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About Membership in AGM
Associated Grant Makers promotes the practice and expansion of effective and responsible philanthropy to improve the health and vitality of its region.
AGM is a diverse and vibrant membership association of highly engaged philanthropic organizations and individuals with interests in Massachusetts and surrounding areas. We connect new and established donors, their trustees and staff to each other, to their communities and to emerging and relevant issues in the field. AGM serves as a bridge between funders and fund applicants for better understanding, efficiency and impact. As a leading and influential voice and advocate for effective philanthropy, AGM provides access to knowledge and cooperative action that enables our members to create extraordinary value for each other, their grantees and to collectively shape the future of a healthy and vibrant region.
Member Benefits:
Resources and Research:
- Resource Center for Philanthropy - Receive personalized research assistance from library staff on a funding interest topic, geographic region or other area of interest.
- Grant Maker Directory - Share your RFPs and be listed in the Directory and accessed by hundreds of grant seekers.
- AGM Common Proposal Form – Collect valuable information about grant seekers while reducing their administrative burden with this form.
- www.AGMconnect.org - Send us news, press releases and announcements to publicize your activities on our website and in our bi-weekly Member InfoNet e-newsletter.
Learning Opportunities:
- Best practices sessions - Attend or send staff to sessions such as How to Read Grantee Financials, Conducting Site Visits, Approaching Social Media, Building/ Sustaining Grantee Relationships and more.
- Issue-based discussions - Participate in roundtables, teleconferences and webinars for CEOS, Family, Community, Corporate and Private Foundations.
- Special Events - Join hundreds of colleagues at events such as the State of the Sector (January), AGM’s Annual Meeting (June) and the MNN/AGM annual conference (September)
Networking:
- Connect with over 120 Foundation Members and more than 600 Nonprofit Partners in Massachusetts and New Hampshire
- Expand your network by participating in personal , topical or regional focused meetings including:
- Affinity Groups, such as the Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy, Native Americans in Philanthropy, New England Blacks in Philanthropy, New England Latinos in Philanthropy, and Emerging Professionals in Philanthropy
- Topical Groupings, including funders in education, health, science and homelessness prevention, and more
- Regional Meetings, including funding groups in Cambridge, Cape Cod, Merrimack Valley, Western Massachusetts and New Hampshire
- Nonprofit Partners Program - AGM also provides support to your grantees and potential grantees through its AGM Nonprofit Partners with access to the Resource Center for Philanthropy, the Meet the Donors series, as well as other technical assistance and capacity building.
- Advocacy - AGM plays an important role for the philanthropic sector by serving as a strong voice and advocate with media and representatives at the local, city and state level.
Should You Join?
AGM is the only local and regional philanthropic support organization able to provide the resources and services your grant-making entity needs to effectively and efficiently meet its goals. A 501(c)(3) nonprofit, AGM leads philanthropy in Massachusetts and New Hampshire by delivering excellent opportunities in learning, networking, access to resources and tools, skill-building, and community-building. AGM’s professional staff can meet your needs whether advanced in the field or new to the sector. Some foundations may also be members of national associations and affinity groups, but belonging to a regional association provides greater collaboration and strength in the philanthropic sector and our communities.
Are You Eligible?
Organizations with regular, systematic grant making as their primary focus of activity, which are accessible to the public and open to a reasonable range of nonprofits, are eligible for membership, including the following:
- Bank charitable trust departments
- Community foundations
- Corporate foundations and giving programs
- Governmental funding agencies
- Philanthropic research centers
- Operating foundations
- Philanthropic advisory services
- Private, independent and family foundations
- Public foundations.
How Do You Join?
AGM offers four membership categories to meet the needs of the varied grant makers in the region.
- Circle of Champions - Members interested and willing to provide additional support in recognition of the valuable work AGM not only provides to grant makers but to nonprofits and the broader philanthropic community.
- General - This is the basic membership category level for grant making foundations and corporate giving programs. Benefits include discounts for the following services: program fees, custom research, and subscriptions.
- General Plus Shared Office – A general membership plus use of the shared office including dedicated workstations, shared office equipment and infrastructure, onsite technology and support, and access to conference room and kitchen facilities.
- Associate – You must meet the following eligibility requirements:
- Emerging or new foundations in pre-grant making status
- Philanthropic advisory services; philanthropic advisory services wishing to list more than one person are charged an additional $250 per person.
- Foundations with primary offices located in states outside Massachusetts and New Hampshire that are members of the regional association in the state or region where they are based.
Membership Policies:
Membership support is paid on an annual basis covering the calendar year and is generally based on grants made annually in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. (Renewal memberships made by March 15 receive a $100 discount.) AGM is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) and permits support in the form of a grant. Exclusions in calculating your organization’s annual level of giving include: product donations, pass-through donations, fiscal sponsorships, employee support to federated fundraising campaigns, and grants to individuals.
Public foundations (including community foundations), with AGM approval, can request that their membership support amount be based on discretionary grants only rather than total grants. Government agencies engaged in grant making, with AGM approval, can request that the membership support amount be based on the annual administrative budget rather than total grants. New foundations are eligible to receive a 50% discount in the first year and a 25% discount in the second year, provided total membership support is not less than $500.
For more information, please contact AGM Executive Director Jeff Poulos jpoulos@agmconnect.org or 617.426.2606 x13. We look forward to serving you!
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