Aspiration provides short-term fiscal sponsorship to nonprofit software development projects that are in the process of becoming official 501c3 nonprofit organizations.
Generally fiscal sponsorships last between 1-2 years. Aspiration's fiscal sponsorship model is that of a grantor (Aspiration) and grantee (Project) relationship, so while the project is being sponsored, the project remains a separate entity with its own Board of Directors who oversees the activities of the project.
Fiscal Sponsorship fees range from 5%-15% of charitable contributions.
Aspiration's Fiscal Projects:
- Idealware: [1] Idealware provides candid Consumer-Reports-style reviews and articles about software of interest to nonprofits, centralized into a website. Through product comparisons, recommendations, case studies, and software news, Idealware allows nonprofits to make the software decisions that will help them be more effective.
- Solpath: [2] Solpath's mission is to create, as a community, the non-profit sector's first open-source grants management software for tracking grant applications from initial request to fully funded and beyond. Solpath is committed to providing an easy-to-use, open application framework that supports all major hardware platforms and operating systems, and effectively and intuitively serves grant giving and seeking organizations.
Application Process:
- Potential projects must fill out an initial fiscal sponsorship application (see document below) and submit a non-refundable application fee of $150.
- Aspiration will then schedule a thirty minute interview to go over the details of the project. During the interview each project will be rated based on Aspiration's fiscal sponsorship criteria. (See document below).
- After the interview, the project will be notified of Aspiration's Board of Directors decision.
Approved Projects:
- Review and sign the fiscal sponsorship contract. (See document below).
- Review and follow the fiscal sponsorship policies. (See document below).
- Provide an annual financial and written report showing how the project spents its funds for charitable purposes.
Additional resources and suggestions for potential fiscal sponsorship projects:
- Register as an actual entity. (Sole Proprietorship, LLC, or other entity).
- Then learn how to form a 501c3 nonprofit (See Nonprofit Corporation Formation and Operation resource section [3] at NEDLC).
- Hire an attorney [3] to help with applying for 501c3 status.
- Recruit a Board of Directors [4] to oversee the project.
- Create a strategic plan [4] for the project that includes both program and operational goals and strategy.