GrantStation Insider: November 9, 2023

Application deadline: The initial project idea description must be submitted by January 12, 2024.
Grant amount: Requests for funding may range up to $20,000 in year one; funding for a second year will be contingent on accomplishments at the end of the first year.
Description: The JAMS Foundation-ACR Initiative for Students and Youth supports conflict resolution education and training for preK-12 students and youth. The 2024 funding cycle focuses on the use of conflict resolution education and training to increase the resiliency skills in youth ages 14 to 18, enabling them to cope with violence they may encounter in school or other gathering places and de-escalate the violence. Preference is given to proposals that bring existing programs or exciting new ideas to a level of scalability and sustainability on a regional or national basis. Eligible applicants include nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, and public agencies working in conjunction with nonprofit educational institutions or organizations. (Attendance at an informational conference call held on November 20, 2023 is strongly advised.)

Application deadlines: The next deadlines are December 1, 2023, and March 1, 2024.
Geographic scope: United States, including U.S. territories
Grant amount: Generally $5,000 to $15,000
Description: Jazz Road Tours, a program of South Arts with funding from the Doris Duke Foundation and the Mellon Foundation, provides grants of up to $15,000 to jazz artists to develop tours into communities across the country. Support is provided for small, three-to-six site tours at an array of venue types anywhere in the U.S and its territories. Applications that include engagements in rural areas or that reach typically underserved communities, especially those that lack opportunities to present live jazz, will be prioritized. Individual professional jazz artists (as an individual, an artist-led nonprofit organization, or an artist-led corporation), working solo or working with a composer-led or collective jazz ensemble, are eligible to apply.

Application deadline: January 31, 2024
Geographic scope: National, with additional funding available for specific geographic priority areas
Grant amount: Approximately $2 million is available, with awards ranging from $30,000 to $60,000 each.
Description: The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Five Star and Urban Waters Restoration Grant Program supports local partnerships in the United States focused on improving water quality, watersheds, and the species and habitats they support. Projects must restore or create wetlands, coastal, or riparian areas; integrate meaningful outreach, education, or training into the proposed on-the-ground activities; involve five or more partners; and demonstrate measurable results and a plan for sustainability. Supported ecological improvements include wetland, riparian, forest, and coastal habitat restoration; wildlife conservation; community tree canopy enhancement; urban agriculture and community gardens; wildlife and water quality monitoring; and green infrastructure best management practices for managing run-off. Grants are available nationwide, but additional funding is available for specific geographic priorities. (See the request for proposals for geographic priorities.) Nonprofit organizations, state government agencies, local and municipal governments, tribal governments and organizations, and educational institutions are eligible to apply.

Application deadline: December 15, 2023
Geographic scope: United States, including U.S. territories
Grant amount: $500 and a collection of gardening supplies
Description: KidsGardening.org, a national nonprofit supporting the educators and caregivers bringing the life-changing benefits of gardening to kids, awards Youth Garden Grants to support school and youth educational garden projects that enhance the quality of life for students and their communities. Any nonprofit organization, school, or youth program in the U.S. or U.S. territories planning a new or improving an existing garden program that serves at least 15 youth between the ages of zero and 18 is eligible to apply. Fifty programs will be awarded $500 and a shipment of gardening supplies. Among the 50 winners, ten programs will also receive a specialty award package of in-kind donations from either Crescent Garden or Garden Tower.

Application deadline: January 12, 2024 (Applicants must register on the Fluxx application platform by January 10, 2024.)
Geographic scope: Texas
Grant amount: $5,000 to $50,000 annually for five years
Description: The Hogg Foundation for Mental Health’s Reliable Flexible Funding grant initiative will provide flexible financial support to nonprofit organizations in Texas with the goal of fostering long-term improvements in mental health outcomes for communities served. The Foundation intends to invest $5 million over five years to assist organizations, particularly those led by and serving members of historically excluded groups, in addressing disparities in mental health outcomes and philanthropic funding within marginalized communities. The flexible funding is intended to strengthen organizations as they sustain, deepen, or expand their operations, and may be used for sustaining day-to-day operations, HR improvements or capacity building, increased community engagement, strategic planning, innovation, etc. Nonprofit organizations, governmental entities, and institutions of higher education in Texas with operational budgets ranging from $15,000 to $250,000 are eligible to apply. (Grantwriting coaching assistance is available from November 1, 2023, to January 5, 2024.)

Application deadline: The 2024 cycle is open through December 4, 2023, and several grantseeker workshops will be offered from November 14 through November 28, 2023. 
Geographic scope: AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN, East TX, WV, and VA
Grant amount: The average grant is $35,000.
Description: The Black Girls Dream Fund, an initiative of the Southern Black Girls and Women’s Consortium, seeks to channel greater resources toward organizations that are intentionally supporting and empowering Black girls and women in the South. For 2024, the Fund is providing general operating grants to support the capacity of organizations that care for Black girls. Black women-led and girl-led nonprofit organizations and fiscally sponsored projects within Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, East Texas, West Virginia, and Virginia are eligible to apply. Support is provided in five categories: education, health and wellness, economic opportunity, social justice, and leadership and empowerment.

Application deadline: None
Geographic scope: Communities served by the Bank in California, Oregon, and Washington
Grant amount: Up to $1,000
Description: The Beneficial State Bank Sponsorship Program supports nonprofit organizations in the communities the Bank serves in California, Oregon, and Washington. Sponsorships are provided to organizations that are engaged in transformative social justice and environmental work in the following target sectors: affordable and multi-family housing; arts, culture, and community building; education and youth development; beneficial financial services; economic, business, and job development; making, manufacturing, and production; social justice; environmental sustainability; health and well-being; healthy food; and other categories, including business ownership, structures, and practices. Sponsorships may be used to support projects including, but not limited to, capital campaigns, program operation, and events (online and in-person). 

Application deadline: January 15, annually
Geographic scope: Delaware and southeastern Chester County, PA
Grant amount: Grants average $15,000.
Description: Crestlea Foundation is dedicated to serving the people of Delaware and southeastern Chester County, PA. Support is provided to nonprofit organizations in the social services, education, healthcare, cultural and arts, environmental, housing, and civic sectors. The Foundation considers requests for capital, program, and operating expenses. New applicants that have never been funded by the Foundation must request a meeting with the Foundation team prior to applying.

Optional draft deadline: December 7, 2023
Application deadline: January 12, 2024
Description: The Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections program helps cultural heritage institutions with humanities collections (libraries, archives, museums, and historical organizations) meet the complex challenge of preserving diverse holdings of humanities materials (books and manuscripts, photographs, sound records and moving images, archaeological and ethnographic objects, art, and historical objects) for future generations. The program supports environmentally sustainable preventive care strategies to reduce energy consumption and costs and strengthen institutional resiliency in the face of a changing climate.

Application deadline: December 15, 2023
Description: The purpose of the Healthy Start Initiative: Eliminating Disparities in Perinatal Health Program is to improve health outcomes before, during, and after pregnancy and reduce the well-documented racial/ethnic differences in rates of infant death and adverse perinatal outcomes. The Program supports projects in communities and populations experiencing the greatest disparities in maternal and infant health outcomes and places an emphasis on addressing social determinants of health, such as access to adequate food, housing, and transportation.

Are you a nonprofit founder 50 and older?

The AARP Purpose Prize® award celebrates people 50 and older who are using their life experience to make a difference. Through this annual award, AARP celebrates a new story of aging—one full of meaningful impact and limitless possibilities.

Winners who have founded a 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization will win $50,000 for their organization. They will also have access to a number of technical supports and resources to help broaden their organizations’ impact. The call for applications ends February 29, 2024. See rules and apply.

Are you employed full-time by a government or nonprofit organization in the U.S.? Are you still paying off your federal student loans after ten years or more? If so, you may be eligible for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program. The PSLF Program webpage (on the Federal Student Aid website) provides information on how to access student loan forgiveness for Direct Loans through the U.S. Department of Education. It includes information on how to apply, who is eligible, eligible loans, qualifying payments and repayment plans, and the process for applying for student loan forgiveness.

Webinar date: November 13, 2023, 2:00 to 2:45 PM Eastern Time
Description: Want to give your nonprofit a competitive edge when submitting grant proposals? Grantmakers are always interested in understanding the additional support your organization has secured for your projects. If your nonprofit struggles to have a cash match on hand, an in-kind contributions program can make a significant impact on your ability to secure grants. During this TargetED session, Alice Ruhnke will discuss the steps you need to take to increase your organization’s capacity to use in-kind contributions in your grant applications.

Webinar date: November 14, 2023, 2:00 to 3:30 PM Eastern Time
Description: High-performing, purpose-driven leaders invest in collecting and analyzing data on their organization's impact. Impact data can help your organization make informed decisions, improve the quality of your services, and tell powerful success stories. This is what makes it so critical to fundraising success. During this webinar, Sheri Chaney Jones of Measurement Resources Company will help you find the right cadence and level of detail for communicating your impact to various stakeholders. You’ll see how you can strike the perfect balance between sharing your passion and delivering a clear, concise message.

Webinar date: November 15, 2023, 2:00 to 3:00 PM Eastern Time
Description: Are you so busy doing the day-to-day tasks within your nonprofit that you can’t even think about anything long term? Do you struggle with creating a new process for systems within your organization because “it is the way it has always been done”? During this webinar, Doug Gerdts will help you to rethink your day-to-day financial operations to become more efficient and effective in order to take your nonprofit to the next level. By focusing on streamlining systems and properly delegating tasks, you can advance your mission and grow your impact.

I joined the GrantStation team a decade ago, following stints working at a major foundation in Los Angeles, serving as a Peace Corps volunteer in El Salvador, and teaching English to speakers of other languages in Guatemala, San Francisco, and Spain. What I like most about my role as an international research specialist and content curator at GrantStation is that it allows me to meld my varied interests and professional experience.

My research role is focused on helping organizations working outside the U.S. to find funding opportunities. I update records in GrantStation’s International and Canadian databases, while also researching and adding new funders on a continuous basis. I also put together the International Insider and Canadian Insider newsletters to inform folks of upcoming funding opportunities. The process of writing these newsletters is quite enjoyable, as it enables me to keep up on the latest trends in the international funding arena, while also providing valuable content for our Members.

In addition, I curate content for GrantStation’s PathFinder library, with an eye towards helping even the novice grant proposal writer or nonprofit professional to access resources to aid in their professional development or make their job easier in some way.

My research for the newsletters and PathFinder library serves as fodder for the blog articles that I write for the GS Insights blog each month. 

Every spring, I also edit the State of Grantseeking report, working alongside Ellen Mowrer and Juliet Vile to provide original and timely research on the grantseeking experience of organizations of various sizes and mission focuses.

Please reach out to diana.holder@grantstation.com with questions about any of the resources mentioned above.

More funding opportunities are featured on the GrantStation homepage. Current opportunities include Alpha Gamma Delta Foundation: Fighting Hunger Grants (U.S. and Canada), Jack in the Box Foundation (U.S. local: company communities), Tree Canada: Community Tree Grants (Canada), and the Stanford University: John S. Knight Journalism Fellowships (international).