We are committed to listening to people on the ground and will update this information as we hear back from you about your questions. Email questions to localnewslab@democracyfund.org. For assistance with translation or interpretation of the application process for Spanish-speakers, please call Language Service Solutions at (919) 949-9272.

What is the North Carolina Local News Lab Fund?
The North Carolina Local News Lab Fund is a collaborative fund housed at the North Carolina Community Foundation to support people and organizations working to build a healthier local news and information ecosystem in the state.

How do I apply for funding from the North Carolina Local News Lab Fund?
The North Carolina Local News Lab Fund has an open call for letters of inquiry from March 1- March 30, 2018. We will accept one-page letters via an online application system hosted by the North Carolina Community Foundation. Read more about how to submit a letter here. 

Why are you launching this call for proposals?
The central goal of The North Carolina Local News Lab Fund is to ensure that all North Carolina communities have access to the news and information they need to participate fully in their communities and our democracy.

How detailed should my letter be?
Your letter of intent should be on one page. It should include the following information:

• What is the issue you are trying to address and how are you trying to address it?
• What is the mission of your organization or coalition?
• What community does your organization serve or engage?
• Who are the key partners or networks that you work with?
• How much funding are you requesting?

For general guidance on what to include in a letter of inquiry, read these resources from the Foundation Center and The Balance.

Do I have to submit my LOI in English?
You can submit your LOI in a language other than English. We are offering translation and interpretation support for Spanish-speakers. For support in navigating the online application system, please call Language Service Solutions at (919) 949-9272.

Can a for-profit apply for funding?
For this round of proposals, organizations must be nonprofit institutions, or be fiscally sponsored. If you are a for-profit working with a nonprofit on a collaboration, we recommend the nonprofit applies and include in the letter that they are partnering with other organizations.

Will the fund support my reporting series about [insert topic here]?
The Fund is content agnostic, and will not fund specific reporting projects, beats, or topic areas, unless they build capacity and infrastructure for the local news and information ecosystem. The fund is interested in systems-level change and thus will focus on network building, capacity building, innovation, experiments and long-term change over short-term solutions.

How will decisions be made?
The Fund’s advisory board will review letters and recommend organizations to move forward to an application based on the fund’s focus areas. Read more here about the focus areas and advisory board members.

When will we know if we are being invited to submit an application?

The Fund will contact organizations the week of April 30.

How can I sign up for ongoing updates from the North Carolina Local News Lab Fund?

Sign up for updates here:

I have more questions – what should I do?

• If you experience technical difficulty while accessing and using the online application system, contact North Carolina Community Foundation Manager of Information Technology D’Wayne Wilkins at dwilkins@nccommunityfoundation.org.
• For assistance with translation or interpretation in Spanish, please contact localnewslab@democracyfund.org.
• Attend an online office hour with questions. One is currently scheduled for March 14 at 1 p.m. ET. We will add more times if demand is high.
• For other questions, contact localnewslab@democracyfund.org