Search Through Grants for 501(c)(3) in South Dakota in the U.S.

Aberdeen Area Community Foundation Grants

The Aberdeen Area Community Foundation awards grants to non-profit and charitable organizations in Aberdeen and its surrounding communities in support of economic development, human services, health, education and cultural programs.

Grant-Making Guidelines

AACF is a Community Savings Account (“CSA”) pursuant to an agreement with the South Dakota Community Foundation (“SDCF”), a public, non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, the mission of which is to promote philanthropy, receive and administer charitable gifts and invest in a wide range of programs promoting the social and economic well being of the people of South Dakota. More than 60 local foundations across the State of South Dakota are administered as Community Savings Accounts operating as advised funds under the umbrella of SDCF.

Background

The Community Innovation program invests in great ideas and the people who power them across our region.

CI grants and program-related investments (PRIs) fund ideas that have the potential to make our region better for everyone. The idea can be related to any issue that a community believes is important. Through this program, we aim to:

• Develop, test and spread great ideas: CI grants support efforts to develop and test ideas to solve problems and create opportunities, then spread the best ideas across communities.
• Inspire, equip and connect leaders: Great ideas spread through people. CI grants invest in efforts to inspire, equip and connect leaders to more effectively lead change.

The potential for ideas to spread is a key aspect of this program. If an idea works, we want to understand if that idea could spread to other organizations or communities or issues. And if it doesn’t work as hoped, we want to know if there are lessons learned that can help others doing similar work. We also provide funds to help you understand and evaluate those lessons learned.

What We Fund

We fund the development and spread of great ideas. We make grants for ideas as varied as reimagining agricultural finance, Indigenizing tourism and adapting telehealth for people experiencing homelessness. We removed funding caps on our biggest grantmaking program, Community Innovation, and make large commitments to ensure that great ideas get the support needed for success. We tripled our grantmaking through community grant partners to make sure programs are designed with the communities served.

We invest directly in people. We know that change only happens when people make it happen. We invest in individuals through our Bush Fellowship program and by supporting amazing programs that help entrepreneurs thrive in rural areas and grows the next generation of Native leaders and leadership approaches. We also funded the creation of programs that help build generational wealth and support sabbaticals for leaders who are creating and nurturing community change.

We support organizations that support problem solvers. We offer flexible funding to organizations that we hear are the most highly valued by problem solvers in the region. We know we can directly fund only a small fraction of the great efforts happening in our region. And yet we can be even more helpful by supporting the work of organizations that others turn to for help in their own problem-solving efforts. We do this through Ecosystem grants and the Bush Prizes that are operated by our community grant partners.

About Us

Created in 1972, the South Dakota Humanities Council (SDHC) provides financial support to public humanities programs. SDHC is a non-profit organization and the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH).Besides providing financial support, SDHC offers a variety of educational and literary programs and houses the South Dakota Center for the Book.

Mission

The South Dakota Humanities Council celebrates literature, promotes civil conversation, and tells the stories that define our state.

Vision

The SDHC will lead statewide advocacy for the humanities, working with other partners to foster literary and civic engagement.

Strategic Priorities:

• Expand the community of readers and writers through literary events throughout South Dakota
• Engage communities in thoughtful conversation about our state’s cultural and historical landscape
• Diversify revenue sources

SDHC Grant Program

The South Dakota Humanities Council provides federal grant funding annually in three competitive categories: Discussion, Media and Research. Grant applications for $2,000 and under are accepted on a rolling basis while grant applications over $2,000 are due on February 28th and October 15th . Registered 501(c)3 nonprofits and certain tax-exempt groups may apply. The SDHC also awards financial assistance for Speakers Bureau visits, Book Club to Go and One Book South Dakota discussion; these programs, while not addressed in this document, are further detailed on the SDHC website and our annual Program Catalog.

All SDHC grants must advance the mission of the South Dakota Humanities Council and promote the humanities in American public life. Generally defined, the humanities are fields of study concerned with people, their values, and the human experience. According to the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965, as amended:

Because we live and work on the homeland of the people of the Oceti Sakowin (Lakota, Dakota, and Nakota), SDHC strives to acknowledge the stories of our state’s Indigenous people in all we do. We request that grantsponsored projects and programs include Native experiences, voices, and perspectives if appropriate. Further, all SDHC-sponsored projects must include active participation of a humanities scholar, defined as someone trained in a humanities discipline, earning an advanced degree, or an individual who can document their qualified experience in the humanities. 

Community Works

NorthWestern Energy is a community within many communities. We are close to 1,600 individuals working collectively to build stronger communities in Montana, Nebraska and South Dakota through the production, generation and delivery of electricity and natural gas.

Our goal is to be a leading corporate citizen in each of the diverse communities we serve. In 2019, our Community Works Fund contributed more than $2.1 million in economic development, charitable donations and community sponsorships. We are invested fully in the community spirit that connects us in common purpose.

Grant Categories

NorthWestern Energy wants to make the communities it serves better places to live, work and prosper. That's why we're proud to donate to a wide range of worthy causes. We encourage qualified nonprofit organizations that operate within our service territory to apply for donations through our NorthWestern Energy Charitable Giving program. Our local committees review requests year-round and determine funding.

While we seek to support a wide range of community activities, donations will generally be made to those non-profit groups that have the greatest opportunity for positively affecting the communities we serve and are focused in one of the following categories:

Education:

• Education remains a primary focus of the company. Donations to education will primarily be made through university system foundations and scholarship programs. Donations will also be made in support of local colleges, and special primary and secondary education programs in the fields of science, technology, math, and youth leadership.

Health And Human Services:

• Donations will be considered for organizations serving human needs such as the United Way, youth homes and special community health and safety needs. Donations will generally not be made to national health organizations or for medical equipment or research funds.

Civic And Community:

• Donations will be considered for civic improvement, special events, and youth and senior citizen organizations.

Culture And The Arts::

• Donations will be considered for local museums, libraries, cultural centers and the performing arts.

Resource Conservation::

• Donations will be considered for requests regarding environmental preservation including habitat, fish, and wildlife protection.

Purpose

Arts Opportunity Grants are interim grants designed to assist organizations present specific arts activities that arise as sudden opportunities during the course of the grant year and for which they could not meet the regular March 1 application deadline. Grants normally fund one-time events which are not part of the organization’s regular season of activities.

Grant Funding

No more than 50% of the total project costs may be requested from the Arts Council. Grants must be matched at least dollar for dollar by the applicant. In many cases, approved grant requests will be fully funded. Sometimes, however, grant approval will be for less than the amount requested. The final payment (10% of the grant amount) will be withheld until receipt of the grant evaluation.

This grant is designed primarily for organizations that are not current SDAC grant recipients; however, organizations receiving Arts Challenge, Importation of Musicians, and Project grant support will be granted an exception and considered for funding if, and only if, they meet the following condition: the special, one-time project for which funds are sought falls outside the scope of an organization’s usual and customary activities. Arts Challenge grant recipients, in particular, must specifically address in the grant narrative, why the proposed activity is uniquely different from the organization’s normal season of events.

Criteria for Awarding Grants

Applications are reviewed by staff with consideration given to:

• Eligibility of both the project and the organization.
• Complete description of the project.
• Contribution to overall quality of the arts in applicant’s community or region.
• Indication of need for SDAC support.
• Realistic budget showing a strong commitment by the organization and cash support from other public and private sources.

Purpose

The Excursion Program provides matching funds to South Dakota organizations to assist in transportation costs for taking K-12 students and persons with disabilities to programs co-sponsored by the South Dakota Arts Council in another town.

Each Excursion must include a minimum of eight K-12 students and/or persons with disabilities, traveling to an event outside their home town. [The former mileage requirement has been eliminated.] If private cars are used, it is expected that at least four people, including a chaperone, will be transported in each. In special cases involving the transportation of persons with disabilities or special needs students, excursion funds may be used even if the event is in the same town. Please contact the Arts Council office to determine if your situation meets that exception.

Grant Funding

Up to 50% of the total amount of cash transportation cost will be paid by the Council. 

If private vehicles are used for the Excursion, transportation cost should be computed using the state rate per mile. If an alternative mode of transportation is used (i.e. charter bus, rental van, etc.), a copy of the rental agreement which includes the transportation cost, must be submitted with this application.

Working Here Fund Grant

Our grant program has been supporting nonprofit organizations in Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming since 2013. Eleven years and more than $13.5 million later, the Working Here Fund grant program now offers greater financial support, sized to meet the needs of both small and large projects.

We offer three funding options through our Working Here Fund program — each with unique requirements to support our rural communities. Our focus areas include ag education, hunger and nutrition and rural disaster relief / essential services.

• Ag Education - Programs that support ag education for students, adults and families to expand their knowledge about agriculture through curriculum, programs, educational events, and other projects.
• Hunger and Nutrition - Initiatives focused on food insecurity that serve an immediate need, provide food rescue or help to break the hunger cycle.
• Rural Disaster Relief / Essential Services - Support in the event of natural disasters, assistance for first responders, or initiatives that impact life-and-death-situations.

Sample Projects

• Up to $5,000 -
  • Community gardens
  • Grain bin rescue equipment
  • 4-H and FFA Chapter projects
  • Food bank and pantry needs
  • Ag classroom curriculum and technology
• Up to $15,000 -
  • Start-up FFA Chapters
  • Essential services facilities/equipment
  • Greenhouses or high tunnel
  • Community ag facilities
• Up to $25,000 - 
  • Capital campaigns
  • Major agriculture or food distribution facility renovations
  • Rural disaster relief large equipment purchases and updates
  • Agricultural educational facility expansion programs
  • New agriculture education initiatives

Funding

We award grants of up to $5,000 each quarter. Twice a year, we award grants of up to $15,000 and up to $25,000. All grants align with our mission to serve agriculture and rural communities.

Typically, an organization is eligible to receive no more than one Working Here Fund grant within a 12-month period and no more than $25,000 since 2020.

Leo Niessen lived in Abington Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. In 1993, his foundation was funded from a testamentary bequest. He was a charitable man who also made substantial philanthropic gifts to Holy Redeemer Hospital during his lifetime. He had a special affinity for Red Cloud Indian School of Pine Ridge, South Dakota. To this day, the Co-Trustees of his foundation continue to support this school, as well as the Holy Redeemer Hospital and The Society for the Propagation of the Faith. All grants are made in memory of Leo Niessen and his family.MissionTo provide grants to qualified 501(c)(3) organizations supporting charitable, religious, scientific, literary, or educational purposes.Program areas

• Arts, culture and humanities
• Education
• Environment/animals
• Health 
• Human services 
• Public/society benefit 
• Religion

Mission

PFund Foundation builds equity with LGBTQ+ communities across the upper Midwest by providing grants and scholarships, developing leaders, and inspiring giving.

Vision

PFund Foundation invests in thriving and more equitable communities for queer people in the upper Midwest.

PRISM Fund

PRISM (Promoting Rural Interconnections for Sexual Minorities) grants support rural LGBTQ+ organizations from across PFund’s five-state service area.

The PRISM program works to increase the capacity and connection of rural LGBTQ+ serving organizations through grants, trainings and cohort collaboration.

PFund builds community and provides resources for LGBTQ+ individuals across the upper Midwest and the First Nations therein.

 Prioritized Communities

The LGBTQ+ community of the upper Midwest is not monolithic. Factors such as age, race/ethnicity, geography, disability, income, and gender all influence the challenges facing queer individuals. PFund Foundation recognizes that some subpopulations of the queer community may need elevated levels of support to achieve equitable outcomes. To address this need, PFund Foundation has identified three prioritized communities who are especially important to our work:

Queer People of Color

LGBTQ+ people who also belong to minority racial and ethnic groups experience additional oppression and discrimination—both inside and outside of queer communities. 

PFund demonstrates its commitment to queer people of color through its programs. 55% of 2022 PFund Scholars identify as Black, Indigenous, or People of Color. During the worst months of the COVID-19 pandemic, PFund launched a $90,000 emergency fund (now known as the Equity Fund) for queer entrepreneurs of color in Minneapolis to help their businesses survive the economic impacts of the coronavirus and unrest following the murder of George Floyd. In 2022, PFund offered a second round of grants from the Equity Fund for queer BIPOC business owners in Minneapolis.

Gender-Expansive People

Transgender, gender-expansive, and nonbinary individuals are being made the targets of discriminatory legislation and scapegoating at the regional and national levels. The pandemic has also disproportionately impacted transgender and gender non-conforming college students: the Williams Institute at UCLA found that transgender students were six times more likely to have been seriously ill or hospitalized with COVID-19 than their cisgender peers. 55% of 2022 PFund Scholars identify as transgender, gender non-conforming, genderqueer, or nonbinary.

Queer People in North and South Dakota

LGBTQ+ people living in North or South Dakota face a unique set of challenges, including the ongoing impacts of high COVID-19 rates, political environments actively hostile to queer and trans individuals, and fewer nonprofit resources for queer communities (especially outside of large cities). PFund estimates there are at least 82,000 queer individuals living in the Dakotas and the foundation is in the process of building a new targeted outreach program to LGBTQ+ people in rural areas the upper Midwest in 2022.

Battlefield Preservation Fund

Grants from the Battlefield Preservation Fund will serve as a catalyst to stimulate efforts to preserve battlefields, viewsheds, and related historic structures and to leverage fund-raising activities.

Eligible Activities

National Trust Preservation Fund grants are awarded for planning activities and education efforts focused on preservation. Grant funds can be used to launch new initiatives or to provide additional support to on-going efforts.

Planning

Supporting existing staff (nonprofit applicants only) or obtaining professional expertise in areas such as architecture, archaeology, engineering, preservation planning, land-use planning, and law. Eligible planning activities include, but are not limited to:

• Hiring a preservation architect or landscape architect, or funding existing staff with expertise in these areas, to produce a historic structure report or historic landscape master plan.
• Hiring a preservation planner, or funding existing staff with expertise in this area, to produce design guidelines for a historic district.
• Hiring a real estate development consultant, or funding existing staff with expertise in this area, to produce an economic feasibility study for the reuse of a threatened structure.
• Sponsoring a community forum to develop a shared vision for the future of a historic neighborhood.
• Organizational capacity building activities such as hiring fundraising consultants, conducting board training, etc.

Education and Outreach

Support for preservation education activities aimed at the public. The National Trust is particularly interested in programs aimed at reaching new audiences. Funding will be provided to projects that employ innovative techniques and formats aimed at introducing new audiences to the preservation movement, whether that be through education programming or conference sessions.

Guidelines

Grants from National Trust Preservation Funds (NTPF) are intended to encourage preservation at the local level by supporting on-going preservation work and by providing seed money for preservation projects. These grants help stimulate public discussion, enable local groups to gain the technical expertise needed for preservation projects, introduce the public to preservation concepts and techniques, and encourage financial participation by the private sector. A small grant at the right time can go a long way and is often the catalyst that inspires a community to take action on a preservation project. Grants generally start at $2,500 and range up to $5,000.

Eligible Activities

National Trust Preservation Fund grants are awarded for planning activities and education efforts focused on preservation. Grant funds can be used to launch new initiatives or to provide additional support to on-going efforts.

Planning: Supporting existing staff (nonprofit applicants only) or obtaining professional expertise in areas such as architecture, archaeology, engineering, preservation planning, land-use planning, and law. Eligible planning activities include, but are not limited to:

• Hiring a preservation architect or landscape architect, or funding existing staff with expertise in these areas, to produce a historic structure report or historic landscape master plan.
• Hiring a preservation planner, or funding existing staff with expertise in this area, to produce design guidelines for a historic district.
• Hiring a real estate development consultant, or funding existing staff with expertise in this area, to produce an economic feasibility study for the reuse of a threatened structure.
• Sponsoring a community forum to develop a shared vision for the future of a historic neighborhood.
• Organizational capacity building activities such as hiring fundraising consultants, conducting board training, etc.

Education and Outreach: Support for preservation education activities aimed at the public. The National Trust is particularly interested in programs aimed at reaching new audiences. Funding will be provided to projects that employ innovative techniques and formats aimed at introducing new audiences to the preservation movement, whether that be through education programming or conference sessions.

Fund Details

Created in 1990, The Larson Family Foundation is a private, non-profit organization. It was established by Dale Larson, former CEO and President of Larson Manufacturing Company. The purpose of establishing a foundation was a way for the Larson Family to give back to the community of Brookings and the state of South Dakota.

The Larson Family also recognizes that there are few foundations in the State of South Dakota to fulfill the need of the state's communities and citizens. It is the wish of the Larson Family to help improve the quality of life for all South Dakotans.

The Larson Family Foundation is comprised of a group of five Board Members who meet twice a year to review applications.

Larson Family Foundation Grants

The Foundation may grant support for several years. Funding commitments, however, are generally made on a year-to-year basis. The Foundation's maximum grant amount to award is $100,000.

Within these criteria, the Foundation provides support for new, expanding or sustaining program services, endowments, capital campaigns and general operating expenses, not including rent, utilities, office furniture, salaries, benefits, and computer equipment used for administrative purposes. The Foundation may consider salary and equipment expenses if they are part of expanding program services.

About the Fund

ELF is a 501(c)3 founded in 1996 with the goal of supporting endangered language preservation and documentation projects. Our main mechanism for supporting work on endangered languages has been funding grants to individuals, tribes, and museums. ELF’s grants have promoted work in over 60 countries and have funded a wide range of projects, from the development indigenous radio programs in South Dakota, to recording of the last living oral historian of the Shor language of western Siberia, to the establishment of orthographies and literacy materials to be used by endangered language teaching programs all over the world.

Language Legacies Grants

The Endangered Language Fund provides grants for language documentation and revitalization, and for linguistic fieldwork. The work most likely to be funded is that which serves both the native community and the field of linguistics, although projects which have immediate applicability to one group and more distant applicability to the other will also be considered.

The language involved must be in danger of disappearing within a generation or two. Endangerment is a continuum, and the location on the continuum is one factor in our funding decisions.

The MKARL Fund

Due to a generous contribution from an anonymous donor, combined with matching donations, the Endangered Language Fund is pleased to be able to expand the scope of its invited proposals through the MKARL Fund (in honor of Michael Krauss) to include work on archival initiatives and efforts. In particular, we encourage proposals that focus on the creation of archives, depositing material to archives, accessing archives, and the hosting of and/or attendance at workshops, seminars, or institutes that offer training and support on archiving activities and initiatives.

Funding

Grants are for a one-year period, though extensions may be applied for. We expect grants in this round to be less than $4,000, and to average about $2,000.

Due to a generous contribution from Stephen Anderson, awarded projects that focus on the following languages or language groups are eligible for supplemental funding​: Wakashan, Coast Salish and Bella Coola, Tlingit, Tsimshian, and Haida.

The International Phonetic Association is interested in co-funding awards for projects that include a phonetic component, especially systematic phonetic documentation of the kind leading to Illustrations of the IPA.

About Us - South Dakota Dental Association

The South Dakota Dental Association is the membership organization of dentists and allied dental staff in South Dakota. The SDDA has nearly 500 dentist members and more than 500 allied dental staff members statewide. Founded in 1883, the SDDA's mission is to promote the art and science of dentistry and the oral health of the public; educate the public on the benefits of quality preventive and restorative dentistry as provided by the entire dental health care team; and be of service to its members regarding practice health and their general welfare.

Mission Statement - South Dakota Dental Foundation 

The mission of the South Dakota Dental Foundation is to improve the oral health of all South Dakotans by educating dental professionals; by educating the public; by aiding in developing the future dental workforce; and, by serving individuals with dental needs. The South Dakota Dental Foundation is a nonprofit public foundation (501(c) (3) organization) formed by interested members of the South Dakota Dental Association to benefit the general public.

South Dakota Dental Foundation Grants

 Contributions are awarded for:

• dental health projects for the underserved
• dental and auxiliary student activities and scholarships
• dental education programs for the dental professional and the public
• continuing education and promotion of professional ethics
• recruitment of dentists and dental students to South Dakota 

Background

Nexus SD is a statewide collaboration of health care, human, and social service providers sharing information using an integrated technology platform and referral system to coordinate whole person care. The vision of Nexus SD is to streamline connections between multi-sector providers to address social needs and drive positive outcomes among populations at higher risk and that are underserved.

Purpose

The purpose of this funding opportunity is to address health disparities and social drivers of health to improve health outcomes through the implementation of Nexus SD.

Nexus SD is a statewide collaboration of health care, human and social service providers sharing information using an integrated technology platform and referral system to coordinate whole-person care. The vision of Nexus SD is to streamline connection between multi-sector providers to address social needs and drive positive outcomes among populations at higher risk and that are underserved.

Nexus SD is beneficial to our State in many ways:

• Individual Benefits:
  • Quicker connection to appropriate services
  • Telling their story only once
  • Additional needs identified through screenings
  • Elevated level of care and satisfaction
• Partner Benefits:
  • Access to comprehensive resource database
  • Streamlined referrals and communication between providers
  • Shared client story promotes rapid identification of social needs
  • Organizations can more effectively serve community members
  • Access to outcome data for measuring impact
• Community Benefits:
  • Community-level data to inform policy, planning and investment
  • Identification of unmet needs and barriers to access services
  • Infrastructure more effectively serves community members

Funding

Up to twenty-five organizations will be awarded through this opportunity. Applicants can receive up to $10,000 based on completion of various milestones.

Ecosystem Grants

The Bush Foundation works to inspire and support creative problem solving — within and across sectors — to make our region better for everyone. We know problem solving is hard. Our Ecosystem grant program provides operating support to the organizations that support the people doing this work.

Some might call these infrastructure organizations or intermediary organizations or just can’t-do-without organizations. We call them Ecosystem organizations because they create the environment needed for organizations and leaders to solve problems. 

The Ecosystem program primarily supports organizations helping people solve problems across a number of issues, rather than orgs focused on a particular issue area. The exceptions to this are organizations working on spreading student-centered learning or using the arts to address community challenges. (These exceptions reflect our long-standing commitments to education and the arts.) We also want to make sure we are funding organizations focused on Native nation building in ways that support sovereignty. 

What We Fund

We award Ecosystem grants to organizations that other organizations and leaders within our region rely heavily on to do one or more of the following:

• Provide critical data and analysis.
• Advance public awareness and policy.
• Spread great ideas and build capacity.
• Build and support leadership networks.

Ecosystem grantees work across a variety of issues, or on one of three specific issues: supporting the sovereignty of Native nations, spreading student-centered learning, or using art to solve community problems. Organizations may apply to receive as much as $450,000 over three years in operating support. The annual grant amount is typically 25% of the organization’s expenses, up to $150,000 per year. All Ecosystem grantees receive an additional $10,000 in capacity building funds to build or increase their skills to work across differences. 

Background

Located in the Black Hills of western South Dakota, Liv Hospitality, LLC is an independent, professional hospitality management company featuring award-winning properties near some of the most captivating vacation destinations in the country. From the largest indoor waterpark in the Dakotas to full-service gaming resorts, Liv Hotel Group specializes in the development, ownership, marketing, and management of over a dozen Black Hills hotels, resort properties, restaurants, gaming establishments, and bars in Rapid City and Deadwood, S.D.

We believe in the importance of investing in our local communities, and in turn, investing in the people who help us become the best. Every year, Liv Hospitality gives back to local charities and other worthy causes, and we encourage participation for various fundraising events and volunteer efforts.

The LIV TO GIVE Community Grant

LIV TO GIVE got its start in 2007 originally as "Kevin Morsching Day," an event held to honor Kevin Morsching who lost his life after a tragic accident. This event raised over $30,000 and launched a spirit of giving, as it continues to give back to the community to this day, with reoccurring donations made to the Arete Foundation in memory of Kevin Morsching and the Scott Grimsrud Scholarship, an award that started in 2009 to honor Scott Grimsrud, a friend of the organization and an inspiration to many in the community. 

That same year, the LIV to GIVE Fund was established at the Black Hills Area Community Foundation as a way to give back to the community. To date the LIV TO GIVE has contributed more than $500,000 to many amazing causes and organizations in our community. 

Invest Native

Wells Fargo announces a Notice of Funding Opportunity for Invest Native, a $20 million philanthropic commitment to Native American communities in six states. The Invest Native initiative aims to impact work within Wells Fargo’s four priority philanthropic pillars of Housing Access and Affordability, Small Business Growth, Financial Health, and Sustainability & Climate Resilience among Native American communities in Arizona, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming. The program is designed as a grantmaking initiative to support a more equitable and prosperous future for Native Americans.

Implementation Grant

Implementation grants are one-year grants up to $400,000. Funding will be for project/program costs aligned with one of the four focus areas including strengthening housing access & affordability, small business growth, financial health, and sustainability & climate resilience.

Funding Pillars

Projects must fit within one of Invest Native’s four funding pillars to be eligible. These pillars are:

• Small Business Growth: Focus is to primarily support initiatives that accelerate growth opportunities for established small businesses to help them scale. Investments center on key drivers of growth: Capital, Network, and Knowledge.
• Sustainability & Climate Resiliency: Focus is to support sustainability initiatives that drive an equity-focused transition to a low-carbon economy, with a focus on mitigating climate impacts and facilitating transition opportunities in low and moderate income (LMI) communities. Emphasis is to expand availability and access to sustainable finance transactions in LMI communities and developing and centering community power.
• Financial Health: Focus is to invest in foundational structures and transformative solutions that address systemic inequities, build financial security, and advance wealth and legacy creation among historically marginalized communities. Emphasis is on financial stability (including financial access, asset building and financial counseling).
• Housing Affordability & Access: Focus is to strive to foster interventions and innovative solutions that increase access to affordable, sustainable, and wealth-generating housing for vulnerable populations and communities. Emphasis will be on keeping people housed, housing stability, and opening doors to access.

About the Bush Prize

The Bush Prize celebrates organizations that are highly valued within their communities and have a track record of successful community problem solving.

Bush Prize grants are flexible and can be used to build up reserves or test that next big idea or whatever else would best support the organization's ongoing good work. The grant amounts are up to 25% of an organization’s most recent fiscal year expenses, with a maximum of $500,000.

Previously known as the Bush Prize for Community Innovation, the program is now known as the Bush Prize and is done in partnership between the Bush Foundation and its four community grant partners – Good Relatives Collaborative, Headwaters Foundation for Justice, South Dakota Community Foundation and Strengthen ND.

Each partner operates the Bush Prize using similar criteria and announces the winners at the same time yet has the flexibility to run different application and selection timelines. The four partners also will select and announce the Bush Prize winners, as well as provide any support along the way.

Bush Prize: South Dakota

The Bush Prize: South Dakota is done in partnership between the Bush Foundation and the South Dakota Community Foundation.

The South Dakota Community Foundation will select and announce the Bush Prize winners, as well as provide any support along the way.

About the Bush Prize

The Bush Prize celebrates organizations that are highly valued within their communities and have a track record of successful community problem solving.

Bush Prize grants are flexible and can be used to build up reserves or test that next big idea or whatever else would best support the organization's ongoing good work. The grant amounts are up to 25% of an organization’s most recent fiscal year expenses, with a maximum of $500,000.

Previously known as the Bush Prize for Community Innovation, the program is now known as the Bush Prize and is done in partnership between the Bush Foundation and its four community grant partners – Good Relatives Collaborative, Headwaters Foundation for Justice, South Dakota Community Foundation and Strengthen ND.

Each partner operates the Bush Prize using similar criteria and announces the winners at the same time yet has the flexibility to run different application and selection timelines. The four partners also will select and announce the Bush Prize winners, as well as provide any support along the way.

The Bush Prize: Native Nations

The Bush Prize: Native Nations is an annual award that celebrates Native-led organizations that have a culture of innovation and a history of building creative solutions for challenges in Native communities.

Bush Prize: Native Nations winners will receive a grant of up to 25% of the organizations last fiscal year expenses up to $500,000. Bush Prize Grants are flexible general operating funds that can be used to support the organizations ongoing good work in what ever way best suits their needs.

Bush Prize: Native Nations winners will be Native-led organizations that are highly valued within their communities and have a track record of successful community problem-solving. Their core work applies inclusive, collaborative, and resourceful practices that support community-powered solutions.

About GIG Fund

The GIG Fund is a grant of $2,000-4,000 that supports creative projects and educational events in the Midwest. These funds help organizations present artists in their community by supporting programming and touring costs.

The GIG Fund provides flexible grants for nonprofit organizations to support programs and activities featuring professional artists. GIG Fund grants help cover fees for touring or local artists. Funds may also be used for project costs such as accessibility accommodations and marketing. We work with a panel to help us review applications and distribute grants annually.

Bush Foundation

We invest in great ideas and the people who power them in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and the 23 Native nations that share this geography.

We support a range of community-based programs that are operated by organizations with the relationships and experiences to serve their communities well.

Good Relatives Collaborative

Our Mission

The Good Relatives Collaborative provides responsive grants to grassroots and Native led organizations engaged in community-powered solutions.

The Good Relatives Collaborative is made up of three partner organizations who came together for the specific purpose of making philanthropy accessible to Indigenous people. Each organization is deeply rooted in their community and follows their own mission in how they serve Native people. The collaborative is organized around shared values and agrees that the current funding models are not responsive to the needs of Native organizations engaged in community-centered problem solving.

The Good Relatives Collaborative is looking to fund projects that will integrate, enhance and address community leadership, community healing, cultural revitalization, and capacity building by encouraging cooperation, collaboration, and reciprocity across the region in holistic and innovative ways.

Grants

We are guided in this process by the Native worldview of the life cycle and we recognize that every organization or group seeking funding may be at different stages of development. We see a priority need for development of new and exploring Native-led and serving organizations who need guidance in their stage of growth. We also hope to support more established and mature Native-led and serving organizations through their ongoing growth and encourage sharing of knowledge and wisdom. We encourage applicants at all stages of growth to apply and evolve through the process of learning and teaching.

Eight honorees will receive a grant of $50,000 and eight additional honorees will receive grants of $100,000. All Good Relative Collaborative Grants are unrestricted.

Adams-Mastrovich Family Foundation Grant

The Adams-Mastrovich Family Foundation is organized exclusively for charitable, educational, religious, and scientific purposes. In accordance with the wishes of the donor, the Adams-Mastrovich Family Foundation supports only charitable organizations located in or serving citizens of Los Angeles County, California, and South Dakota.

Mission

To support charitable causes in the areas of education, religion, health, human services, and the arts to organizations located in or serving citizens of Los Angeles County, California, and South Dakota. 

Program areas 

• Arts, culture, and humanities  
• Education
• Health
• Human services
• Religion

Grantmaking priorities:

Social service organizations and programs serving the needs of women, particularly victims of domestic violence and women who are mentally ill.

Special consideration will be given to organizations that:

• Were supported by the donor during her lifetime
• Provide emergency and/or transitional housing
• Promote self-sufficiency through education, training, or employment
• Assist women in improving their parenting skills
• Serve the poor and needy
• Support music and performing arts with special consideration given to programs serving high school and college-age students of theatre, vocal, or orchestral music.

Our Priorities

We focus our resources on the communities where we work and live. Our funds are for innovative projects and programs that create measurable impacts in our areas of emphasis.

The Foundation will consider requests from qualified organizations to support operating budgets and capital fund programs for the construction, refurbishment or purchase of buildings, structures, equipment or physical enhancements.

Education

Especially early childhood education initiatives and programs that support schools of higher learning with special interest in curricula and capital improvements in the study of business, political science, economics, engineering, and natural/physical sciences as they relate to the energy and industrial industries. 

Health and Human Services

Including initiatives and programs that help individuals and families struggling with daily living challenges, including hunger, poverty, domestic violence, homelessness, and disabilities.

Community, Civic, and Cultural Development

Programs and projects that focus on local, regional, or statewide economic and cultural development, including efforts that increase awareness of culture and the arts and encourage their growth, particularly for regions or populations that would otherwise be unable to participate.

Environment

programs that emphasize sustainability, preservation, environmental education, and stewardship of our land, water, and air with an emphasis on collaborative programs that strengthen ties between businesses and communities.

About Black hills area Community Foundation

Our mission is to lead solutions, give with purpose, and thrive together.

We invest in nonprofits, help donors enjoy giving, and manage initiatives to address key issues. We’re the only Community Foundation solely focused on serving the Black Hills area, spanning Butte, Meade, Lawrence, Pennington, Custer, Oglala Lakota, and Fall River counties.

As of 2025, Black Hills Area Community Foundation manages $70 million in assets and has invested more than $40 million in grants and scholarships since its establishment in 2006.

Jim Hess Community Forward Grant

The Jim Hess Community Forward Grant is offered to nonprofits conducting activities in the Northern Hills of South Dakota, including Butte, Lawrence and Meade Counties. 

BHACF will award two $15,000 grants to nonprofits that employ creative ideas, leverage community partnerships and focus on sustainable practices. 

PFund Foundation

As the only queer community foundation serving the upper Midwest region of Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Wisconsin, and the First Nations therein, PFund builds community and provides resources for LGBTQ+ individuals by providing grants and scholarships, developing leaders, and inspiring giving.

The Bisexual+ Fund

The Bi+ Fund supports the vitality of bisexual+ communities across the upper Midwest.

Originally started in 1988, PFund Foundation’s Bi+ Fund grants have been awarded to dozens of bisexual-led and -serving organizations across the upper Midwest.

These are general operating grants ranging from $1,500 - $3,000 for organizations primarily serving bisexual+ communities.

Media Partnerships Program

For our region to work well for everyone, we need quality news and information to understand what’s happening in our communities and how we can work together to solve tough problems.

• We also know that producing high-quality, engaging information that breaks through the information overload of the digital age is increasingly difficult and expensive. It requires an experienced community of writers, journalists and storytellers. It requires up-to-date technologies. It requires a strong desire to tell the stories that might not otherwise be told.

We work with nonprofit media organizations throughout the region to support their coverage of news, information and stories that help more people and organizations work together to make our region better for everyone.

By supporting nonprofit media organizations, we also are able to:

• Amplify our work and offerings and that of our grantees
• Raise awareness throughout our grantmaking region about the stories and people doing creative problem solving
• Help people and organizations connect who are working on similar efforts

This program is distinct from our other grantmaking programs. The grants support general operations, and our partners support specific Foundation communications projects. For instance, we might place public service announcements with a partner or announce the Bush Fellows each year.

What We Fund

We provide three-year, flexible, operating grants to nonprofit news media organizations that meet the program criteria.

We then work with each organization to explore possible projects for amplifying our work and that of our grant partners. To do this well, the Foundation and media partner agrees to:

• Be transparent about the partnership, benefits and funds involved.
• Ensure creative and editorial independence. Media partners are not obligated to produce coverage about the Foundation or take particular positions in their reporting.
• Negotiate reasonable benefits. There is no requirement that benefits must equal the grant amount.

Organizations may receive a total of up to $150,000 in operating support over three years. The annual grant amount is typically 25% of the organization’s expenses, up to $50,000 per year. We expect that to be roughly 10 grants.

Selection Criteria

We are interested in organizations that can demonstrate all of the following to some degree:

• The organization is able to reach diverse audiences, which can include age, geography, race and ethnicity, sector or perspectives.
• The organization is recognized as a trusted, recognized or quality source of information.
• The organization provides content representative of the communities and audiences it serves.
• The organization collaborates with others in the field to share and distribute news and stories to more audiences.
• The organization aligns with Bush operating values.