Community Impact Grants

The Community Impact Grant is offered by the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee (CFMT), a private philanthropic institution dedicated to enhancing the well-being of residents in the Middle Tennessee region. CFMT supports a broad spectrum of community-building efforts through grantmaking, strategic investments, and by fostering partnerships. The Community Impact Grant is one of CFMT’s cornerstone funding opportunities aimed at improving regional belonging and quality of life through three priority areas: Arts & Creative Culture, Child/Youth Development & Education, and Positive Mental Health. This grant initiative is designed to fund nonprofit organizations based in Middle Tennessee that work toward enhancing access, inclusion, and innovation in their respective fields. Applicants may only apply to one of the three strategic focus areas, selecting the one that best matches their mission and program delivery. Grants are classified as unrestricted operating support, which allows awardees flexibility in utilizing the funds to carry out their core mission-aligned work. The foundation seeks to invest in organizations that use evidence-based or innovative strategies, prioritize diversity and inclusion, and serve vulnerable or underrepresented populations. Arts & Creative Culture Grants aim to broaden access to artistic experiences, particularly for individuals from low-wealth communities. These grants support initiatives that increase cultural participation and promote diversity in the arts. In the Child/Youth Development & Education category, the foundation seeks to fund holistic initiatives that combine academic support with social-emotional development and that foster partnerships between families, schools, and youth-serving agencies. Positive Mental Health Grants support organizations providing behavioral and mental health services, especially those serving children, seniors, differently-abled populations, and caregivers. Goals for this category include increasing service access, enhancing community support systems, and improving outcomes through cross-sector collaboration. Eligibility is restricted to 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations legally chartered in Tennessee and headquartered within a list of specific counties in the Middle Tennessee region. Government entities such as public schools and libraries may also apply but are exempt from additional requirements. All nonprofit applicants must have a current and complete profile on GivingMatters.com, which recently migrated to a new platform powered by RoundTable. Organizations that are private foundations, regranting entities, houses of worship, or private K–12 schools are ineligible. Furthermore, CFMT does not fund individuals, lobbying or political activities, commissioned studies for advocacy, or religious programming. The application for the Community Impact Grant opens on July 1, 2025, and closes on July 31, 2025. All applicants must ensure their GivingMatters profiles are updated by June 30, 2025. Applications will be reviewed through the fall, with award notifications expected in late November 2025. Payments will begin in December 2025, and final reports from grantees will be due by November 30, 2026. The program is recurring on an annual basis, with the next expected cycle anticipated to begin in July 2026. For questions regarding GivingMatters profiles, applicants can contact the GivingMatters Team at givingmatters@cfmt.org. For questions specific to the Community Impact Grant, applicants should reach out to the Grants Team at grants@cfmt.org. CFMT is located at 3421 Belmont Blvd, Nashville, TN 37215, and can also be reached by phone at 615-321-4939 or toll-free at 1-888-540-5200.

Ensure GivingMatters profile is submitted by June 30. Apply to only one focus area that best fits your mission.