Rural Church Grant

About this program

The Duke Endowment’s Rural Church program provides grants to support pastoral leadership, reimagining church real estate, building congregational capacity, and identifying/testing selected programs for rural United Methodist congregations in North Carolina. Applicants must submit a short pre-application by May 10 or October 3 (the portal opens about six weeks before each deadline); pre-applications submitted outside those windows are not accepted, and the Endowment will either invite a full application or decline based on fit. Eligible applicants are United Methodist churches or organizations located in North Carolina that meet the Endowment’s rural definitions (community population ≤1,500 per the latest federal census or RUCA-designated rural areas). Projects must align with the program’s strategic priorities and the constraints of James B. Duke’s Indenture of Trust; other Methodist denominations are ineligible.