The Grants Collection at the Farmington Community Library, FCL Farmington Hills location, provides the resources and guides nonprofits’ need for philanthropic success. The Collection includes titles on how to start a nonprofit, manage a nonprofit, nonprofit law, nonprofit leadership, volunteers, board governance, strategic planning, prospect research, major gifts campaigns, marketing, fundraising, proposal writing, and more!
To locate titles in the Grants Collection, visit our Library Catalog.
As a member of Candid.org nationwide network of libraries, community foundations, and other nonprofit agencies, the Farmington Community Library provides visitors with free public access to Candid’s products, services, and in-person classes and resources.
At FCL Farmington and Farmington Hills locations, you can access:
- Foundation Directory Professional
- Grants to Individuals
- Foundation Maps
- Additional resources and assistance to strengthen your nonprofit organization
Representatives of nonprofit and grassroots organizations and other patrons are welcome to use the databases at the Farmington Community Library at any time during our open hours.
Introductory Classes
Introductory classes are held quarterly and are listed in our monthly brochures, and posted on our online events calendar. Sessions may be scheduled for groups or individuals both on and off site.
The Library is interested in your comments and suggestions about the collection. The Grants Collection at the Farmington Community Library was established in 1984 to assist local nonprofit organizations in obtaining funds. If a particular resource was helpful or if you have an idea for a program you would like to see at the Library, let us know.
If you have questions, please contact Sherri Vaughn, Nonprofit, Business, and, Outreach Coordinator at (248) 553-6873 or sherri.vaughn@farmlib.org for an appointment or additional assistance.
Online Learning Resources
The following resources are available for in-Library use only.
Candid’s premier fundraising tool gives grant-seekers unprecedented access to the largest amount of clean and coded philanthropic data that currently exists. By combining exhaustive data with intuitive search functionality and informative data visualizations, FDO makes fundraising quick and efficient.
Use this resource for tips on how to navigate the philanthropy classification system.
Open Philanthropy Classification System here.
Get detailed information on more than 10,000 foundations that give grants or scholarships to individuals. NEW: The application also provides direct access to Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for individuals not associated with a nonprofit right on its homepage.
Available for in-library use at either location. Candid’s GuideStar website allows you to research over 1.8 million nonprofit 501©(3) charity organizations in the United States. Search by location, subject focus, populations served, and financials. Also, learn how to update your own nonprofit’s Candid Profile, earn Seals of Transparency, and become more visible to potential donors nationwide.
An interactive mapping platform with data on millions of grants that allows users to reflect on their foundation’s grantmaking activity, explore activity in the field, and discover new partners for collaboration.
Access all of Candid’s live and on-demand trainings, webinars, and other resources designed to improve your fundraising, overall sustainability, grantmaking, and transparency.
Upskilling (Professional Development)
Gale Courses allows users to access hundreds of instructor-led online courses covering starting a nonprofit, nonprofit fundraising, nonprofit management, writing grant proposals, and more. Expert instructors develop courses, many currently employed at universities around the country, with continuous enrollment dates starting every six weeks.
Udemy offers access to thousands of self-paced, on-demand video courses for the most
in-demand skills across nonprofit startup, basic governance for nonprofits, fundraising success, board engagement and empowerment, and basic grant proposal writing for nonprofits. Courses are added weekly, offering timely in-demand skills, and trending competencies, allowing professionals to drive innovation and success in their field. According to consultants at Udemy, 80% of all Fortune 500 companies trust Udemy for employee upskilling. Funded by Bosch Community Foundation.
Legal Assistance
Legal Forms Michigan Gale welcomes you to the most extensive free forms site available to library patrons. Thousands of legal forms are available, with more forms added daily.
Warning: Public users should consult an attorney in your state for serious legal matters.
Legal Information Reference Center offers everyday users the necessary tools and detailed how-to instructions covering various legal issues. A majority of the full-text legal reference books are available through Nolo, the nation’s oldest and most respected provider of legal information for consumers and small businesses. Warning: Public users should consult an attorney in your state for serious legal matters.
Legal Source includes coverage of the most respected scholarly law journals, including current issues, studies, thoughts, and trends in the legal world.
Online Resources for Nonprofits
Chronicle of Philanthropy: https://www.philanthropy.com/
Nonprofit Quarterly: https://nonprofitquarterly.org/
Nonprofit Times: https://www.thenonprofittimes.com/
Philanthropy News Digest: https://philanthropynewsdigest.org/
Planned Giving Today: https://www.liebertpub.com/toc/pgt/33/9
Capital Research Center: https://capitalresearch.org/
CharityWatch: https://www.charitywatch.org/
Great Nonprofits: https://greatnonprofits.org/
GuideStar: https://www.guidestar.org/
Alliance of Nonprofit Mailers: https://www.nonprofitmailers.org/
Cause Communications: https://causecommunications.org/
Communications Network: https://www.comnetwork.org/about/
Getting Attention: https://gettingattention.org/what-we-do/
Fundraising Consultants and Resource Directory: https://fundraisingconsultantsandresourcedirectory.com/
Michigan Nonprofit Associations Businesses and Consultants Marketplace: https://www.mnaonline.org/membership/consultant-listing
American Cancer Society Fundraising Ideas: https://ideas.acsfundraising.org/home
The Association of Fundraising Professionals: afpglobal.org)
AFPMI Greater Detroit Chapter (afpglobal.org)
Fundraising.com: https://www.fundraising.com/fundraising-ideas
Public Relations Society of America: PRSA Detroit Chapter – Home Page
Grants.gov: https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/home.html
Introduction to Grants.gov Video Series – YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNSNGxQE7NWlPcYxVJsglJbRc6cPcfC8X
Council of Michigan Foundations: https://www.michiganfoundations.org/
Michigan Charitable Trust: https://www.michigan.gov/ag/about/charitable-trust
Michigan EGrams: https://egrams-mi.com/portal/user/SearchResults.aspx
Michigan Humanities: https://www.michiganhumanities.org/
Michigan Nonprofit Association: https://www.mnaonline.org/
Board Source: https://boardsource.org/
Candid: Nonprofit Startup Resources
Council on Foundations: https://cof.org/
Grantsmanship Center: https://www.tgci.com/
Independent Sector: https://independentsector.org/
Internal Revenue Service Publication 557: Tax Exempt Status for Your Organization
Lilly School of Philanthropy (useful podcasts and webinars): https://philanthropy.iupui.edu/index.html
Martindale.com: Online Directory for Attorneys, Law Firms & Consumers | Martindale.com
National Center for Charitable Statistics: https://nccs.urban.org/
National Council of Nonprofits: https://www.councilofnonprofits.org/
Pro Bono Services: Where can I find “pro bono” tax or legal assistance for my nonprofit? | Knowledge base | Candid Learning
Tech Impact: https://techimpact.org/
Top Rated Lawyers, Attorneys & Law Firms by Practice Area or Location | Lawyers.com
Betterworld: https://www.betterworld.org
CauseVox: https://www.causevox.com/
FunRrazr: https://fundrazr.com/
Global Giving: https://www.globalgiving.org/
GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/
Indiegogo: https://entrepreneur.indiegogo.com/how-it-works/
Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/
LaunchGood: https://www.launchgood.com/
Mightycause: https://www.mightycause.com/
Patronicity: https://www.patronicity.com/
StartSomethingGood: https://startsomegood.com/
Candid’s self-Paced learning, videos, blogs: https://learning.candid.org/topics/proposal-writing/
Candid: https://learning.candid.org/training/
Candid: https://learning.candid.org/training/courses/?tab=tab-proposalwriting
Candid documents including cover letters, letters of inquiry, proposal budgets, and full proposals: https://learning.candid.org/resources/sample-documents/
The Grantsmanship Center: Grant Proposal Writing Classes, Nonprofit & Government Training Programs (tgci.com)
Resources for Individuals
Call 211 for Essential Community Services: https://www.211.org/
Area Agency of Aging 1B Senior Assistance: https://aaa1b.org/
CARES: https://caresfh.org/
Community Clothes Closet: https://holyfamilynovi.org/community-clothes-closet
Common Ground: https://commongroundhelps.org/
Community Housing Network: https://communityhousingnetwork.org/
Farmington Area Goodfellows: https://goodfellows.info/
Farmington Youth Assistance: http://farmingtonyouthassistance.org/
Forgotten Harvest: https://www.forgottenharvest.org/
Gleaners Food Bank: https://www.gcfb.org/
Good360: https://good360.org/
Hospitality House: https://www.hhfp.org/
Haven of Oakland County: https://www.haven-oakland.org/
Grace Centers of Hope: https://www.lighthousemi.org/
Lighthouse of Oakland County: https://www.lighthousemi.org/
Michigan Department of Health and Human Services MDHSS: https://www.michigan.gov/mdhhs/inside-mdhhs/county-offices/oakland/quicklinks/oakland-co–mdhhs-southfield-district
Modest Needs: https://www.modestneeds.org/for-applicants/
Need Meds: https://www.needymeds.org/
Neighborhood House: https://goodfellows.info/index.php/assistance/neighborhood-house
Oakland County Foster Closet: https://www.ocfostercloset.org/
Oakland County Health Services: https://www.oakgov.com/health/services/Pages/default.aspx
Oakland Livingston Human Service Agency OLSHA: https://www.olhsa.org/en-us/
Rent Assistance: https://www.hud.gov/states/michigan/renting
Salvation Army: https://centralusa.salvationarmy.org/farmingtonhills/social-service/
Salvation Army of Easter Michigan: https://centralusa.salvationarmy.org/emi/
South Oakland Citizens for the Homeless: https://www.sochwi.org/
Turning Point: https://turningpointmacomb.org/
ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) Foundation: https://www.ascapfoundation.org/programs-and-grants
Americans for the Arts: Funding Resources | Americans for the Arts
BMI Foundation (music grants): https://bmifoundation.org/
Grammy Foundation: https://www.grammy.com/news/grammy-foundation-awards-grants
National Endowment for the Arts: https://www.arts.gov/
Fastweb: https://www.fastweb.com/
Finaid: https://finaid.org/
International Students: internationalstudent.com
International Scholarships/Fellowships: Candid Learning
Michigan Student Financial Aid Association: https://msfaa.wildapricot.org/
NIH Grants and Funding: https://grants.nih.gov/
National Science Foundation: https://www.nsf.gov/
Petersons.com: https://www.petersons.com/scholarship-search.aspx
Scholarships.com: https://www.scholarships.com/
Services, Clubs and Local Funding
Elks: Farmington Elks #1986 – Home (weebly.com)
Jaycees Farmington Area: https://jcimi.org/find-a-chapter/farmington-area/
Kiwanis: https://www.kiwanis.org/clubs/find-a-club?location=48334
Lions Club of Michigan: https://www.lionsofmi.com/
Michigan Masons: https://michiganmasons.org/
Optimists International: https://www.optimist.org/
Optimists Local Club: https://www.f2hoptimists.org
Rotary Club International: https://www.rotary.org/en
Shriners Children: https://www.shrinerschildrens.org/en