R&D Grants Program:
Spawning New Ideas for Rural Development
Created in 1987, the Rural Center's Research and Demonstration Grants Program provides funds to community, regional and state-level organizations to carry out innovative projects that address critical rural development issues.
Throughout the years, the R&D Grants Program has joined with hundreds of rural groups and communities in testing development strategies that have led to:
- Alternative crops and markets for small farmers
- Expansion of markets for the state's crafts industry
- Establishment of technical, apprenticeship and entrepreneurial training programs in the schools
- Expansion of quality child care available to rural working families
- Introduction of alternative water and wastewater systems
- Expansion of regional solutions to rural solid waste problems
- Sound models for distance learning and other rural telecommunications uses
Priority is awarded to projects that 1) show innovative rural development strategies; 2) lead directly to job creation or new business development; 3) target low-and moderate-income citizens; 4) meet a demonstrated need or fill a economic or community gap; and 5) can be easily replicated in other rural communities. Awards are made in each of the Rural Center's four rural economic development "building block" areas:
- Business development
- Workforce development
- Physical infrastructure
- Civic infrastructure
Currently, the average grant award available through the Research and Demonstration Grants Program is $40,000. Matching or leveraging of additional non-Rural Economic Development Center funding is encouraged.
Grants are not made for the following: physical plants, fixed assets, indirect costs, endowments, seed or challenge grants for physical facilities, annual fund drives, loan funds or lobbying.
Eligibility
North Carolina non-profit organizations, local governments and educational institutions are eligible for the program. The Rural Center does not fund for-profit businesses.
How To Apply
Any organization wishing to apply for an R&D grant must first submit a letter of intent, briefly describing the proposed project. The Rural Center's R&D team will review the proposed project and inform the organization making the request within eight weeks as to its status. If the project meets approval for further development, the organization will then be asked to submit a formal proposal.
Click here for information on the letter of intent.
Deadline for Application
There is no set funding period for the Research and Demonstration Grants Program. Organizations may submit a letter of intent at any time.
Rural Center Contact:
Robin Pulver
Vice President for Community and Human Resource Development
N.C. Rural Economic Development Center
4021 Carya Drive
Raleigh, NC 27610
Telephone: 919-250-4314
Fax: 919-250-4325
E-Mail: pulver@ncruralcenter.org
