Inventor Resource Library

A foundation is a nongovernmental, nonprofit organization with the principal purpose of making charitable contributions to unrelated organizations and institutions. Often, a foundation is established with funds from a single source, such as an individual, family, or corporation. Most foundations have trustees or directors and many have professional staff. Foundations seek to aid social, educational, religious, or other charitable activities serving the common welfare, primarily by providing philanthropic support.

Foundations support a wide variety of projects based on their particular associated funding priorities. If you’d like to learn more about the foundations that might be interested in your project or if you have a certain foundation in mind and would like to learn more about their funding interests, please contact a member of the Foundation Relations staff.

The Foundation Relations staff works closely with college-based Advancement colleagues to support the individual goals of each department/school/college. If you are seeking funding for a project, please contact the Foundation Relations staff and they can coordinate with your advancement officer.

As a centralized resource, the Foundation Relations staff works closely with Virginia Tech deans, faculty, Advancement collegaues, and other internal constituents to identify possible areas of alignment for the university and private foundations. This is accomplished by offering the following services:

• Researching top natioanl and local foundations to support university priorities
• Connecting university programs with interested funding partners
• Ensuring proposals are written effectively and in compliance with funder guidelines
• Managing the submission process and overseeing the delivery of proposals and reports
• Cultivating strong, ongoing relationships with foundation partners through outreach and communication
• Providing high-level stewardship and recognition to foundation partners to encourage ongoing support

Please contact the Foundation Relations staff directly to discuss your specific funding needs.

In some cases, a particular foundation has a longstanding relationship with Virginia Tech and requests that the university coordinate all interactions centrally through Foundation Relations. Contact the Foundation Relations staff regarding any significant interactions with a foundation, even if you already have an established relationship. This helps ensure that foundations are engaged in a strategic and effective manner.

Approaching a foundation for funding can be a daunting and time-consuming task. Below are some basic characteristics that will indicate if your program or research will be a good fit for foundation suppor

• Alignment with both the university’s strategic goals and the foundation’s funding priorities
• Track record of success and impact
• Sound understanding of expected outcomes relative to a potential grant
• Assessment strategy that enables effective and consistent evaluation of achievements
• Proven capacity to deliver on the promise of a proposal, including internal collaboration and institutional support

In order to be as strategic and effective as possible, there may be a need to prioritize proposal submissions. In such cases, the Foundation Relations staff will coordinate with appropriate vice presidents or deans to manage the submissions process.

Please contact the Foundation Relations staff for copies of the Virginia Tech Foundation’s most recent 990 forms, audited financial statements, W-9 form, IRS determination letter, and board list.