Search Through Community Health Grants in Boston, Massachusetts in the U.S.

Background

Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation seeks to dramatically improve the lives of underserved communities across the globe by supporting scalable, innovative, and impact-first solutions that leverage existing systems and stakeholders. Our goal is to find social entrepreneurs with dynamic products or services that have a proven ability to positively impact the lives of underserved people, and nurture those organizations at the early stages by providing capacity, capital, and community.

Our application process is designed to be open and accessible, and we accept applications year round from across our priority geographies and sectors. Borrowing from our venture capital legacy, we find exceptional entrepreneurs and provide them with: 

Capacity

• The core of DRK’s model is deep and extensive operational and technical support for each portfolio organization, both through dedicated hands-on Board service and specialist capacity-building resources for fundraising, board and organizational development, leadership, financial support, and scaling strategy,

Capital

• DRK provides up to $300,000 USD in either unrestricted grant funding or investment capital over a three-year period, and

Community

• DRK convenes our portfolio and alumni annually, facilitating connections and community. 

What We Fund

DRK Foundation funds early-stage social impact organizations solving the world’s biggest social and environmental problems using bold, scalable approaches.

What stage of growth does DRK Foundation typically fund?

Early stage: Organizations who are early stage, which we define as post-pilot and pre-scale. This typically means: 

• Your program, product or service is already being used in the market or in the field, 
• You have early indication that your model is having its intended impact on the beneficiary populations,
• Your organization is relatively young (ideally between two and five years old, although we will consider both younger and older organizations).

Venture funding: In the case of for profits, we typically support Seed to Series A organizations, and never lead rounds; we also generally but not exclusively refrain from participating in financings exceeding a $15M USD post-money valuation.  

Global Impact Cash Grants

Identifying and incubating innovative early-stage solutions. We identify, incubate, and develop innovative early-stage solutions with the highest potential for impact. Global Impact Cash Grants go to nonprofit organizations (NPOs) and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that address a significant social problem. We're looking for programs that fit within our investment sectors, focus on the underserved, and use technology to improve the reach and efficiency of services.

We accept applications year-round from eligible organizations. A brief Letter of Inquiry (LOI) is used to determine whether your organization will be invited to complete a full application. Please expand and carefully review each of the three sections below to learn more

Our priority social impact sectors

We focus on investing in innovative, tech-enabled solutions to the challenges and opportunities that matter most to communities in need, prioritizing four social impact sectors:

Cisco Crisis Response

Mobilizing to provide essentials to communities in need and those in crisis, including food, housing, secure connectivity, and disaster relief

By leveraging Cisco’s people, technology, financial resources, and strategic partnerships, we help strengthen community resilience and drive long-term recovery from crises.

Education

Supporting students, teachers, and schools by increasing engagement, building skills, promoting subject mastery, and expanding their capacity to thrive

Cisco is committed to inclusive access to digital skills training and supporting those who use technology to educate. Through programs like Cisco Networking Academy and social investments in education, we create new opportunities for individuals to thrive.

Economic Empowerment

Transforming communities through skill development, long-term career opportunities, entrepreneurship, and access to financial products and services

Strategic grants that unlock economic prosperity and growth for individuals and communities.

Climate Regeneration

Building an inclusive, regenerative, and resilient climate future through education, regenerative agriculture, conservation, protection, and clean energy solutions

Our efforts began in 2021, when the Cisco Foundation committed US$100 million over 10 years to fund nonprofit grants and impact investing in climate solutions. 

Community Grants

State Farm is committed to helping build safer, stronger and better-educated communities.

• ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​We are committed to auto and home safety programs and activities that help people manage the risks of everyday life.
• We invest in education, economic empowerment and community development projects, programs and services that help people realize their dreams.
• We help maintain the vibrancy of our communities by assisting nonprofits that support community revitalization.

Good Neighbor Citizenship company grants focus on safety, community development and education.

Focus Areas

Safety Grants

We strive to keep our customers and communities safe. That's why our funding is directed toward:

• Auto safety — improving driver, passenger, vehicle or roadway safety
• Home safety — shielding homes from fires, crime or natural disasters
• Disaster preparedness and mitigation
• Disaster recovery

Community Development

We support nonprofits that invest and develop stronger neighborhoods. That's why our funding is directed toward:

• Affordable housing — home construction and repair
• Commercial/small business development
• Job training
• Neighborhood revitalization
• Financial literacy
• Sustainable housing and transportation
• Food insecurity

Education

Our education funding is directed toward initiatives that support the following programs:

• Higher education
• K-12 academic performance
• K-12 STEM
• Pathways for college and career success

About Us

Mattina R. Proctor (1926-2005) was a compassionate philanthropist from Camden, Maine and Boston, Massachusetts. Ms. Proctor championed and funded many worthwhile projects to benefit those in need, protect the environment, and bring fine music, arts, and media to the people. In her memory, The Mattina R. Proctor Foundation continues to support charitable organizations and initiatives in Maine, Massachusetts and beyond that focus on education, healthcare, music, and environmental stewardship.

Need Based Giving

MRPF strives to make a difference with the grants we make. We prefer to focus our giving on particular projects rather than on general program support. Successful applicants are generally those who demonstrate a specific need related to our focus areas in Maine, Massachusetts and beyond.

Focus Areas 

Education

We support organizations that provide educational opportunities in music, performance, and in traditional trades and crafts. The foundation has supported projects at the university and secondary school levels, and programs that engage younger students. We are especially interested in projects that support music and trades education in traditionally underserved populations in Maine and Massachusetts.

The Arts 

We supports organizations and initiatives that bring fine music, arts, and media to the people primarily in Maine and Massachusetts with a special focus on opera. We generally focus our funding on performance and education organizations. In this focus area we tend to concentrate on funding opportunities where major foundation support is critical to the ongoing success of the applicant.

Healthcare

We support healthcare initiatives predominantly in Maine and the Boston area, for public health and medical research. Funding is provided for initiatives in diabetes research and care, dental care, and projects that seek to provide preventative healthcare to underserved populations in Maine.

Environmental Stewardship

We support organizations and campaigns that seek to acquire and protect land in the Midcoast region of Maine, both through direct acquisitions and via conservation easements. We tends to give to conservation organizations that demonstrate a desire to support rural economies through multiple-use management objectives, providing for continued agricultural and recreational uses, along with sustainable timber management programs. In all of our grants, the economic impact on jobs and the regional economy are important factors in the decision-making process.

About Us

Mattina R. Proctor (1926-2005) was a compassionate philanthropist from Camden, Maine and Boston, Massachusetts. Ms. Proctor championed and funded many worthwhile projects to benefit those in need, protect the environment, and bring fine music, arts, and media to the people. In her memory, The Mattina R. Proctor Foundation continues to support charitable organizations and initiatives in Maine and Massachusetts that focus on education, healthcare, music, and environmental stewardship.

Our Focus

MRPF supports organizations and initiatives primarily in Maine and Massachusetts that focus on education, healthcare, music, and environmental stewardship. Grants from MRPF typically range in size from $2,500 to $50,000. Grants are usually made for a specific project in a single year.

Multi-year grants may occasionally be made.

Need Based Giving

MRPF strives to make a difference with the grants we make.  Successful applicants are generally those who demonstrate a specific need related to our focus areas in Maine and Massachusetts.

Focus Area: Healthcare

We support healthcare initiatives predominantly in Maine and the Boston area, for public health and medical research. Funding is provided for initiatives in diabetes research and care, dental care, and projects that seek to provide preventative healthcare to underserved populations in Maine.

About Amgen

Amgen is one of the world’s leading biotechnology companies. Amgen is a values-based company, deeply rooted in science and innovation to transform new ideas and discoveries into medicines for patients with serious illnesses.

Amgen is committed to unlocking the potential of biology for patients suffering from serious illnesses by discovering, developing, manufacturing and delivering innovative human therapeutics. This approach begins by using tools like advanced human genetics to unravel the complexities of disease and understand the fundamentals of human biology.

Our belief—and the core of our strategy—is that innovative, highly differentiated medicines that provide large clinical benefits in addressing serious diseases are medicines that will not only help patients, but also will help reduce the social and economic burden of disease in society today.

Amgen focuses on areas of high unmet medical need and leverages its expertise to strive for solutions that improve health outcomes and dramatically improve people's lives. A biotechnology innovator since 1980, Amgen has grown to be one of the world's leading independent biotechnology companies, has reached millions of patients around the world and is developing a pipeline of medicines with breakaway potential.

Non-Healthcare Donations and Sponsorships

Amgen Charitable Donations and Sponsorships are focused on humanitarian, social, education and community programs.

The Sidney Stern Memorial Trust is devoted solely to the funding of charitable, scientific, medical and educational organizations.

The Board endeavors to support soundly-managed charitable organizations that give service with a broad scope, have a substantial effect on their target populations, and contribute materially to the general welfare. The Board does not discriminate on the basis of ethnicity, race, gender, sexual orientation or religion.

Wells Fargo and the Wells Fargo Foundation collaborate with a wide range of nonprofit organizations that align with our strategic funding priorities. We prioritize our funding to activities and programs that have a broad reach and support the needs of underserved communities. We aspire to have a positive impact on the communities we serve by using our financial and volunteer resources and business expertise in collaboration with community organizations to help solve complex societal problems.

• Financial health
• Housing affordability
• Small business growth
• Sustainability

We may also support other local needs in eligible communities such as disaster relief, arts and culture, civic engagement, education, human and social services, and workforce development. However, opportunities are limited as our intent is to direct the majority of our giving within our major focus areas.

Community

Wolverine Worldwide has a heritage of engaging with and serving the communities in which we live and work. As champions for positive change, it is our responsibility to enrich our global communities by giving our time and resources to make the world a better place.

As a company providing innovative footwear, apparel and accessories to consumers around the world, Wolverine Worldwide takes seriously its commitment to make the world a better place.

Founded in 1959, the Wolverine Worldwide Foundation represents our commitment to societal betterment, based on the idea that intentional support fosters stronger communities and more inclusive futures. We believe it’s our responsibility to improve our worldwide communities through dedicated time and contributions.

The Foundation stands on three pillars reflecting our brands, consumers, and employees.

Healthy Lives & Outdoors

Promoting healthy lifestyles and fostering a deep connection with nature. We do this through community programs and outdoor activities, we empower individuals to lead healthier, more active lives while appreciating and experiencing life outside.

Diversifying Trades & Talent

Committed to fostering diversity in skilled trades and industry talent by providing opportunities and resources to cultivate belonging in the workforce. We do this through education, mentorship, and community partnerships, we aim to create a more inclusive workplace.

Industry & Community Giving

Advancing industry causes through community programs, we ensure access to proper footwear, promote dignity, and foster long-term positive change and development. While focusing on the communities and regions we are in, we achieve this through planned giving, sustaining and growing community programs, and engagement opportunities.

Centene Charitable Foundation

Successful corporate citizenship happens when companies invest in the local organizations that know their communities best. The Centene Foundation works with our local partners on initiatives that focus on inclusion, the whole person and community development.

Vision

Centene’s purpose is transforming the health of the community, one person at a time. The Centene Foundation is an essential part of how we pursue this purpose. We achieve measurable impact for the communities we serve through partnerships and philanthropy efforts that invest in initiatives with holistic approaches to dismantling barriers to health.

Areas of Focus

Reflecting Centene’s commitment to the needs of those who rely on government-sponsored health care and to addressing social determinants of health and health equity, preference will be given to initiatives in three distinct areas of focus.

• Healthcare Access
• Social Services
• Education

Cummings $30 Million Grant Program

Cummings Foundation has awarded more than $600 million to date in greater Boston. In 2026, it will grant an additional $30 million. These funds will be shared by 150 local-area nonprofits and will be awarded as multi-year grants, to be paid over either three or 10 years.

Priority Funding Causes

The Cummings $30 Million Grant Program funds a wide variety of local causes related to:

Human services

• housing and food security, anti-poverty, disabilities, employment training, immigrant/refugee assistance, legal assistance, senior citizens, strong families/communities, youth activities/services

Social justice

• equity, anti-hate, opportunity gap remediation, representation

Education

• K-12/college, mentoring/tutoring, out-of-school time, complementary programs

Healthcare

• hospitals/clinics, mental health

The Environment

• environmental education, equitable access to outdoor spaces, recycling/waste reduction, sustainable agriculture and food systems (This program does not currently consider requests for research, land preservation, and large capital projects)

Ameriprise Financial Grantmaking

At Ameriprise Financial, giving back is deeply rooted in our culture. We’ve initiated positive change in the communities where we live and work for more than 120 years. We believe our community involvement enables us to actively live our values. Through grant making, volunteerism and employee and financial advisor gift matching programs, we support a diverse group of over 6,000 nonprofits across the country.

Focus Areas

Awarding grant dollars to nonprofits is one way we strengthen our communities and help individuals on a path to financial independence. To ensure we're meeting the needs of our communities and making an even greater collective impact, we focus on three key giving areas when awarding grants.

Volunteer engagement is a priority across all focus areas:

The engagement of Ameriprise employees and financial advisors is a critical component of our philanthropy. Whether it’s serving on a nonprofit board, engaging friends, clients and community members in volunteering or providing skills-based support, our relationships with nonprofits go deep. For this reason, we give priority across all focus areas to applications where there is active volunteer engagement of Ameriprise advisors and employees. 

Meeting Basic Needs

At Ameriprise Financial, we help clients achieve financial security and peace of mind. That’s satisfying, meaningful work. We also help the people in our neighborhoods who struggle to meet basic needs such as where their next meal comes from, where they’ll sleep tonight or how they’ll find a higher wage job. We’re here to help them through the three platforms of our Meeting Basic Needs focus area.

Consideration is given to applications addressing the following: 

• Hunger
• Food banks, food shelves and food pantries, daily meal programs or meal services for the homebound
• Hunger-relief programs targeted to meet the special needs of children, ethnic populations or veterans
• Food programs run by nonprofits where hunger is not their sole focus, for example a youth meal program at the YWCA or a backpack program run by a Boys & Girls Club
• Shelter
• Emergency shelter, including youth homelessness
• Transitional housing, permanent supportive housing and efforts to end chronic homelessness
• Housing-first models (programs quickly providing housing and then addressing needed services)
• Achieving and maintaining home ownership, repair and maintenance efforts helping keep seniors, veterans and other populations in their homes 
• Adult Self-Sufficiency: Programs serving adults age 21 and older that help address the following areas:
• Basic hard and soft skills that help adults achieve economic and family stability
• Basic financial and budgeting skills
• Increase employability and wages, including work readiness and job transitions
• Employment of disabled adults

Supporting Community Vitality

We believe communities should be strong, healthy and resilient. We want livable places for all, where neighbors look out for one another, cultural events are well-attended and people pull together in times of crisis and joy. We work to create economic vitality and cultural enrichment through the following areas of focus.

Consideration is given to applications addressing the following: 

• Community Development
• Neighborhood revitalization
• Economic development
• Strengthening and supporting small businesses and nonprofits through technical expertise
• Cultural Enrichment
• Arts education
• Access for underserved populations
• Diverse artists and performances that spark topical community conversations 

Volunteer Driven Causes: Ameriprise employees and financial advisors are outstanding volunteers who serve in teams and also as individuals bringing personal skill-sets to nonprofits. Volunteering is part of the culture at Ameriprise and we are proud to support communities through contributions of both service and financial resources. 

Funding for Volunteer-Driven Causes is determined by current Ameriprise volunteerism. In general, funding is in proportion to the size of the Ameriprise volunteer team supporting a nonprofit. A team may include employees, financial advisors and/or staff or a combination of any Ameriprise volunteers. 

Richard and Susan Smith Family Foundation

We are a private family foundation awarding more than $12.4 million in grants  to over 278 organizations in Greater Boston and Gateway Cities.

Our Mission

Our mission is to effect permanent positive change in the lives of individuals and families across Greater Boston, especially in economically disadvantaged communities.

We invest in organizations that improve human health, raise educational attainment, increase economic security, and meet community needs.

We believe in engaged, multigenerational family philanthropy as a means to have greater impact and to honor our family’s philanthropic legacy.

Small Capital Grants

Our Small Capital Grants program provides $25,000 to $100,000 grants for one-time capital expenses that strengthen a nonprofit’s ability to serve its clients and achieve its mission.

This support is particularly valuable because nonprofits can find it difficult to make these investments through their operating budgets.

Our Mission

The purpose of the Ono Initiative is to support scientist Principal Investigators (“PIs”) with creative ideas in selected scientific research fields with the mission of seeking discoveries/solutions and development of high impact science.

Goals

The goals of the Ono Initiative are:

• Supporting Innovation
  • Identify and help develop innovative research proposals and results that could lead to the development of breakthrough treatment solutions for patients.
• Promoting Scientists
  • Support academic research and the career development of promising young and established scientists.
• Building Relationships
  • Build strong relationships within the community in order to lead to transformative research aligned with the Ono Initiative’s goals.

Area of Research

Annually, the Ono Pharma Foundation considers proposals from PIs for research that could ultimately transform human health. Although additional areas of research may be added in future years, the Ono Pharma Foundation will only consider proposals for scientific research addressing Chemical Biology research.

Chemical Biology is defined as research that deals with the interface between chemistry and biology. The criteria for this field are deliberately broad so as not to disqualify potentially innovative and groundbreaking projects.

Selection Criteria

Applications will be assessed, and Awards will be made based upon the following criteria:

• Scientific merit of the research LOI and/or Proposal
• Relevance of proposed research to the mission of the Ono Initiative
  • Significance
  • Innovation
  • Approach
• Technical considerations for the research
  • Applications will be judged on their consideration and understanding of the technology required for completion.
• Qualifications and relevant experience of the PI
• Evidence of a suitable research environment

Funding

All grants awarded by Ono Pharma Foundation have a three year term.

Awards will consist of annual funding of $300,000/year, totaling a maximum of $900,000 for the normal term of a research project. The Ono Pharma Foundation will provide up to an additional 15% ($45,000) per year to be used for indirect costs of the PI’s institution. In total, Ono Pharma Foundation’s three-year research awards provide up to $1,035,000 to researchers and their institutions.

Awareness. Education. Prevention.  These are three key tenets of Bayer Fund’s investments in health and wellness.  With a focus on cancer and cardiovascular disease, we provide resources to organizations dedicated to educating and/or providing services to patients, caregivers and at-risk populations.

Health & Wellness Grants

Programs that Bayer Fund will support include those that focus on patients and their families needing assistance with issues to managing cardiovascular disease and cancer. This includes education, disease awareness, and supportive services for these diseases. In areas related to cardiovascular disease, priority (though not exclusivity) will be given to charitable organizations that focus on programs and support for the African American community due to the high incidence rate of disease in this population.

Giving in this category will focus on support services such as education, disease awareness, and general access to care (e.g., housing for families traveling for cancer or heart care).

All funding requests and budgets must be for program activities and expenses that start after funding decisions are made. All programs must be completed within one year of the start date, except in limited situations where longer term programs have been agreed upon. Grant award amounts vary, depending on the size of the community, the type of programming, and the reach of the organization.

Please see FAQs for additional guidelines.

The Boston Scientific Foundation’s mission is to improve health and open up educational opportunities for economically disadvantaged persons, with an emphasis on communities where Boston Scientific employees live and work in the United States.

Education

The Foundation supports programs focused on improving STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) educational opportunities and academic development for K-12 students who are economically disadvantaged.

Grants to benefit economically disadvantaged in education programs is defined as programs with:

• Minimum of 50% of program participants at 185% of poverty or lower OR
• Funding directed to participants at 185% of poverty or lower
• We do not fund dollars towards stipends for program participation

How do you select applicants?

We support programs that improve health and STEM education for economically disadvantaged persons. Applications are initially pre-screened, with qualified submissions then vetted by regional grant review committees. We are particularity interested in proposals that contain these elements:

Evidence based approaches that include a methodology for tracking and measuring improvements in STEM learning or specific health outcomes related to our focus areas.

Clear identification of the target audience and data used to determine the majority of grant beneficiaries (participants) are economically disadvantaged (e.g., household income, enrollment in Medicaid or SNAP benefits, census data for the neighborhood or community, etc.)

Cost-effective and results-oriented programs, where our contributions can make a long-term measurable difference in the quality of people’s lives and serve as a catalyst for positive change.

Mission: The McCarthy Family Foundation Charity Fund was established in 1956. The trustees have a preference for organizations and programs focusing in the areas of education, food, health and housing & shelter programs.

Requests for general operating and program support will be considered, as will requests for specific program-enabling capital improvements. Grants may be subject to matching obligations and payable over multiple years. On very rare occasions, the trustees will consider needs for emergency grants.

Smith Family Foundation Odyssey Award 

The Smith Family Foundation is committed to effecting permanent positive change in the lives of the residents of Greater Boston, particularly individuals and families in economically disadvantaged communities. In the area of health, the Foundation supports the advancement of biomedical research and the expansion of access to high-quality health care at safety net institutions serving low-income individuals and communities of Greater Boston.

The new Smith Family Foundation Odyssey Award was created in 2017 to fuel creativity and innovation in junior investigators in the basic sciences. The Award supports the pursuit of high impact ideas to generate breakthroughs and drive new directions in biomedical research. The awards will fund high-risk, high-reward pilot projects solicited from our brightest junior faculty in the region. All applicants must be internally selected by their institutions. Any School or College within an academic institution in Massachusetts may each submit up to two applications. Each hospital or free-standing nonprofit biomedical research facility in Massachusetts may also submit two applications. Departments within a hospital or academic setting do not constitute a separate entity. 

The Lawrence Foundation is a private family foundation focused on making grants to support environmental, human services and other causes.

The Lawrence Foundation was established in mid-2000. We make both program and operating grants and do not have any geographical restrictions on our grants. Nonprofit organizations that qualify for public charity status under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code or other similar organizations are eligible for grants from The Lawrence Foundation.  

Grant Amount and Types

Grants typically range between $5,000 - $10,000. In some limited cases we may make larger grants, but that is typically after we have gotten to know your organization over a period of time. We also generally don’t make multi-year grants, although we may fund the same organization on a year by year basis over a period of years.

General operating or program/project grant requests within our areas of interests are accepted. In general, regardless of whether a grant request is for general operating or program/project expenses, all of our grants will be issued as unrestricted grants.

Overview:

The City of Boston, through the Environment Department’s Air Pollution Control Commission (APCC) is seeking proposals from nonprofit organizations for community-based projects that reduce air pollution in the City of Boston. This grant program aims to improve public and environmental health while addressing local impacts of climate change.

About the Air Pollution Control Commission (APCC):

The APCC is responsible for developing and implementing clean air policies and programs within the City of Boston. This grant is funded by the Pollution Abatement Fund, established in 1984 to support pollution abatement programs through fees collected from environmental permits and fines. The Fund has primarily received permit fees from the parking freezes and has been used to support air quality initiatives under 310 CMR 7.33 and the Federal Clean Air Act.

Air Pollution in Boston:

Air pollution disproportionately affects historically marginalized communities in Boston, particularly those near highways and major transportation infrastructure. Exposure to pollutants such as particulate matter (PM), ozone, and greenhouse gases contributes to higher rates of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases.

Additionally, greenhouse gases like methane, ozone, and carbon dioxide contribute to climate change, leading to more severe flooding, storms, and heat waves. These climate impacts will disproportionately affect socially vulnerable populations, including black, indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC), low-income residents, older adults, and individuals with limited English proficiency.

To explore where climate risks are most significant, applicants may refer to the Massachusetts 2020 Environmental Justice Populations Map, which identifies environmental justice (EJ) block groups based on state-defined demographic criteria. 

Calling to Serve

Since its inception in 2016, the Robinson Foundation has sought to demonstrate God’s love through sharing the gifts we have received. We understand the often unspoken hardships and struggles that people in and outside of our community face everyday. As such, our contributions are focused on relieving these hardships for the betterment of our world.

As a family-operated foundation, we pray that our small efforts will not only create immediate change in the lives of our neighbors, but will help set those lives on a course for success in the future. We are thankful for each and every day we have on this earth to use what God has granted us to make a difference.

Areas of Interest

• Animal Welfare
• Children & Families
• Disaster Relief
• Education
• Medical Assistance
• Nature & Wildlife Conservation
• Poverty Relief
• Religious & Spiritual Endeavors
• Veterans' Issues

Grant Considerations

We take many different aspects of applications into account when making grant issuing decisions, however these are some of the high-level questions we ask ourselves during the process:

• How does the organization serve their key audience goals?
• Is the organization fiscally responsible?
• Will a grant have a tangible, meaningful impact?
• Will we see direct results from this grant?
• Does the organization have other financial contributors?

Priority Community Programs

Suffolk County (Boston), Massachusetts has been identified as the next community for intentional Foundation funding to advance coalition and community-driven solutions to improve health.

This funding opportunity builds on best practices and lessons learned in other communities.

Program expectations

Foundation applicants are expected to demonstrate the capacity to implement and evaluate community-driven and community-led solutions to meaningfully impact health outcomes with a focus on chronic cardiometabolic conditions and maternal/child health.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to:

• Apply as part of multi-sector coalitions, teams, or partnerships, and
• Articulate alignment of efforts to the most recently completed Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA)

The applicant is expected to describe intended outcomes of the proposed initiatives and illustrate the capacity to leverage local resources and partnerships to sustain program implementation and evaluation efforts.

Example outcomes

Examples include, but are not limited to:

• Community-clinical linkages - Novel approaches to delivering and coordinating sustainable healthcare and supportive community services for chronic cardiometabolic conditions (eg, diabetes, CVD, hypertension) and maternal/child health. Types of interventions could include care coordination via community health workers (CHW), promotoras or doulas, telehealth, and mobile care.
• Increased use of diagnostic testing and screening - Leveraging the value of no-cost testing through Quest Diagnostics to support grant-related activities and increasing patient engagement and activation through health education
• Social drivers of health - Efforts that emphasize the importance of social drivers of health (eg, food security, transportation) that lead to improved clinical and community health, and aligned with the most recently completed Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA).

Funding

• Estimated funding range - $100,000 to $1,000,000 per year
• Estimated period of performance - 1 to 2 years

Supporting Biomedical Innovation And Discovery By Early-career Investigators

For over 30 years, the Smith Family Foundation has been supporting groundbreaking medical research through the Smith Family Awards Program for Excellence in Biomedical Research. Its mission is to launch the careers of newly independent biomedical researchers with the ultimate goal of achieving medical breakthroughs. Applications focus on all fields of basic biomedical science and may also be submitted by investigators in physics, chemistry and engineering. Since 1992, the Program has funded 202 scientists for a total investment of $46.1 million.

Three year awards in the amount of $400,000 (inclusive of 5% overhead per year) target new faculty who are within three and a half years of their first independent appointment by the start of funding on April 1st. Applicants must be full-time faculty at nonprofit academic, medical or research institutions in Massachusetts, at Brown University or at Yale University. Further details regarding the eligibility requirements may be found in the “Application Guidelines” document.

In order to ensure that the strongest research candidates from eligible institutions are able to apply, the Smith Family Foundation is a two-stage application process in which the institutional nomination process is eliminated, and any eligible candidate is invited to submit an initial proposal. Applicant eligibility must be verified by the relevant department Chair and the institution’s Office of Sponsored Research or the initial proposal will not be considered. There is no limit on the number of applicants from a given institution. The Scientific Review Committee will select a subset of initial applicants to invite to submit full proposals.

Program Overview and Statement of Purpose

The Smith Family Foundation is committed to effecting permanent positive change in the lives of the residents of Greater Boston, particularly individuals and families in economically disadvantaged communities. In the area of health, the Foundation supports the advancement of biomedical research and the expansion of access to high-quality health care at safety net institutions serving low-income individuals and communities of Greater Boston.

The Smith Family Awards Program for Excellence in Biomedical Research was created in 1991 to launch the careers of newly independent biomedical researchers with the ultimate goal of achieving medical breakthroughs. Since 1992, the Program has funded 202 outstanding scientists and has provided $46.1 million in research support. 

The Smith Family Awards Program for Excellence in Biomedical Research is managed by Health Resources in Action (HRiA). HRiA is a non-profit organization that partners with individuals, organizations, and communities to transform the practices, policies, and systems that improve health and advance equity.

Research Focus

The three-year Award supports newly independent faculty engaged in basic or translational biomedical research. Investigators in the physical sciences (physics, chemistry, and engineering) whose projects focus on biomedical science are also encouraged to apply. While basic research projects involving human subjects, data, and samples are eligible, clinical trials research is beyond the scope of this program.

We invite proposals from starting faculty members who study a wide range of problems in diverse biological systems. For example, we have supported research as diverse as regulated translation in synapse formation, bacterial regulators of immunity, kinetochore function in centromere cohesion, neural codes for perception, and DNA damage pathways in tumors. We recognize that very basic biology discovered in systems ranging from bacteria to plants to human tumors can impact fields as distant as neural pathfinding and immune function. We welcome proposals that range from fundamental biology to translational research. Our review committees have traditionally been composed of researchers from diverse disciplines including bacterial and eukaryotic geneticists, immunologists, neurobiologists, developmental biologists, cancer biologists, and transcriptional regulation experts, who can assess a wide range of biological proposals.

In recognition of the importance of research collaboration within the scientific community, collaboration is an additional, but not required, positive ancillary factor. These projects may involve researchers within and/or outside the applicant’s institution.

The Boston Scientific Foundation

The Boston Scientific Foundation’s mission is to improve health and open up educational opportunities for economically disadvantaged persons, with an emphasis on communities where Boston Scientific employees live and work in the United States.

Health

Programs that aim to improve the health of those who are economically disadvantaged, with a focus on cancer, diabetes, respiratory, cardiovascular, neurological, mental wellness, gastrointestinal and urologic diseases and disorders through any one of these approaches.

• Disease prevention
• Disease awareness and diagnosis
• Access to care
• Quality of care

Gupta Family Foundation is a private, nonprofit foundation headquartered in Herndon, Virginia, USA. Our mission is to support organizations that provide focused intervention in the lives of people who have been disadvantaged in some way to help them become self-reliant. We take a very broad view of “disadvantage” to include anything that holds a person back from realizing their potential, such as poverty, physical or mental disability, social alienation, etc. The foundation also supports relief agencies that serve people affected by emergencies such as natural disasters.

The foundation evaluates and awards annual and multi-year grants ranging from $5,000 to over $250,000 (USD). Our focus is on funding smaller organizations all around the world that are led by individuals with a deep personal commitment to their missions. 

Our selection criteria include:

• Mission alignment
• The organization is run by the founder or, if not, by a successor who embodies the original inspiration, passion and commitment of the founder.
• At least 90% of grant monies reaches the intended beneficiaries.
• The organization is non-sectarian, i.e.,
  • It does not, directly or indirectly, support or condone the proselytization of any religion,
  • It is not supported by or affiliated to a religious organization.

Adelard A. and Valeda Lea Roy Foundation Grant

The AV Roy Foundation has historically supported a broad range of organizations working in the areas of arts and culture, churches, education, environmental education, food access, health, land trusts, museums, and social services. The Trustees prioritize grants serving greater Boston and underserved rural and urban communities in Massachusetts, with some additional grantmaking in other areas of Northern New England.

In an effort to ensure that applications to the Foundation closely match current giving priorities, the Trustees will give priority to Massachusetts and Northern New England applicants focused on the following:

• Environment: requests focused on land conservation, in particular projects close to completion and projects resulting in easements held by accredited land trusts; environmental education; and climate change
• Health and Welfare: basic human needs (with priority given to food security and housing); hospice and home health care
• Arts and Culture: in particular, arts access and education for disadvantaged, elderly, or youth populations, and historic preservation
• Education: schools serving youth from low income backgrounds, including independent schools
• Churches providing basic needs support and other social services programming, as well as capital needs for facilities or historic preservation

Funding

Grants typically range from $2,500 to $10,000. In 2023, the average grant was $3,800. The Trustees anticipate a slightly higher average grant size this year, and fewer grants in total.

About the Latino Equity Fund

The Latino Equity Fund (LEF) at the Boston Foundation is the first and only community fund in Massachusetts dedicated to activating, convening, and supporting the Latinx community in Greater Boston and across the Commonwealth. Established in 2013, LEF serves as a permanent resource to uplift Latinx voices, foster cross-sector partnerships, and advance systemic change. The Fund works to mobilize Latinx residents, nonprofit organizations, and community leaders toward Nuestro Futuro—Our Future. 

About this Application Cycle

For the FY26 grant cycle, LEF will award one-time $25,000 grants to 20 Latinx-serving nonprofit organizations within the Boston Foundation’s catchment area. LEF seeks proposals from community-based nonprofits advancing the well-being and economic mobility of Latinx residents in the following priority areas:

Basic needs:

• Housing stability  
• Food security
• Health care access (including, but not limited to: disabilities assistance, HIV prevention, elder care, mental health and well-being, and substance use)
• Legal aid  

Economic Mobility:

• Job readiness and career coaching
• ESOL and Language access
• Immigrant/refugee workforce integration
• Professional credentialing and certification