Cisco offers two types of Product Grants:

1. Small - Mid Sized Standard Product Grants
2. Customized Connectivity Grants

On this page you will also find:

1. General Guidelines
2. Maintenance and Support
3. Registration, Approval, Product Delivery and Deadlines
4. Sales Restrictions for Product Grants
5. Other Policies

Small - Mid Sized Standard Product Grants

Small - Mid Sized Standard Product Grants support one to several sites. The number of users supported by this grant varies based on several factors.

Small - Mid Sized Standard Product Grants are administered through our Partner, Techsoup.org and their TechSoupStock program. Through TechSoupStock's intuitive shopping cart system, you can choose from a variety of pre-packaged Cisco Networking Bundles. These bundles provide complete networking solutions by offering individual Cisco products as well as Cisco Networking Bundles which have multiple Cisco products. The links below describe the bundles and products available at TechSoup Global.

Wireless Networking
Network Accessories and Peripherals
Switches and Routers

Please note that TechSoupStock does not include Cisco list prices on their site. Instead, they list an administrative fee associated with each bundle or product. Maximum admin fee allowed per organization per year is $900. An admin fee of $900 is equivalent to approximately $15,000 worth of Cisco List Price product.

Apply now for a Small - Mid Sized Standard Product Grant

If you require equipment above the $900 administrative fee/$15,000 list price grant limit, or if the equipment you require is not offered above, then you should apply for a Customized Connectivity Product Grant.

Customized Connectivity Grants

Customized Connectivity Product Grants are all other grant requests including equipment that exceeds $20,000 list price and/or requests for products not supported at Techsoup such as IP Telephony or Large Campus Switches, etc. The typical Customized Connectivity Product Grant averages $30,000. There is no preset maximum for this type of grant.

It is necessary that a Cisco technical volunteer (preferably a Cisco Sales Engineer - systems engineer) is engaged, willing, and available to work directly with the nonprofit that is applying for the grant. The Cisco technical volunteer will work with the nonprofit to help identify your networking needs. The name and contact information of the Cisco technical volunteer is required as part of the application. If no Cisco employees are currently involved with your organization, we encourage you to apply for a Cisco Volunteer with our Volunteer Connection Tool.

Apply now for a Customized Connectivity Product Grant

General Guidelines

Following are general guidelines for both Small - Mid Sized Standard Product Grants and Customized Connectivity Grants:

• Grant applications are accepted year-round on an ongoing basis.
• Please note that organizations can only receive a product grant for one program per fiscal year. Additional programs within the same organization are not eligible during that same fiscal year. Cisco Systems' fiscal year runs from August 1st - July 31st.
• Organizations that have never been funded by Cisco should not request more that $50,000 of list price Cisco equipment.
• Organizations requesting Voice over IP Telephony must have a Voice certified person involved in the creation of the requested product list, the network design, installation and maintenace. This can be an employee of the organization, a technical volunteer, or a Cisco Certified Partner. (To find a Cisco Certified Partner, go to the Partner Locater, click Advanced Search, and select "IP Communications" or "IP Communications Express" in the Technology Specialization selector.)

Maintenance and Support

Cisco Product grants include FIVE FREE YEARS of Cisco's "SMARTnet" support service. Your Cisco "SMARTnet" contract entitles you to:

• FREE next day product replacement due to failure (provided that the request is received before 3 p.m. local time)
• FREE 24x7 access to Cisco Technical Assistance Center (TAC) via phone, email or through Cisco.com
• FREE Registered access to Cisco.com and all online service and support tools
• FREE Major and minor maintenance releases of Cisco IOSŪ Software via Cisco.com or media (upon request) for your Cisco product

Registration, Approval, Product Delivery and Deadlines

• Registration: Notification that Cisco received your application will be sent via email within 72 hours. We will not be able to review incomplete applications. If the application is incomplete, it will be returned to you requesting additional information.
• Approval: Once Cisco receives all information required to determine eligibility, Cisco will notify you as soon as possible of either approval or denial.
• Product Delivery: Due to the nature of the network design, product availability and fiscal year schedules, all product donations are subject to change or delay without notice. In most cases products will be delivered within 90 days of date of approval. The Product Grant Program cannot provide specific dates/times for shipment and/or delivery.
• Expediting of Orders: The Product Grant Program cannot expedite order requests for equipment. Please keep this in mind when considering your grant submission, fulfillment and deployment timeline.
• Deadlines: The Product Grant Program accepts proposals on an ongoing, year-round basis. However, grants are reviewed on a quarterly cycle, and a proposal must be submitted within the first 15 days of a quarter to be considered for funding in that cycle. Please refer to the following table for specific dates:
  
  Quarter 1: Aug 1 - Oct 31 (submit by Aug 15 to be reviewed in Q1)
  Quarter 2: Nov 1 - Jan 31 (submit by Nov 15 to be reviewed in Q2)
  Quarter 3: Feb 1 - Apr 30 (submit by Feb 15 to be reviewed in Q3)
  Quarter 4: May 1 - Jul 31 (submit by May 15 to be reviewed in Q4)
  
  Note that applicants must allow at least three months for grant review and product shipments.

Sales Restrictions for Product Grants

Grants that are donated within 6 months of a sale are not considered as a donation by the IRS; instead the IRS considers these products an additional discount to the sale. Therefore, Product Grants cannot be given to organizations that have purchased Cisco equipment within the last six months, or who plan to purchase Cisco equipment within the next six months.

Other Policies

PGP currently uses an online application form and cannot accept legacy paper forms. Application guidelines and requirements are subject to change without notice, and become effective immediately upon posting to this web site. The interpretation and application of these policies is wholly within the discretion of Cisco Corporate Philanthropy and the Cisco Systems Foundation. Furthermore, all grants are made at the discretion of Cisco Corporate Philanthropy and the Cisco Foundation. Qualification under the policies listed above does not entitle an organization to receive a grant. We reserve the right to decline any requested grant application.