-related services. The Foundation's health program focuses on three areas:

I. Strengthening primary care providers to the poor. In recognition of the severe impact of political and funding shifts in health care on community-based health services for vulnerable populations, funding priority is given to efforts to improve the organizational capacity of community-based health care providers. Support is intended to equip providers to make necessary changes that will ensure long-term sustainability. Such changes may include (but are not limited to): development of more efficient practice operations; diversification of revenue streams; navigation of complex funding and policy issues; stronger measurement and evaluation of outcomes; and improved organizational and business development strategies. Applicants must demonstrate that the proposed activity is essential to help the organization achieve (and maintain) sustainable financial and programmatic performance.

II. Developing a systemic approach to health care. In recognition of the dynamic inter-relationships among health, environment, employment, housing, behavior and other socio-economic factors, support is intended to help providers align services across multiple disciplines. Such projects may include collaboration among providers, service integration and/or co-location, or comprehensive case management strategies. Activities that promote shared knowledge and resources across sectors, identify strategic interventions in the complex system of causes and effects for health status, and establish appropriate linkages among inter-dependent services will be considered. Applicants must demonstrate a thorough understanding of the various systems at work in the community and describe how the proposed activity will improve health outcomes.

III. Supporting development and dissemination of new and creative best practices in service delivery. In recognition that availability of and access to care alone cannot ensure health, the Foundation limits support of direct services to the following: development of service innovations for hard-to-reach populations; and projects with demonstrated potential to act as an imprimatur for public policy and future funding. In rare cases, other direct services (including start-up and capital support for new primary care clinics) will be supported only in areas with documented, acute service deficiencies in access to care. Applicants must demonstrate a specific, measurable plan to evaluate the innovation and disseminate the results.

Within the three priorities, the Foundation is particularly interested in supporting the efforts of providers to address changing demographic trends. The aging of the population and the growing proportion of racial/ethnic communities of color will create new demands on services for the elderly and for culturally appropriate health care. The Foundation believes these two trends necessitate the development of providers and policies that meet the needs of these groups.

Applicants must demonstrate an ability to measure the outcomes and effectiveness of the proposed activity. The Foundation encourages applicants to consider quantitative and qualitative evaluation plans.

Support for hospitals and other large health institutions will be considered only for community- based activities that fall within the priorities stated above.

All other general requirements for prospective grantees also apply.