List Page

The first step in getting rural grants is finding the right funding opportunities. The best way to find funding opportunities for rural grants is by searching the Internet.

There are plenty of good websites listed by us that have information on rural grants.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services are two agencies that frequently offer opportunities for rural grants. One of the best sources to learn about all kinds of grants is Free Government Grants & Money Information. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is the managing partner for the Grants gov Program, one of 24 Federal cross-agency E-Government initiatives focused on improving access to government services via the Internet. There are 26 federal grant-making agencies listed on this website with hyperlinks to numerous opportunities for rural grants.

State government agencies also award rural grants. Go to your official state website and look for “funding opportunities.” If there is no such link, then go to specific agencies within your state government to see what grant opportunities might be available.

The Foundation Directory Online provides access to a vast database of private and corporate foundations for as little as $19.95 per month. Enter your state into the geographic focus search field to retrieve all U.S. foundations that make grants in your state or enter “rural development” in the field of interest field to retrieve all U.S. foundations that give rural grants. According to a recent search on The Foundation Directory Online, there are 48 foundations in the United States that award rural grants for rural development. The top five are listed below along with their respective total giving:

• The Ford Foundation
  $431,643,480
• The Pew Charitable Trusts
  $265,438,000
• W.K. Kellogg Foundation
  $195,007,421
• Charles Steward Mott Foundation
  $104,236,029
• The McKnight Foundation
  $75,387,655

Another resource for learning about funding opportunities for rural grants is The Center for Rural Outreach and Public Services, Inc. (CROPS), a newly formed nonprofit organization that was established to provide resource development assistance to rural non-profit organizations, churches, schools and government agencies so that they can expand and enhance services to underserved people in their communities. The mission of CROPS is to “empower people and organizations to help people in need.”