IGNITE GRANTS
Sometimes it just takes a spark to ignite impact.
Impact 100 Jersey Coast offers Ignite Grants to support smaller nonprofits serving Monmouth and Ocean Counties. These grants are designed for organizations that may not yet meet the criteria for our core $100,000 grants but are doing important work addressing needs in our community.
In 2025, Impact 100 Jersey Coast awarded four unrestricted Ignite grants of $4,500 each. When we announce our total funding pool for 2026, we will indicate the allocation to the Ignite grant program.
Please review the eligibility guidelines below to determine whether your organization qualifies to apply.
Please note the timelines as they are different from our core grants. This year, our Ignite grant cycle will begin in November. The application form will go live on Monday, November 23, 2026, and will close on Friday, January 8, 2027.
Ignite Grant Eligibility Requirements
Organizations eligible for an Impact 100 Jersey Coast grant must:
- Be classified as a public charity with tax-exempt status under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
- Serve Monmouth and/or Ocean County, NJ. (Organizations may be headquartered outside the counties, but the funded project must benefit residents of Monmouth and/or Ocean County.)
- Be in operation for at least one full financial year before applying.
- Have an annual organizational operating budget of less than $200,000 in the current fiscal year.
- -Nonprofits receiving Ignite grants must wait two grant cycles before reapplying.
Timeline & Key Dates
Ignite Grant Funding Priorities & Criteria
Impact 100 Jersey Coast prioritizes projects that:
- Target underserved populations
- Address an unmet need in Monmouth and Ocean Counties
- Demonstrate the potential for meaningful impact on beneficiaries
We do not provide funding for:
- Debt reduction or operational deficits
- Endowment funding
- Interim or bridge funding
- Partisan, legislative, or political activity
- Private foundations or giving funds
- Faith-based proposals which require participation in activities of a particular faith, denomination, or religion in order to benefit from the proposals or program
- Capital improvements or renovations to property where the organization does not own the property or have at least a five-year lease
Ignite Grant FAQs
We have purposely created a streamlined application process for this grant. There will not be a separate eligibility submission and applicants will only have to complete a one-page application. The review and evaluation will still be done by a Grant Review Committee (GRC) made up of volunteer members, and all members will vote electronically for the winners. There will be no in person site visits. In place of a site visit, the GRC may request a 30 minute Zoom or phone call from semi-finalists to review any follow up questions with an assigned Impact volunteer.
The Ignite Grant application is intentionally streamlined. Organizations complete a one-page application, and there is no separate eligibility submission required.
Applications are reviewed by a Grant Review Committee (GRC) made up of Impact 100 Jersey Coast members. There are no in-person site visits as part of this process. The committee may request a brief Zoom or phone conversation with select applicants to clarify questions.
Similar to our core grants, we will have dedicated Grant Review Committees (GRCs) made up of Impact members.
Yes! Please use this form to send us the contact details of organizations that may qualify and be interested in applying for our Ignite grants. We will happily include that organization in our communications regarding the Ignite grant process and RFP.
Yes! If you have applied for and/or won the Teen Impact grant you are still eligible to participate in the Ignite grant process.
Ignite grant questions can be emailed to ignite@impact100jc.org. We will also offer virtual “office hours” in the fall as it gets closer to the application date.