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THE LAURA JANE MUSSER FUND wants to encourage collaborative and participatory efforts among residents in rural communities that will help to strengthen their towns and regions in a number of civic areas including, but not limited to: economic development, business preservation, arts and humanities, public space improvements, and education.

PRIORITY IS PLACED ON PROJECTS THAT:

• Bring together a broad range of community members and institutions
• Provide the opportunity for diverse community members to work together
• Contain measurable short term outcomes within the first 12 to 18 months
• Include community members actively in all phases of the process
• Work toward an outcome of positive change within their community

PROJECTS MUST DEMONSTRATE:

• Support from a diverse cross-section of community members and institutions
• Matching financial and /or in-kind support from the local community
• Significant volunteer participation
• Reasonable plans to complete their project within 18 months or less

LIMITS OF GEOGRAPHY:

• Programs in Colorado, Hawaii, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wyoming may apply
• The applicant community must have a population of 10,000 or fewer and must be able to demonstrate the rural characteristics of their location

FUNDS WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR:

• Planning (up to $5,000) - These funds may support costs like: consultant or staff time, meeting costs, mailings, secretarial support, refreshments, local travel, childcare, etc. Note - this stage is optional and not a required phase prior to applying for or receiving an implementation grant. If an organization receives a planning grant from the Musser Fund, this in no way implies a commitment on the part of the Musser Fund to provide the organization with any subsequent implementation grant.
• Implementation (up to $25,000) - These funds are available to implement community-based rural projects that originate in, have been planned by, and involve diverse people from the local community. Capital campaigns will not be supported. The projects will result in a tangible outcome within at least the first 18 months.
• Projects will be eligible for either planning or implementation funds, but not both.