GrantStation Insider - January 9, 2020

Volume XIX | Issue 1

National | Regional | Federal | PathFinder | Online Education | Announcements | Subscribe

 

National Funding
Opportunities Throughout the U.S.

General Support for Small Visual Arts Organizations
VIA Art Fund: Incubator Grant Fund

VIA Art Fund and the Wagner Foundation have established the Incubator Grant Fund, which aims to build a robust and inclusive national arts ecosystem by supporting small nonprofit visual arts organizations throughout the United States, with a particular focus on regional diversity. The Fund seeks to support small visual arts organizations whose activities are rooted in programs that embrace innovation, progress, and risk; who champion new, diverse, or overlooked artistic voices; who attract and serve expanded audiences; and who cultivate new avenues of thought leadership. Five nonprofit visual arts organizations will receive an unrestricted grant of $40,000 which will be disbursed in installments of $20,000 per year over two years. The deadline for letters of inquiry is February 3, 2020; invited applications will be due May 11, 2020. Visit the VIA Art Fund website to download the Incubator Grant Fund Overview and Incubator LOI Submission Guidelines.

Classroom Transformation Opportunity for Secondary and Higher Education Institutions in North America
Steelcase Education: Active Learning Center Grant

Steelcase Education helps schools, colleges, and universities create inspiring learning environments through research and innovation in furniture, tools, and technology. Steelcase Education's Active Learning Center Grant supports educators in 6-12 classrooms and higher education institutions in the United States, U.S. Territories, Puerto Rico, Canada, and Mexico who are ready to use their physical classroom space to advance learning in new and important ways. Up to 10 grants valued at $132,000 will be awarded in 2020. Each grant includes furniture, design review, installation, onsite training, enhanced professional learning and transformation services, and a Learning Environment Evaluation measurement tool for one of four classroom types designed to elevate connection, improve engagement, and spur collective success of students and staff. These classrooms will support up to 30 students. Applying academic institutions should focus primarily on formal, instructor-led learning in a designated classroom. The application deadline is February 3, 2020. Visit the Steelcase Education website to learn more about the grant guidelines and application procedure.

Fellowships Promote Racial Justice Projects
Open Society Foundations: Soros Equality Fellowship

The Soros Equality Fellowship, a program of the Open Society Foundations, aims to support long-term leaders influencing the racial justice field. The Fellowship provides individuals with $100,000 to support the production of an innovative racial justice project over the course of 18 months. The goal of the Fellowship is to incubate new ideas, promote risk-taking, and develop different ways of thinking that challenge and expand our existing assumptions. The proposed project must provide considerable value to the racial justice field and inspire new approaches to address issues of structural inequities and discrimination. Activists, lawyers, artists, journalists, organizers, and others with unique perspectives are eligible to apply. The application deadline is February 13, 2020. Visit the Open Society Foundations website to learn more about the Fellowship.

Youth Development and Science Education Programs Funded
American Honda Foundation

The American Honda Foundation supports nonprofit organizations and educational institutions nationwide that address the areas of youth and scientific education. The Foundation's primary funding priority is youth education, specifically in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics; the environment; job training; and literacy. Grants range from $20,000 to $75,000. The upcoming deadline for organizations that have never received funding from the Foundation is February 1, 2020. Visit the Foundation's website to take the required eligibility quiz and submit an online application.

 

 

Regional Funding
Opportunities for Specific Areas

Grants Strengthen Economic Mobility in Bank Communities
Bank of America Charitable Foundation

The Bank of America Charitable Foundation works to advance pathways to economic mobility in order to build thriving communities. The Foundation provides grants to nonprofit organizations that serve specific states and regions. In 2020, the Foundation will issue two requests for proposals that address the following focus areas: The Economic Mobility Focused on the Needs of Individuals and Families category provides support for workforce development, education, and basic needs. Applications will be accepted from January 27 through February 21, 2020. The Economic Mobility Focused on the Needs of the Community category provides support for affordable housing, revitalization, the arts, and the environment. Applications will be accepted from June 1 through June 26, 2020. Visit the Foundation's website to learn more about the funding priorities and application procedures.

Census Outreach Activities in Rhode Island Supported
Rhode Island Census 2020 Fund

The Rhode Island Census 2020 Fund, administered by the Rhode Island Foundation, is a statewide, collaborative funding initiative to support a complete and accurate census count for Rhode Island. Grants ranging from $1,000 to $25,000 will be provided to conduct outreach and education activities that will encourage participation in the 2020 Census. The focus is specifically on increasing census response rates in communities that have been historically undercounted or are vulnerable to an undercount in 2020. Eligible activities include public engagement campaigns, neighborhood awareness, trainings, special events, resident organizing, designating space and technology as a census site, and integrating census-related activities into the applying organization's programs. Nonprofit organizations, municipal governments, public agencies such as libraries or schools, houses of worship, and community-based groups are eligible to apply. The final application deadline is January 31, 2020. Visit the Rhode Island Foundation's website to learn more about the Rhode Island Census 2020 Fund grant opportunity.

Funds for Kentucky Charitable Organizations
Honorable Order of Kentucky Colonels Good Works Program

The Honorable Order of Kentucky Colonels Good Works Program's primary objective is to support needy Kentucky charities and worthy organizations that stand ready to help all Kentuckians in having a boundless future. Grants are made possible through donations from active Kentucky Colonels in the Commonwealth, across the nation, and from around the world. The Program's areas of grantmaking interest include, but are not limited to, the following: arts and culture, historic preservation, the environment, education, social services, health, senior citizen services, youth services, housing, and hunger and homelessness. Online applications will be accepted through February 14, 2020. Visit the Honorable Order of Kentucky Colonels website to review the guidelines for the Good Works Program.

Grants Enhance Native Communities in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington
Potlatch Fund

The Potlatch Fund provides grants and leadership development in Tribal communities throughout Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. The Fund will offer the following grant programs in 2020: Healthy Pathways for Native Youth supports summertime projects for Native youth that equip them with cultural knowledge that builds resilience, leadership, and health. The application deadline is February 11. Community Building supports organizations that impart values, histories, and knowledge across generations to make Native communities stronger and healthier. The application deadline is April 7. Native Student Success supports programs to empower students through educational pathways that increase a broader understanding of their role as Indigenous leaders and capable individual community representatives. The application deadline is May 12. Language Preservation supports Native communities in their efforts to build plans and systems to support the transfer of Native languages from speakers to non-speakers in their community. The application deadline is June 16. Native Arts supports traditional and contemporary projects working to strengthen Native art forms that develop a stronger sense of identity and livability of the community. The application deadline is August 11. Visit the Fund's website to learn more about each of the grant programs.

 

 

Federal Funding
Opportunities from the U.S. Government

Boating Safety Efforts Funded
Department of Homeland Security
The National Nonprofit Organization Recreational Boating Safety Grant Program seeks to reduce the number of accidents, injuries, and deaths on America's waterways and to provide a safe and enjoyable experience for the boating public. This program also encourages greater nonprofit organization participation and uniformity in boating safety efforts. The application deadline is February 12, 2020.

Program Supports Women and Minorities in STEM
Department of Agriculture

The Women and Minorities in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Fields Program supports research, education and teaching, and extension projects that increase participation by women and underrepresented minorities from rural areas in STEM. This program seeks to address educational needs within broadly defined areas of food, agriculture, natural resources, and human sciences. Supported programs should help improve the economic health and viability of rural communities by developing research and extension initiatives that focus on new and emerging employment opportunities in STEM occupations. Projects that contribute to the economic viability of rural communities are also encouraged. The application deadline is February 24, 2020.

 

 

PathFinder: Featured Resource
A library of quality resources designed to help you develop your career path as a grants professional.

10 Ways to Improve Relationships with Your Grantmakers
We are all aware of the importance of strong relationships with funders, but how can you foster these connections proactively? Bloomerang's webinar "10 Ways to Improve Relationships with Your Grantmakers" presents new ideas on how to enhance grantmaker relationships in a way that aligns with your organization's capacity and voice. It focuses on enhancing relationships via shared channels and networks, being creative in expressing gratitude, keeping grantors abreast of programs, and maintaining seamless communication with grantors.

 

 

Upcoming Online Education Trainings
Live Webinars

Unless otherwise noted, all Online Education Trainings are webinars,
are 90 minutes in duration, and are scheduled to begin at 2 PM Eastern Time.

FREE: Tour of the GrantStation Website
Join Jeremy Smith, Communications and Technology Director, and Kerry Glauser, Research Specialist, for a quick tour of the GrantStation website. This tour will cover all of the features in GrantStation.com, including navigation, search interfaces, and charitable database search criteria. This tour will provide tips on the most effective way to use all of the valuable resources the website offers, including the extensive funder databases that can help you identify the grantmakers most likely to fund your programs or projects. By using GrantStation's databases and resource tools, you can begin to develop a successful grantseeking strategy for the next 12 to 18 months. The webinar will be held on Tuesday, January 21, 2020.

The Power of 3—Grantwriting with Alice Ruhnke
Does it feel like everyone else is winning grant awards? These three webinars were designed to systematically help your nonprofit organization develop its capacity to write successful grants. The first webinar, Are You Grant Ready? will help you identify your readiness to be competitive in the grant application process and provide suggestions to increase areas that need additional development. The second webinar, Grantwriting 101, will teach you how to use a comprehensive Program Planning Framework to develop and write strong, impactful, and coherent applications. The third webinar, Logic Models: More Than Just Extra Work! will help you develop logic models to measure the change your programs have on participants. These webinars can be taken together to methodically build your organization's capacity to write successful grants or as stand-alone learning opportunities. Executive directors, program managers, and grantwriters from a broad range of human service organizations will benefit from these 90-minute presentations. The deadline to register for all three is Thursday, January 23, 2020.

Exploring Public Funding (NEW)
Community nonprofits often struggle to compete with larger organizations for public dollars. This webinar, presented by Mindy Muller, is an opportunity to arm nonprofits with the information needed to make an informed decision about whether or not to pursue these funding options. The webinar will review the structure of public funding from the federal level to the state and local levels, as well as the process of considering the pros and cons of pursuing public funding. Participants will learn more about tapping into public funds, the request for proposal process, and how to prepare, qualify, and apply for public funds. Federal requirements to consider before pursuing public dollars, like OMB Circulars, the Davis-Bacon Act, and environmental reviews, will also be covered. Finally, participants will learn tips on competing for public funds with excellence. Attendees will learn about public funding streams, including federal, state, and local funding; develop strategies to make intentional decisions about pursuit of public funding; acquire an awareness of additional mandates required when using federal funds; and learn about the common request for proposal funding structure. This session is excellent for nonprofits looking to explore public funding as well as experienced proposal writers looking for a refresher. The webinar will be held on Wednesday, February 5, 2020.

 

 

GrantStation Announcements
The latest updates from GrantStation.

Funding Alerts
GrantStation shares database profiles of Local, National, Canadian, and International grantmakers with upcoming deadlines each week. Check out the current Funding Alerts for more grant opportunities!

 


Information contained in the GrantStation Insider may not be
posted, reprinted, redistributed, or sold without permission.

Editor: Julie Kaufman
Copy Editor: Ashlyn Simmons
Contributing Writer: Kevin Peters

National Funding Opportunities
General Support for Small Visual Arts Organizations
Classroom Transformation Opportunity for Secondary and Higher Education Institutions in North America
Fellowships Promote Racial Justice Projects
Youth Development and Science Education Programs Funded

Regional Funding Opportunities
Grants Strengthen Economic Mobility in Bank Communities
Census Outreach Activities in Rhode Island Supported
Funds for Kentucky Charitable Organizations
Grants Enhance Native Communities in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington

Federal Funding Opportunities
Boating Safety Efforts Funded
Program Supports Women and Minorities in STEM