Ocean State Charities Trust often utilizes Challenge grants to encourage fundraising for eligible agencies in order to receive grant awards from the Trust.  The belief is that the Trust would like to support a particular initiative of an applicant but desires to see that the agency has demonstrated viable financial assistance from donors in the community.

Therefore, when Trustees issue a challenge grant, it is done with the following understandings:

  • that the challenge grant will be met within a specific time frame.  Meaning that the challenge grant must be met within the normal time frame for a grant.
  • that the challenge grant be met by fundraising from a number of individuals that support and encourage the agency and the project in particular.  It is not the intent of Ocean State Charities Trust to have one donation meet the challenge grant.  In fact, Ocean State encourages a widespread number of smaller donations to build the viability of the fundraising base of the agency.
  • Ocean State Charities Trust applies same regulations to challenge grants that govern all grant awards that pertains to using the challenge grant for restricted purposes (salaries, capital campaigns)
  • That the Trustees retain the right to revoke any awarded challenge grant provided that there is a majority vote of the Trustees to do so.

Adopted by the Trustees of Ocean State Charities Trust on:  9/18/2012