Q. Who qualifies for the Nonprofit Research Assistance Program?
A. A nonprofit organization qualifies if they meet the following criteria:

1. Located in and serving one or more of the following counties in Southwest Michigan: Allegan, Barry, Berrien, Branch, Cass, Calhoun, Kalamazoo, Kent, Ottawa, St. Joseph, or Van Buren.
2. Total revenue of less than $500,000 OR if government or grant funded, have unrestricted funds of less than 10 percent of the total operating budget.
3. Have not previously conducted research due to limited resources or lack of staff expertise.

	Southwest Counties:

Q. What type of research does the program support?
A. One nonprofit organization will be selected to receive market research services valued at over $10,000 from Perspectives Consulting Group, Inc. Each of our research projects is customized to meet the individual organization's needs. Research that could be conducted as part of the Nonprofit Research Assistance Program includes: a community survey, an awareness and perception survey, a stakeholder survey, a donor survey, or strategic planning.

Q. How can research help my nonprofit organization?
A. Each nonprofit organization is unique, as is each of our research projects. For illustrative purposes, sample research objectives that could be accomplished for a nonprofit organization are listed below:

1. Measure the awareness and perceptions of your nonprofit organization among community members.
2. Determine what human service organizations and programs community members use or would use if they needed assistance.
3. Understand how community members perceive human service needs and issues, such as: early childhood development, crisis intervention, parenting, education, respite services, etc.
4. Identify any unmet needs or services that could be provided by your nonprofit organization over the next few years.
5. Measure the key factors related to how stakeholders perceive the performance of your nonprofit organization.
6. Explore what motivates stakeholders to contribute to your nonprofit organization, and what impacts loyalty and growth in contributions.

To read what past recipients have said about the Nonprofit Research Assistance Program, click here.

Q. When is the research conducted?
A. The 2011 Nonprofit Research Assistance Program research project will be conducted between August 22 and December 2, 2011. For more information about project schedules, click here.

Q. How does my organization apply?
A. We are no longer accepting applications for the 2011 Nonprofit Research Assistance Program. If you would like to be included on the mailing list that will announce the program details for 2012, contact us at (269) 657-5400 or e-mail .