Rules

Explore eligibility and terms and conditions of participating in the Scaling Pathways to Homeownership Open Call or contact our helpful support team.

1. Definitions and interpretation

In this document, capitalized terms have the following meanings, unless otherwise expressly indicated:

1.1 "Application" means an entry submitted by an Applicant in response to the Open Call. The Application includes all attachments and exhibits, and all inputs provided by the Lead Organization’s collaborators.

1.2 "Applicant” or “Lead Organization" means an organization that meets the eligibility requirements of this Open Call and that submits or proposes to submit an Application to the Open Call and is represented on this or associated Website(s) by a person 18 years of age or older at the time of submission of the Application.

1.3 "Award" means any form of benefit or other forms of recognition to declared or selected Finalists and/or Awardees, as set out in the Open Call Rules.

1.4 “Awardee” means an Applicant whose Application is selected by the Open Call Sponsor to receive Award funding in accordance with the Open Call Rules.

1.5 “Capital One” means Capital One Foundation, Inc. The Capital One Foundation is a 501(c)(3) private foundation. The Capital One Foundation receives its support from Capital One Financial Corporation.

1.6 “Collaborator” means an individual or entity who or which partners with the Lead Organization, and Subgrantees, Contractors, and/or other Collaborators, as applicable, to carry out the proposed solution but does not receive any Award funds from the Lead Organization through a sub-grant, a contract, or otherwise.

1.7 “Contractor” means an individual or entity who or which partners with the Lead Organization, and Subgrantees, other Contractors, and/or Collaborators, as applicable, to carry out the proposed solution through a contract with the Lead Organization under which the Contractor is paid using Award funds.

1.8 “Finalist” means those Applicants whose Applications are selected to advance in the Open Call and be eligible for consideration of a final Award in accordance with the Open Call RULES.

1.9 “Loss" means any direct, indirect, special, incidental or consequential liabilities, damages, claims, losses, costs, expenses, actions, demands or suits, whether in contract, tort (including liability due to infringement of intellectual property rights or due to negligence), statute or otherwise and whether pecuniary or non-pecuniary. This includes, but is not limited to, loss of profits, legal costs and defense or settlement costs.

1.10 “Open Call” means Scaling Pathways to Homeownership: An Open Call by Capital One Foundation posted on the Website(s), however expressed.

1.11 “Open Call Sponsor” means Capital One Foundation, Inc. The Open Call Sponsor has contracted with Lever for Change to manage the Open Call. Lever for Change is located at 140 S. Dearborn Street, Chicago, IL 60603-5285.

1.12 “RULES” means these rules governing the Open Call as set forth herein, as may be amended from time to time, as well as other instructions provided by Lever for Change or the Open Call Sponsor.

1.13 “Subgrantee” means an individual or entity who or which partners with the Lead Organization, and other Subgrantees, Contractors, and/or Collaborators, as applicable, to carry out the proposed solution and receives a sub-grant of Award funds from the Lead Organization.

1.14 “TERMS” means the rules with the provider of the applicable Website, Submittable Holdings, Inc. (“Submittable”) or Lever for Change, as applicable, that apply to the User of the Website.

1.15 "User" means any person who has registered a user account on this Website. The term "User" includes all Applicants.

1.16 "Website(s)" means any web pages associated with the Open Call and all underlying software and infrastructure which permits the holding of the Open Call. Where the context permits, ‘Website’ or 'website' includes the services provided on the Website.

1.17 “You" means the person and organization using the Website(s), including a User, and a Lead Organization duly organized and validly existing under state or federal law in the United States of America that is represented on the Website(s) by a User that is a person at least 18 years of age who is the duly authorized representative of such Lead Organization. Each person submitting an Application must be authorized to submit the Application and to bind the Lead Organization on whose behalf the Application is being submitted to the RULES.

1.18 “Your” means the possessive of “You”.

RULES

Thank you for your interest in the Open Call. The eligibility requirements to participate in the Open Call are set forth in these RULES and the deadlines for submitting submissions are linked here and incorporated by reference herein.

By participating in the Open Call and in accordance with these RULES governing the Open Call (“RULES”), You are applying to potentially receive various forms of recognition and a possible Award of $4.6 million from the Open Call Sponsor. The RULES stated herein are in addition to the Submittable Submitter Terms of Use for use of the Submittable Website and the Lever for Change Website Terms & Conditions (collectively, “TERMS”) and You are hereby bound to the same extent and by the same requirements as described in the TERMS.

The full TERMS are available for Your review by accessing them on the Website(s). Please read the RULES and the TERMS carefully, as they describe the conditions under which You are allowed to participate. As You participate, You may periodically be asked to recognize Your acceptance of these RULES and the TERMS by clicking "accept" at various pages on the Website(s), but by continuing any use of the Website(s) You expressly consent to all these RULES and the TERMS.

SUBMISSION OF AN APPLICATION IN SCALING PATHWAYS TO HOMEOWNERSHIP: AN OPEN CALL BY CAPITAL ONE FOUNDATION CONSTITUTES FULL AND UNCONDITIONAL AGREEMENT TO AND ACCEPTANCE OF THESE RULES.

NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT IS NECESSARY TO ENTER OR TO RECEIVE AN AWARD.

1. Eligibility and Proposal Scope

For the Open Call, organizations eligible to serve as the Lead Organization must be:

• An entity based in the United States and/or U.S. Territories that has received a tax determination letter from the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) that it is exempt from federal income tax as an organization described under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (“IRC”) and is also classified as a publicly supported organization described under section 509(a)(1) or (2) of the IRC and which tax determination letter is in effect.
• An entity based in the United States and/or U.S. Territories that has received a tax determination letter from the IRS that it is exempt from federal income tax as an organization described under section 501(c)(3) of the IRC and is also classified as a Type I or Type II supporting organization described under section 509(a)(3) of the IRC, and which tax determination letter is in effect.
• A fiscally sponsored project whose fiscal sponsor is an entity based in the United States and/or U.S. Territories and has received an IRS determination letter that it is exempt from federal income tax as an organization described under section 501(c)(3) of the IRC and is also classified as a publicly supported organization described under section 509(a)(1) or (2) of the IRC and which tax determination letter is in effect; fiscal sponsors must exercise discretion and control over the Award funds.
• A public or private college, junior college, university, or other similar educational entity that has received a tax determination letter from the IRS that it is exempt from federal income tax as an organization described under section 501(c)(3) of the IRC and is also classified as an educational organization described under sections 509(a)(1) and 170(b)(1)(A)(ii) of the IRC and which tax determination letter is in effect. The specific program must align with sponsored research guidelines.
• A private operating foundation based in the United States and/or U.S. Territories under section 501(c)(3) of the IRC that has received a tax determination letter from the IRS.

In addition, the Lead Organization must (a) be based and working in the United States or U.S. Territories, (b) be in good standing in the jurisdiction under which it is organized, and (c) comply with all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations in its completion and submission of an Application and use of the Award funds.

The Lead Organization is a single legal entity that has the legal responsibility, authority for and control of the use of any Award funds, is responsible for the reporting on any Award funds, and must be able to exercise – in fact and law – full discretion, control, and supervision of the proposed solution and the Award funds. Any Subgrantee, Contractor, or Collaborator will be selected by the Lead Organization in its sole discretion and completely independently of the Open Call Sponsor, and the participation of any such Subgrantee, Contractor, or Collaborator in the proposed solution will not be a condition to the receipt of an Award.

2. Ineligible persons or entities

The following are examples of parties that are not eligible to apply as the Lead Organization but can serve as Subgrantees or Contractors on an Application and receive a subgrant or contract from the Lead Organization to assist the Lead Organization using the Award Funds in implementing the proposed solution:

• Individuals and entities that, from a tax perspective, have the tax status of an individual, such as a single member limited liability company (LLC) where the member is an individual.
• A for-profit organization, including LLCs, benefit corporations, or hybrid organizations.
• State, local, federal, and tribal governmental entities.

The following are examples of parties that are not eligible to either apply as the Lead Organization or to serve or receive any Award funds as a Subgrantee or Contractor, but may be Collaborator on the Application, provided they do not receive Award funds:

• An entity that has received a tax determination letter from the IRS under section 501(c)(4) of the IRC and which tax letter is in effect.
• Employees, Officers, or Board Members of the Open Call Sponsor, Lever for Change, Submittable (the Open Call platform), Capital One Financial Corporation (“COF”), and any of their subsidiaries and affiliates, and immediate family members (spouse, parent, child, grandchild, sibling, and their respective spouses, regardless of where they live) or persons living in the same households of such employees, officers, and Board members are not eligible to participate as a Subgrantee, Contractor, or Collaborator.

3. Prohibited Use of Award Funds

Award funds must be used exclusively for tax-exempt purposes. Prohibited uses of Award funds include:

• To make a grant to or otherwise transfer the Award funds to an organization or individual not involved in the implementation of the proposed solution as a Subgrantee or Contractor.
• To make a grant that could be considered a grant to any individual for travel, study, or other similar purposes, within the meaning of section 4945(d)(3) of the IRC, including, without limitation, scholarships.
• To make a grant to any organization, except in compliance with expenditure responsibility requirements, to the extent applicable.
• For the creation of any endowment or for the aggregation of philanthropic capital by organizations that regrant to nonprofit organizations.
• For capital campaigns, including the construction of new sites or new buildings.
• For the creation of a venture capital fund, or pooled funds to invest in or distribute to for profit organizations.
• To fund general operating support for the Lead Organization and/or any Subgrantee or Contractor.
• To any Collaborator.
• For lobbying and political expenditures that are not tax deductible in accordance with 26 U.S.C. § 6033(e).
• To fund or undertake any activity for any purpose other than one specified in Section 170(c)(2)(B) of the IRC
• To pay down third-party operating deficits.
• Funds may be subgranted from a Lead Organization to other partners to implement the proposed solution, and not for general funds used for broader purposes.

4. Collaborations

Finalist teams comprised of more than one organization proposing to work together must demonstrate through a fully executed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) or other similar agreement, executed by all parties, that all parties have agreed that a single eligible entity, the Lead Organization, will serve as the Awardee, if selected. As the Awardee, the Lead Organization will have direction, control, and supervision of the proposed solution and management of all Award funds and be responsible for all reporting requirements. While MOUs will not be collected in the initial Application, teams selected as Finalists at later stages of the Open Call may be required to submit MOUs.

5. Multiple Applications from a Single Organization and Overlapping Boards

Regional or location-specific branches of larger organizations, as well as departments, schools, and centers within or based in a college/university, can register and submit separate Applications as long as the proposed solutions are different and separate. As long as each Application is submitted by a different team member with a unique email address, some overlap in team members on different Applications is permitted. Lead Organizations, though, are encouraged to select a single project that best represents its ability to deliver a solution that meets the evaluation criteria. Overlapping membership of boards and advisory boards among different Applicants is also permitted.

6. Indirect Costs

While general operating support is not allowed, the Open Call Sponsor recognizes that Applicants may have overhead costs that are not directly attributable to the proposed solution but are necessary for

implementation. The Open Call Sponsor will consider paying for these indirect costs up to a maximum of 29% of direct project or activity costs within the $4.6 million Award limit. Ensure that any indirect costs are accounted for in the budget in the Application.

7. Guidance Related to Non-Charitable Activities

Award funds must be used for tax-exempt purposes – for one or more purposes specified in section 170(c)(2)(B) of the IRC, and may not result in more than an incidental private benefit to shareholders or other people, organizations, or entities that is a necessary byproduct of the accomplishment of such tax-exempt purpose.

8. Financial and Organizational Capacity

Applicants must be in good legal and financial standing and demonstrate their financial and organizational capacity to carry out the proposed solution and to appropriately manage an Award.

9. Grant Agreement

The successful Finalists and/or Awardees will be expected to enter into a grant agreement with the Open Call Sponsor, Capital One Foundation, containing key terms and conditions which are separate from these RULES and TERMS posted on the Website(s) for this Open Call. Any Award that may be considered pursuant to this process must satisfy legal criteria in the sole discretion of the Open Call Sponsor.

NOTE: The terms of the grant agreement with a Finalist and/or Awardees depend on the nature of the proposed solution, the Lead Organization receiving the Award funds, and the Open Call Sponsor.

10. Reporting

Finalists and/or any Awardees will be required by the terms of their grant agreement with the Open Call Sponsor to report on progress toward milestones and other goals. Those reporting requirements may vary, based on the organization and the proposed solution, and will be determined by the Open Call Sponsor. However, a minimum of an annual financial report and an annual narrative report will be required.

11. Other Rules

11.1 Your Application must be in English.

11.2 You must complete registration to participate in the Open Call. Individuals representing an applicable organization must be 18 years of age or older at the time of submission to participate.

11.3 Your Application should meet the application requirements stipulated. You are required to register in advance of any deadlines for the submission of the Application, and You must comply with all other deadlines posted on the Website(s) and incorporate herein by reference. Your Application may not, in the sole and unfettered discretion of the Open Call Sponsor and/or Lever for Change, contain obscene, provocative, defamatory, or otherwise objectionable or inappropriate content. The Open Call Sponsor and/or Lever for Change reserve the right to cancel, modify or suspend the Open Call in whole or in part without liability . The Open Call Sponsor and/or Lever for Change also reserve the right to disqualify You from participating.

11.4 By participating in the Open Call, You represent, warrant, and agree that:

a. You are the sole author, creator, and owner of the Application;

b. the Application is not the subject of any actual, suspected, or threatened litigation or claim;

c. the Application does not and will not violate or infringe upon the intellectual property rights, privacy rights, publicity rights, or other legal rights of any third party;

d. the Application does not and will not contain any harmful computer code (sometimes referred to as "malware," "viruses" or "worms");

e. the Application, and Your use of the Application, does not and will not violate any applicable laws or regulations, including, without limitation, applicable export control laws and regulations of the United States and other jurisdictions;

f. If the Application includes any third party works (such as third-party content or open source code), You must provide the Open Call Sponsor and Lever for Change with all appropriate licenses and releases for such third party works. In the event You cannot provide all such required licenses and releases, the Open Call Sponsor and/or Lever for Change reserve the right, in the Open Call Sponsor’s sole discretion, to disqualify the Application.

11.5 You may participate by registering, but You may not register more than one true and uniform identity; multiple registrations for a participant using multiple identities are not allowed. The Open Call Sponsor, Lever for Change, and/or Submittable reserve the right to disqualify any Application made by a participant violating this limitation, regardless of whether all of the respective parties had knowledge of such violation. Each registrant may submit at most one Application.

11.6 Upon submitting Your Application, the Application will be subjected to an Administrative Review, to ensure compliance with all of the requirements. Qualified Applications (those that have passed administrative review) will then be distributed to other registrants during a Participatory Review of those Applications. If Your Application qualifies for this Participatory Review, the Lead Organization will be required to assess at least four (4) other Applications. If You do not complete those assessments, using the tools and process described on the Website(s), Your participation may be terminated. Based on normalized scores from each Participatory Review, a rank order of the Applications will be populated. The top-scoring Applications will advance to the next phase of review.

11.7 The top-scoring Applications as determined by the Participatory Review will advance to an Evaluation Panel review. The Evaluation Panel consists of experts who are identified on the Website(s). Each of the qualified Applications will be assessed by four (4) Evaluation Panel members, who will be assigned to score these Applications either randomly or after considering any potential conflicts of interest, using the evaluation rubric that is described on the Website(s) and which is incorporated by reference herein. In cases where an Evaluation Panel Reviewer indicates any potential conflict of interest, the Application will be assigned to another Reviewer. Based on a set of Evaluation Panel review analysis a rank order of the Applications will be populated.

11.8 Once a rank order of Applications has been populated using the Evaluation Process, up to ten (10) top Applicants may be named as Finalists. Each Finalist will receive an initial project development grant of $200,000 and technical assistance to strengthen the Finalist’s proposal. After submitting a revised proposal, up to five (5) Finalists will be selected to receive an Award of up to $4.6 million to implement their proposed solution. The Open Call Sponsor will review and discuss the top Applications and will determine any Finalists and/or Awardees, using criteria that Open Call Sponsor will apply in its sole discretion and may incorporate considerations beyond the Evaluation Panel’s reviews.

If a Finalist is unable to fully participate in the next phase of the Open Call, then the Finalist may forfeit its designation as a Finalist. Final determination of each Finalist and Awardee rests solely with the Open Call Sponsor.

11.9 By submitting Your Application, You agree to release, discharge and hold harmless the Open Call Sponsor, Lever for Change, Submittable, and their partners, affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising agencies, agents and their employees, officers, directors and representatives from any Loss arising out of Your participation in the Open Call and the acceptance and use, misuse, or possession of any Award(s). Neither the Open Call Sponsor, Lever for Change, nor Submittable nor their respective affiliates assume responsibility for any error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, or delay in operation or transmission; communications line failure; theft or destruction of or unauthorized access to Open Call applications or application forms; or alteration of Applications or application forms. Neither the Open Call Sponsor, Lever for Change, nor Submittable nor their respective affiliates are responsible for any problems with or technical malfunction of any telephone network or lines, computer online systems, servers or providers, computer equipment, software, failure of any application to be received on account of technical problems or traffic congestion on the Internet or any website, human errors of any kind, or any combination thereof, including any injury or damage to competitors’ or any other persons’ computers related to or resulting from participation, uploading or downloading of any materials related to this Open Call.

11.10 THIS OPEN CALL IS VOID WHERE PROHIBITED. Applicants agree that this Open Call, the submission of Your Application, and any grant agreement associated with this Open Call, as applicable, shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the internal laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia, without regard to conflict of law rules. For all litigation which may arise with respect to this Open Call, the submission of Your Application, and any grant agreement associated with this Open Call, as applicable, those disputes shall be subject to (a) jurisdiction and venue of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or (b) if such court does not have subject matter jurisdiction, in the state courts located in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

11.11 The Open Call Sponsor and/or Lever for Change reserve the right in their sole discretion to disqualify any Applicant that: tampers with the application process or the operation of the Open Call; acts in violation of the RULES or the TERMS; acts in an unsportsmanlike or disruptive manner, or with the intent to disrupt or undermine the legitimate operation of the Open Call, or to abuse, threaten, or harass any other person.

11.12 Applying as part of this Open Call does not constitute applying into any other Lever for Change Open Call, Submittable Open Call, or promotion that may be offered by the Open Call Sponsor and/or its affiliates.

11.13 The names of the Finalists and Awardees will be posted on the Lever for Change Website for such period of time as the Open Call Sponsor deems reasonable.

11.14 Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, nothing herein represents a commitment by the Open Call Sponsor to Award any Award to any entity submitting an Application, participating in, responding to, or submitting subsequent information in response to this Open Call. The Open Call Sponsor and/or Lever for Change reserve the right to terminate, alter, or suspend this process and the Open Call at any time, including by closing the Open Call without making any Awards. The Open Call Sponsor and/or Lever for Change reserve the right to stop all activity for the Open Call and/or to make substantive changes to the Open Call including these RULES, which might preclude certain Users from participating further. By submitting an Application or information pursuant to this Open Call, each Applicant shall be deemed to have acknowledged that the Open Call Sponsor shall have no obligation to make any Award and neither Lever for Change nor the Open Call Sponsor nor their respective Affiliates shall have liability to any Applicant or other person or entity should the determination be made not to proceed with this process or not to make any Awards. It is further understood that any Award that may be considered pursuant to this process must satisfy the Open Call Sponsor’s legal criteria in the sole discretion of the Open Call Sponsor.

12. Intellectual Property

Each Application should reflect the anticipated ownership, use, and licensing of any intellectual property. You represent and warrant that the Application is an original work created solely by the Applicant, that the Applicant owns all intellectual property in and to the Application, and that no other party has any right, title, claim or interest in the Application, except as expressly identified by You to us in writing in Your Application. Intellectual property rights mean copyrights, topography rights, software rights, database rights, design rights, patents, utility models, trademarks, service marks, domain names and trade secrets. The Applicant retains all rights, title and interest in any inventions, software or work of authorship it invents or creates. The ownership and use of intellectual property in the Application remains with the Applicant. The Applicant hereby grants a perpetual, transferrable, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, and non-exclusive license to the Open Call Sponsor and Lever for Change, to use, reproduce, adapt, modify, edit, alter, digitize, publish, distribute, publicly perform, broadcast, exhibit, publicly display, exploit and create a derivative work from and the contents of the Application and the Application-related content for the purposes of the Open Call and the Open Call Sponsor’s and Lever for Change’s other charitable purposes, described herein. Should an Applicant’s project be funded, the Open Call Sponsor and/or Lever for Change reserve the right to post for viewing the information about the Award, including the size of the Award. Applications will not be returned to Applicants. Each Applicant should retain a copy of its Application.

Where a license in perpetuity is not permitted by law or is unenforceable in Your jurisdiction, You grant the license(s) described above for the maximum duration permitted by law. In jurisdictions where a royalty (payment) must be agreed in respect of the license(s) described above, You agree that the royalty shall be zero (or the minimum amount permitted by applicable law). You agree and acknowledge that the opportunity to participate in the Open Call under these Rules and the payment of any sum(s) to You should you be awarded an Award fully satisfies any obligation on Lever for Change and/or the Open Call Sponsor to provide equitable and adequate remuneration for the rights granted hereunder.

To the extent permitted by law, You irrevocably agree that Lever for Change, the Open Call Sponsor and their respective licensees shall be entitled to use Your name, likeness and biographical information for all advertising, marketing, publicity and public relations purposes in connection with the Open Call and with other projects and activities, without remuneration. The Applicant hereby waives any right to any form of compensation and all legal claims, including for libel, slander, invasion of privacy, and copyright infringement, related to the Application’s content and its use.

13. Data Protection

Applicant confidential information, which may include personal data about individuals affiliated with the Applicant, will be collected, used, transferred and disclosed by the Open Call Sponsor, Lever for Change and Submittable Website host for this Open Call. Applicants may request to review, rectify or delete any personal data held by Lever for Change, the Open Call Sponsor or the website host, by emailing homeownership@submittable.com during the course of the Open Call or, if after the Open Call, at the email address referenced in the privacy policies. Lever for Change's Privacy Policy can be reviewed here. The Submittable privacy policy can be reviewed here.

Contact Information You may contact us with any questions or comments about these RULES by emailing homeownership@submittable.com.