Search Through Grants for Capital Funding in New Jersey in the U.S.

Connelly Foundation Grant

Inspired by our Catholic heritage, the mission of the Connelly Foundation is to create access for those in need and opportunity for those with vision.

Since its founding in 1955, the Connelly Foundation has been a responsive and proactive grantmaking organization awarding grants to nonprofits in the Philadelphia area that demonstrate outstanding performance in meeting community needs.

Focus Areas

To achieve its mission to create access for those in need and opportunity for those with vision, the Connelly Foundation provides grants toward costs associated with programs, direct services, general operations, and capital projects to nonprofit organizations and institutions working in the following fields:

Education: Promoting Access to and Excellence in PreK-12 Catholic Education 

The Connelly Foundation is committed to helping Philadelphia-area Catholic schools thrive. The Foundation’s grantmaking and signature education initiatives prioritize: 

• Programs that support or improve the academic quality of local Catholic schools 
• Investments in talent that attract, develop, and retain high-quality teachers and leaders in schools and systems 
• Efforts for strategic improvement around enrollment growth and financial sustainability 
• Strategies to increase access to a high-quality Catholic education.

Human Services: Essential Needs and a Path to Stability

The Connelly Foundation’s Human Services grantmaking reflects the compassion of our Founders, John and Josephine Connelly, and their respect for human dignity. Inspired by our Catholic heritage, we seek to alleviate urgent, basic needs through access to food, emergency shelter, clothing, and critical home repair. We strive to create pathways to stability and independence through investments in youth and workforce development.

• Our Human Services Funding Priorities:
  • Basic Needs: Alleviating urgent needs through access to food, emergency shelter, clothing, and critical home repair
  • Investing in Youth: Supporting evidence-based or outcome-focused youth out-of-school time programs
  • Workforce development: Creating pathways to sustainable employment and stability through foundational skill building, entrepreneurship, and workforce development programs

Culture & Civic Life: Rewarding Destinations that Inspire 

In a region where civic and cultural opportunities abound, the primary focus of our "investment" in the arts is to support access and the development and delivery of educational programs.

Grants are awarded to organizations that strive to engage a broad audience and bridge cultural boundaries.  

The Foundation seeks to identify and support sites and projects that provide a deep appreciation of Philadelphia's rich heritage. 

Criteria 

• The degree to which the proposal directly addresses and furthers the Connelly Foundation’s objectives and goals .
• The significance of the problem or need addressed by the proposed program .
• The overall quality of the proposal and whether the organization has made a convincing case that funding to the organization will facilitate more effective and efficient service delivery to constituents
• The history and stability of the organization with regard to board, management, and financial support
• The organization’s track record, prior accomplishments and unique role in providing service to its specific constituencies
• The reasonableness of the prepared budget

JOIN! is focused on reinvigorating civic engagement, building social capital, and enhancing community connections.

Grant Purpose

The JOIN! Grant opportunity is an extension of our 2024 Winter CEO Event which featured Pete Davis, co-director of the documentary film “Join or Die” which is now streaming on Netflix. JOIN! is about civic engagement, building social capital, and enhancing community connections. You can learn more about the film here. We also have a limited number of copies of the book “The Upswing” by Robert D. Putnam with Shaylyn Romney Garrett, available by calling the Foundation office. 

OSI partners with conservation organizations in the Northeast to assemble networks of protected lands most likely to preserve plant and animal diversity in a changing climate. The Fund supports projects in four focus areas in New England, the mid-Atlantic, and the Central Appalachians offering the greatest opportunity to conserve missing links for resiliency in the overall landscape.

Grant Opportunities

The Fund provides capital grants and loans to qualified non-profits for the acquisition of land or conservation easements on climate-resilient lands, capitalized with a grant from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. Through an in-depth review process, we selected four focus areas in order to target funds most effectively. A fact brochure with maps for each focus area can be downloaded:

Potomac Headwaters – West Virginia & Virginia

Highlands and Kittatinny Ridge – New Jersey & Pennsylvania

Middle Connecticut River – Vermont & Massachusetts

Southern New Hampshire & Maine Forests 

The Healthcare Foundation of NJ Grant

Our Mission

The mission of the Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey is to improve the health and well-being of vulnerable, underserved populations in greater Newark and the Jewish Community of MetroWest NJ, elevate the quality of community healthcare, reduce disparities in access, and promote the infusion of compassion and humanism into our healthcare system.The Foundation seeks to seed new initiatives, identify and expand existing healthcare programs, support appropriate clinical and medical research, promote medical education to positively impact its targeted communities, and engage in partnerships to foster its goals.Important Attributes of the Grant Proposal

Please note that the Foundation receives more requests for funding than it has available funds to support many worthwhile projects. In reviewing applications for funding, the trustees and staff of the Foundation are sensitive to the following six concerns:

• Mission Appropriateness: A thoughtfully-designed proposal will demonstrate how the project will have a positive impact on the health and well-being of underserved populations within the communities in our catchment area. We welcome requests from healthcare/mental health providers, community-based organizations, affinity groups, and neighborhood agencies that can demonstrate the capacity for community engagement and cultural competency in serving clients or constituents. Initiatives may address clinical care needs; behavioral health; health-related prevention or promotion initiatives; and health education/literacy. For a more detailed view of our grantmaking by health area, please click here.
• Potential for Systems Impact: The Foundation seeks proposals that promise innovation and change or a significant enhancement of existing services. Applications that can demonstrate measurable quantitative as well as qualitative outcomes mitigating long-standing barriers to health and healthy living will be favored. In addition, we look for the ways in which the applicant partners with and works collaboratively with key stakeholders and community groups.
• Plan for Assessment and Evaluation: Proposals should clearly identify the target population(s), the numbers of clients served, and the specific outcomes grantees seek to achieve, both within the grant period and longer term. The Project Evaluation Chart (logic model) is a key component of the proposal, and it illustrates the direct relationship between program objectives, activities, measures for data collection, and the outcomes. The strength of a plan to measure and prove the impact of a project will be a key consideration.
• Potential for Fit/Partnership: The Foundation seeks grantee partners that are ably led, strive to empower those they serve, and work collaboratively in their communities. Potential grantees should be able to demonstrate a track record of programmatic integrity and success. Grantees are expected to meet high standards of governance, accountability, and fiscal management. At all times, Foundation trustees and staff strive to be respectful, responsive, transparent and collaborative, and we look for the same in our grantees.
• Grant Budget: The budget request should be commensurate with its anticipated impact. Indirect or overhead costs are not automatically funded and are considered on a case-by-case basis.
• Sustainability: Grantees should always demonstrate how they are working toward supporting the development, implementation, and sustainability of promising programs. The plan for sustainable funding beyond HFNJ’s support plays a critical role in the proposal review. The Foundation allocates funding on a yearly basis and may allow some organizations to submit renewal requests one year after an initial grant award. In such cases, a grantee needs to demonstrate progress in the first grant year and demonstrate how additional support will further the project.

Core Mission Grant

Impact100 South Jersey is a women’s collective giving group that seeks to bring together over 100 women as members who make $1,000 contributions that will be used to give high-impact grants to local organizations. The goal is to once a year give a minimum of $100,000 to organizations that are thoroughly vetted and selected by Impact100 South Jersey members.

Impact100 South Jersey is part of a growing international movement that empowers women to achieve a transformational change in their community.

Focus Areas

We have three focus areas for our grant applications:

Women, Children and Families

• Projects that strengthen the lives of women, children, (including teens) or families.

Education

• Projects that advance or improve access to learning opportunities for children, teens or adults.

Community Health and Wellbeing

• Projects that seek to meet the basic needs of community members, or otherwise provide significant opportunities for improving physical or mental health.

About Us

Preserving, Promoting and Enhancing the Summer Camp Experience for All

The American Camp Association, NY and NJ (ACA, NY & NJ) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to enhancing the summer camp experience. We are an association of a diverse range of organizations, including nonprofit and private camps, day and overnight camps, religiously affiliated camps, programs serving people with special needs, specialty camps, youth development organizations, and independent and private school programs. 

The Scott Ralls Fund was established to honor the memory of Scott Ralls, past President and longtime volunteer of the American Camp Association, New York and New Jersey. Scott was a passionate advocate for the camp industry and worked tirelessly to ensure that all camps had the resources they needed to succeed.

The fund provides capital improvement support to nonprofit camps that are accredited by the American Camp Association, New York and New Jersey. Since its inception, the Scott Ralls Fund has distributed more than $372,000 to nonprofit accredited camps across the region to help them enhance the camp experience for generations to come.

Our Mission

The Columbia Bank Foundation is committed to serving the needs of its local communities. The Foundation actively seeks and focuses on innovative programs that provide a measurable impact in the communities that it serves.

Who We Serve

CBF resources are allocated with priority given to requests that benefit low-and-moderate income individuals and communities within Columbia Bank’s footprint. The primary goals and objectives of the Foundation are to identify community based non-profits, civic, business and charitable organizations that meet the necessary Foundation criteria, and to provide support funding for their service initiatives.

Community Grant Program

Our Community Grant Program is a testament to our commitment to uplift individuals and communities within our footprint. We identify community-based non-profits, civic organizations, businesses, and charities, to provide funding that fuels their impactful service initiatives. Applications for the Community Grant Program will be accepted for $7,501-$15,000.

Charitable contributions from the Foundation will be focused on supporting the following major areas:

Community investment and economic development

We aim to strengthen our communities, by addressing the economic needs of individuals and families; enhancing the community’s financial health through economic development and investment and community sponsored events; improving neighborhood revitalization and promoting small business expansion. 

Financial literacy and education

Education is critical to us and for that reason we support programs that enrich a child’s educational opportunities, early childhood development and special education programs, with preferences given to those programs targeting low-and- moderate income individuals. Educational programs designed to meet the housing needs of low and moderate income population, local housing coalitions, housing crisis programs, homeownership counseling and other financial services education.

Health and human services

It is important to be healthy and well. The foundation supports programs that revitalize or stabilize low-and-moderate income areas and/or community services and initiatives that provide access to quality healthcare programs. 

Food insecurity

We aim to provide low-and-moderate income people access to healthy food and meals to improve one’s quality of life.

Environmental sustainability

We believe that it is important to support programs that will help create environmentally conscious communities and assist in the conservation of our natural resources and protection of our global ecosystems. 

The Arts

We believe that association with arts and cultural institutions sustain the vitality of communities while providing opportunities to expand economic growth. The arts also create vivacious and exciting opportunities for our youth. 

Supporting Safe Havens for Survivors & Their Pets

Karen Lindemann had a deep, abiding love for her companions. She had a 150-pound dog who was devoted to her and nursed Quinn, a rescue pet, back to health after the cat became ill with feline leukemia.

This love inspired Karen to connect with staff at 180 Turning Lives Around, a non-profit in Monmouth County that provides refuge to domestic violence and sexual assault survivors while empowering them to heal. It also compelled the donor to make a unique offer after learning about the lack of space for pets at safe houses.

No DV shelters had ever provided this service in New Jersey. But Karen championed the need for a sanctuary so passionately to the organization’s Board of Trustees that the board member who was most opposed to the idea became its staunchest advocate. Together, 180 Turning Lives Around and Karen created a Safe House program that continues today.

An Idea Evolves Into a Statewide Initiative

Thanks to Quinn’s Corner, the initial fund (named after the beloved cat who outlived Karen) supported a safe haven that welcomes both survivors and their pets and it has been the only shelter of its kind for many years. But that will change soon. With the launch of Karen’s legacy fund in 2024, Quinn’s Corner has evolved to include a new purpose — ensuring that at least one DV shelter, in all 21 counties, can be a sanctuary for New Jerseyans and their companions.

Statistics indicate that nearly half of survivors stay with an abuser instead of leaving their pet behind. And up to 25% of them will return home because the abuser is using a survivor’s pet to get them back. With the support of the fund, CFNJ is honored to steward Karen’s charitable vision of providing a safe place for survivors to recover and rebuild with their companions by their side.

By early 2025, CFNJ will collaborate with NJCEDV on additional grantmaking including:

• Funding a shelter staff position of Pet Advocate
• Capital expenses related to including pets in shelters
• Emergency or ongoing expenses supporting DV survivors and their pets

About The Memorial Trust

In 1975, two years after his death, The John Ben Snow Memorial Trust was established in New York. The four original trustees were a member of the Snow family, a lawyer, a publishing associate and a corporate trustee, the Irving Trust Company, now BNY Mellow N.A.. The current Trustees continue this legacy being well aware of the donor and his beliefs, values and ideals. The John Ben Snow Memorial Trust strategically focuses funding within specific geographic regions of the United States across a range of program areas. They meet once a year, usually in June.

The John Ben Snow Memorial Trust

The Memorial Trust strategically focuses funding within specific geographic regions of the United States across a range of program areas (prioritized below and visually depicted here) while responding to the ever-changing needs of various segments of the population, especially to the needs of youth and people who are disadvantaged economically, emotionally, or physically.

Dating back to the inception of the Trust in 1973, the primary and overarching grant making priority has been and continues to be programs that focus on education.

• Education: Targets funds to organizations that provide educational opportunities or academic assistance to individuals who demonstrate an intellectual aptitude and a financial need. Examples include scholarships, fellowships, academic tutoring or counseling, literacy, and journalism.

Secondarily, the Trust considers proposals within the areas of Arts and Culture, Community Initiatives, and Youth Programs. The Board’s objective is to extend the primary educational focus by providing funding support within these additional program areas.

• Community Initiatives: Provides funding for programs or services that directly improve the quality of life within the geographic focus areas that we serve. Examples include support for libraries, food pantries and shelters, and neighborhood revitalization. Generally, the Trust does not seek proposals for health care initiatives or animal welfare programs.
• Arts and Culture: Offers grants that promote arts education and appreciation, particularly for young adults, via the development of educational curriculum and professional instruction including visiting artists and performance support for targeted populations.
• Youth Initiatives: Offers grants that provide character education or enrichment opportunities via mentoring or after-school programming

As a third priority, the Trust does consider proposals in the areas of Disabilities and Universal Access, Environmental, and Historic Preservation. As these are not core focus areas, funding is often limited. Priority will be given to proposals with an educational focus.

• Disabilities and Universal Access: Offers grants to organizations in complying with ADA requirements within their facilities (e.g. elevator, handrails, automatic doors, and ramps) or offering services targeted for individuals with physical, mental, or emotional disabilities.
• Environmental: Provides funds for organizations that strive to protect strategic parcels of land and bodies of water as well as programs that educate the general public on key environmental issues such as conservation and water management.
• Historic Preservation: Provides funding for organizations that preserve historical artifacts (e.g. sites, structures, objects) and accounts (e.g. events), and educate the greater community on their significance. Examples include museums, historical societies and educational programming.

About the Presser Foundation

The Presser Foundation was formally established in 1939 under various deeds of trust of the late Theodore Presser. In the charter of incorporation, The Foundation’s purposes are set forth to promote primarily the cause of musical education and musical philanthropy as follows: to provide scholarships for promising students; to increase the value of music education by erecting suitable buildings; and to administer aid to worthy teachers of music in distress.

While The Foundation’s priorities have evolved over time, it has provided much needed funding to further the cause of music for over 75 years. It has been said that Theodore Presser wanted to give back to music what he had made from it. When he died in 1925, he left no children. He had been widowed twice, and the bulk of his fortune was left to The Foundation.

The small staff and Board of Trustees continue to oversee the work of The Foundation. The Foundation is fortunate to have had a founder who clearly stated the purpose which he desired to achieve. The Board of Trustees includes prominent local and national leaders in music. All Trustees share a passion for music and all are committed to carrying out the intentions of the benefactor.

Capital Support 

Introduction & Purpose

The Trustees of The Presser Foundation created the Capital Support Committee to consider requests for grants, typically between $5,000 and $100,000 annually to support capital projects of music organizations working in a broad range of traditions, genres, and styles. The Presser Foundation does not support theater, commercial music theater, dance, or other non-music-focused venues.

Capital projects include the construction of new facilities and renovation, repair, or expansion of existing facilities. The Committee also considers proposals for capital needs, including (but not limited to) hardware, software, and equipment.

Examples of projects that have received funding:

• Construction of a new music building
• Renovation of a room to be used to house music scores
• Upgrades to audio, video, and lighting equipment
• Purchase of an outdoor screen
• Purchase of the software GarageBand for after-school students
• Purchase of recording studio equipment

The Nature Conservancy

The Nature Conservancy is a global environmental nonprofit working to create a world where people and nature can thrive.

Our Mission

To conserve the lands and waters on which all life depends.

Connectivity, Climate, Communities Fund

To make the highest possible impact on the climate and biodiversity crises, The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is committed to advancing solutions and supporting partners throughout the Appalachians to connect and conserve vital wildlife habitat, build resilience to the impacts of climate change, and generate new job and recreation opportunities for communities.

Approximately one-third of the U.S. population lives in or within 100 miles of the Appalachians, including an estimated 36 million people that rely on the region for sources of drinking water. The landscape contains the world's largest remaining expanses of temperate broadleaf mixed forest and provides habitat to a wide diversity of plants of animals, many of which are listed as rare, threatened, or endangered. Conserving this landscape is critical for nature and for the people that live and work there.

However as climate change drives ecosystem instability, plants and animals are shifting their ranges northward, and people are having to find ways to adapt to complex and intertwined challenges. TNC and many others have been working to conserve vital Appalachian habitats for decades. Now we must ramp up our efforts and coordinate with partners across the Appalachians for maximum impact.

To succeed in these efforts, TNC’s Connectivity, Climate, Communities Fund offers two grant programs for conservation and community organizations, municipalities, Federally Recognized Tribal Nations, and local and state agencies in the Appalachians who are working to protect and conserve this region:

• The Resilient and Connected Appalachians Grant Program
• The New York Climate Resilience Grant Program

Resilient and Connected Appalachians Grant Program

The Resilient and Connected Appalachians Grant Program provides grants of up to $100,000 for fee and easement acquisition projects throughout the Appalachians.

Equitable Conservation and Community Benefits

Conservation organizations are increasingly acknowledging the importance of incorporating social equity in their missions, partnerships, and projects and evolving how they work to have better outcomes for people and nature.

TNC defines community benefits as the positive outcomes that directly result from or are included within conservation projects as experienced by local communities and people. This is particularly important for historically marginalized communities, communities with limited access to nature, communities experiencing heightened impacts of climate change due to systemic underinvestment and poor infrastructure, and Indigenous communities. 

RCA program funding will support projects that demonstrate meaningful community engagement, work with those historically excluded from conservation, and lead to a fairer distribution of benefits for people and communities.

Some examples of community benefits include improved and greater access to nature, protection of drinking water sources, recreational and resource-based economic opportunities, flood mitigation, engagement in cross-cultural initiatives, or protection of lands that will meet community-defined conservation needs. We encourage projects with meaningful community benefits that are integrated with the land protection goals.

Project Evaluation

Projects will be evaluated  according to their capacity to deliver land protection outcomes aligned with the program goals, including:

• Location:
  • the project is located within TNC’s Appalachians Program boundary and is in or near a mapped focal area.  Projects outside of focal areas will also be considered.
• Resilience:
  • the percentage of the total project area that is part of the Resilient and Connected Network.
• Connectivity:
  • adjacency to protected lands or other attributes that will lead to landscape connectivity over time (e.g., the project is a necessary acquisition for advancing a local or regional plan that aims to protect a critical conservation corridor).
• Collaboration:
  • evidence of engagement with other organizations, community groups, or local governments (including, but not limited to, shared funding).
• Community:
  • project elements that directly engage and or benefit people, especially vulnerable or marginalized communities.
• Timeline:
  • the project will close within 12 months from the start of the grant agreement term.
• Feasibility:
  • likelihood that the project will close and the costs seem reasonable.

The Healthcare Foundation of NJ

The Foundation will consider applications that align with HFNJ’s mission to reduce health disparities and improve the health and well-being of at-risk, underserved individuals and families in greater Newark, New Jersey, and the Jewish community of Greater MetroWest New Jersey.

Capital Grants

HFNJ has long supported organizations making capital requests to fund the construction or renovation of clinical spaces; the purchase of equipment such as MRI machines or surgical equipment; and other such capital requests. Because these projects often do no fit into the one-year timeframe of our regular grants – with the benefits to the community in particular spread out across many years if not decades – we have recently instituted a new application form just for capital requests.

New Jersey Cultural Trust

The Cultural Trust’s grant programs further the Trust’s mission of ensuring a stable and healthy nonprofit cultural industry in New Jersey by supporting projects that build organizations’ financial and institutional stability and capacity, and by funding important capital projects.

The Cultural Trust offers three different grant programs on a rotating basis, typically with one program offered each fiscal year:

• Institutional and Financial Stabilization Grants for Arts Organizations
• Institutional and Financial Stabilization Grants for History/Humanities Organizations
• Capital Historic Preservation Grants for Arts, History, and Humanities Organizations

All Cultural Trust grants are one-year-long project-based grants. No match is required for any of the Cultural Trust’s grant programs.

Capital Historic Preservation Grants Program

The New Jersey Cultural Trust Capital Historic Preservation Grants Program is collaboratively administered by the New Jersey Historic Trust for and with the New Jersey Cultural Trust. The Cultural Trust Act (2000) created a Trust Fund, from which grants may be awarded to support capital projects, endowments and institutional and financial stabilization of qualified organizations. The Act directs the New Jersey Historic Trust to design and administer programs that recommend capital projects to the Cultural Trust.

All history, arts and humanities organizations with stewardship responsibility for historic resources that are listed on the New Jersey Register of Historic Places, and qualified by the New Jersey Cultural Trust, are eligible to apply for capital historic preservation funding.

Properties for which funding is requested must, at the time of application, be

• Individually listed in the New Jersey and/or National Register of Historic Places; or
• contribute to the significance of a historic district listed in the New Jersey and/or National Register of Historic Places

All eligible properties must be listed on the NJ Register of Historic Places at the time of application in order for the application to be considered for funding in this grant round.

What does this program do?

The purpose of the program is to promote economic development and job creation projects through the awarding of grant funds to eligible entities. Applications will compete in two separate categories, business opportunity grants and business enterprise grants, for use in funding various business and

What kind of funding is available?

There is no maximum grant amount; however, smaller requests are given higher priority. There is no cost sharing requirement. There are two types of RBDG projects, Opportunity grants and Enterprise grants. Opportunity type grants are limited to up to 10 percent of the total Rural Business Development Grant annual funding. Enterprise type grants must be used on projects to benefit small and emerging businesses in rural areas as specified in the grant application.

How may Enterprise type funds be used?

Enterprise grants must be used on projects to benefit small and emerging businesses in rural areas as specified in the grant application. Uses may include:

• Training and technical assistance, such as project planning, business counseling and training, market research, feasibility studies, professional or/technical reports, or producer service improvements.
• Acquisition or development of land, easements, or rights of way; construction, conversion, renovation of buildings; plants, machinery, equipment, access for streets and roads; parking areas and utilities.
• Pollution control and abatement.
• The capitalization of revolving loan funds, including funds that will make loans for start-ups and working capital.
• Rural distance learning for job training and advancement for adult students.
• Rural transportation improvement.
• Community economic development.
• Technology-based economic development.
• Feasibility studies and business plans.
• Leadership and entrepreneur training.
• Rural business incubators.
• Long-term business strategic planning.

How may Opportunity type funds be used?

• Community economic development.
• Technology-based economic development.
• Feasibility studies and business plans.
• Leadership and entrepreneur training.
• Rural business incubators.
• Long-term business strategic planning.

CRDA

The CRDA is dedicated to facilitating economic and community development opportunities throughout the City. We are dedicated to the reinvestment of Atlantic City through the support and creation of various initiatives by leveraging its available assets and revenues with private investment capital to support various projects meant to revitalize Atlantic City. Given that, the CRDA oversees land use planning in the Tourism District; it also continues its mission to create new opportunities to attract visitors to Atlantic City

CRDA Government Grants

These projects are for New Jersey State, Atlantic County, City of Atlantic City, or local government under­taking projects in Atlantic City that will benefit Atlantic City.

Our Mission

The Scherman Foundation invests in the economic, political, and cultural transformation necessary for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color to reclaim and build power.

Our Strategic Framework

We believe that investing in cultural, political, and economic transformation together advances justice to realize our vision. We support organizations working at the intersections of these transformation areas inside our strategic framework. This framework is the foundation of our more specific and evolving program priorities.

• Economic Transformation
  • Our focus on economic transformation acknowledges that the root causes of economic inequity are linked to white supremacy and racial injustice and that the economic well being of BIPOC individuals and communities is critical for liberation.
  • We support organizations that focus on:
    • Strategies and models that provide BIPOC communities with greater access to capital, assets, and opportunities
    • Economic stability and security for BIPOC individuals and families
    • Advocating for more equitable economic systems through policy reform, institutional changes, and increased transparency
• Political Transformation
  • We believe that those who have been excluded must lead the way in dismantling current political structures and creating new, inclusive, and reflective democratic processes.
  • We support organizations that focus on:
    • Work and priorities that are driven by BIPOC communities
    • Forging multi-racial coalitions working toward racial justice
    • Reforming political structures and processes to make the political system more accessible and accountable to BIPOC communities
    • Increasing the participation of BIPOC communities in democratic processes and decision-making at all levels
• Cultural Transformation
  • Recognizing the crucial role of culture in advancing justice, we support organizations that harness storytelling, expression, and artistic activism to drive systemic change.
  • Our focus is on collaborative narrative change strategies, innovative storytelling frameworks, and equitable media accessibility.
  • We support organizations that focus on:
    • Public Narrative Change: Combating misinformation and harmful stereotypes through investments in journalism, local news outlets, and nonfiction narratives
    • Artistic Expression: Supporting the creativity and work of BIPOC artists and communities without imposing agendas or conditions and transforming the field to do the same
    • Artivism: Using art as a tool for organizing grassroots movements and collective action, including funding on-the-ground storytelling and public art projects

General Criteria

We consider the following general criteria in our grantmaking process.

• Organizations that are accountable to or directed by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color communities.
  • While we prioritize BIPOC leadership, our main focus is on organizations where BIPOC communities have clear influence and decision-making power over the organization's strategy, direction, programmatic work, and finances.
• Organizations that are intersectional in their work and practices.
  • Intersectionality recognizes that individuals hold multiple identities, shaping their experiences with power. 
  • We look for organizations that demonstrate a deep understanding of intersectionality in their mission, programs, and practices; center the voices and experiences of those most affected by multiple forms of oppression; and address the interconnectedness of racial justice with economic status, gender, LGBTQ+, and/or disability justice as well.
• Organizations that work with others to build movements toward racial justice.
  • Movement-building is the long-term process of organizing and empowering individuals and organizations to collectively work towards systemic change and a shared vision.
  • We look for organizations and coalitions that reflect key characteristics of movement building including an authentic mass base; grassroots leadership; a shared ideology or narrative; broad coalition-building; and strategy to create and sustain structural change beyond specific organizations or campaigns.
  • The Foundation supports organizations focused on organizing and advocacy, while our Arts funding includes a wider range of approaches.

Democracy Program

The Democracy program is driven by the belief that a vibrant democracy requires consistent and meaningful political and civic participation by the vast majority of the population, particularly Black, Indigenous, and People of Color communities that have long been excluded from power. To this end, we must protect and expand access to the right to vote, build strong inclusive civic engagement infrastructure and practices, strengthen democratic institutions, and reform democratic processes and systems to make them fairer, more accessible, and more accountable to a broader constituency, including BIPOC communities. A core tenet of our grantmaking will be to support Black, Indigenous, and People of Color communities in their efforts to reclaim and build political power. 

State-level work is a key lever for building that power, and the Foundation will provide support to locally-based BIPOC and multi-racial groups that are rooted in their communities, are trusted sources of information, encourage year-round civic engagement in local, municipal, state, and federal elections, and build the power of BIPOC communities to achieve a reflective and responsive multi-racial democracy at the state level. Building state-level power and statewide civic engagement infrastructure will allow BIPOC communities to achieve more racially just democratic, economic, climate, cultural, and reproductive policies, create a pipeline for BIPOC leadership, and make state and federal institutions more accountable. 

Our Mission

The Scherman Foundation invests in the economic, political, and cultural transformation necessary for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color to reclaim and build power. 

Our Strategic Framework

We believe that investing in cultural, political, and economic transformation together advances justice to realize our vision. We support organizations working at the intersections of these transformation areas inside our strategic framework. This framework is the foundation of our more specific and evolving program priorities.

• Economic Transformation
  • Our focus on economic transformation acknowledges that the root causes of economic inequity are linked to white supremacy and racial injustice and that the economic well being of BIPOC individuals and communities is critical for liberation.
  • We support organizations that focus on:
    • Strategies and models that provide BIPOC communities with greater access to capital, assets, and opportunities
    • Economic stability and security for BIPOC individuals and families
    • Advocating for more equitable economic systems through policy reform, institutional changes, and increased transparency
• Political Transformation
  • We believe that those who have been excluded must lead the way in dismantling current political structures and creating new, inclusive, and reflective democratic processes.
  • We support organizations that focus on:
    • Work and priorities that are driven by BIPOC communities
    • Forging multi-racial coalitions working toward racial justice
    • Reforming political structures and processes to make the political system more accessible and accountable to BIPOC communities
    • Increasing the participation of BIPOC communities in democratic processes and decision-making at all levels
• Cultural Transformation
  • Recognizing the crucial role of culture in advancing justice, we support organizations that harness storytelling, expression, and artistic activism to drive systemic change.
  • Our focus is on collaborative narrative change strategies, innovative storytelling frameworks, and equitable media accessibility.
  • We support organizations that focus on:
    • Public Narrative Change: Combating misinformation and harmful stereotypes through investments in journalism, local news outlets, and nonfiction narratives
    • Artistic Expression: Supporting the creativity and work of BIPOC artists and communities without imposing agendas or conditions and transforming the field to do the same
    • Artivism: Using art as a tool for organizing grassroots movements and collective action, including funding on-the-ground storytelling and public art projects

General Criteria

We consider the following general criteria in our grantmaking process.

• Organizations that are accountable to or directed by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color communities.
  • While we prioritize BIPOC leadership, our main focus is on organizations where BIPOC communities have clear influence and decision-making power over the organization's strategy, direction, programmatic work, and finances.
• Organizations that are intersectional in their work and practices.
  • Intersectionality recognizes that individuals hold multiple identities, shaping their experiences with power.
  • We look for organizations that demonstrate a deep understanding of intersectionality in their mission, programs, and practices; center the voices and experiences of those most affected by multiple forms of oppression; and address the interconnectedness of racial justice with economic status, gender, LGBTQ+, and/or disability justice as well.
• Organizations that work with others to build movements toward racial justice.
  • Movement-building is the long-term process of organizing and empowering individuals and organizations to collectively work towards systemic change and a shared vision.
  • We look for organizations and coalitions that reflect key characteristics of movement building including an authentic mass base; grassroots leadership; a shared ideology or narrative; broad coalition-building; and strategy to create and sustain structural change beyond specific organizations or campaigns.
  • The Foundation supports organizations focused on organizing and advocacy, while our Arts funding includes a wider range of approaches

Environmental & Climate Justice Program

Over the next 20 years, and likely beyond, climate chaos will be a primary driver of economic, social, cultural, and political change in the U.S.  But while transformation is inevitable, a Just Transition one that replaces fossil fuel systems that drive racial and economic inequality with structures that are decentralized, equitably distributed, and democratically controlled—will only be achieved through grassroots climate organizing and movement-building that embodies racial justice.

Climate change disproportionally harms Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities, whether it is adjacency to noxious fossil fuel facilities that drive sky-rocketing asthma rates, the poisoning of Indigenous peoples’ lands, or the ocean inundation of unprotected communities already suffering from climate-driven heat waves. In New York, these harms will be increasingly exacerbated by climate-driven immigration, pitting one historically oppressed group against another. This reality is central to the environmental and climate justice movement. It is also the movement’s strength because frontline communities of color are the natural leaders to build economic, cultural, and political power in the fight to shape climate transformation. Local and state based community organizations and mass-based coalitions embody the intersectionality, first-hand knowledge, and determination rooted in lived experience that informs and drives systemic change.  

Funding Priorities

New York Regional Focus

The Foundation will focus its support on New York City and State in order to seek synergies with grantees in its other programs, facilitate deep staff engagement and support of the field, and take advantage of the moment. The state and city are at dramatic climate policy tipping points, positioned to demonstrate that a transition to climate sustainability is inextricably interwoven with the fight for racial justice. Having won historic legal commitments to a Just Transition—the CLCPA, Local Law 97, etc.—our grantees are working to defend those wins and fight for aggressive implementation. 

In order to leverage regional synergies (and confront regional challenges), the Foundation will continue to fund a limited number of grassroots groups in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

Local Frontline Organizations and Allies

The Foundation funds multi-issue, BIPOC, community-based organizations, or coalitions of such groups, with a primary focus on racial justice and climate sustainability, from democratically controlled renewable energy projects and local/state policy to local climate resiliency and green jobs. These groups approach climate through the lens of local needs and concerns of historically oppressed communities. They are not first and foremost focused on emissions reductions (the usual measure of climate strategies) but on intersectional approaches such as asthma and PEAK plant transition; community self-sufficiency and solidarity through renewable energy microgrids and resilient, community-controlled community infrastructure; and the creation of energy efficient housing and green jobs. This complex intersectionality requires the Foundation to vet groups on the viability of their goals and strategies and on the authenticity of their community roots, power building, and accountability.

The Foundation provides targeted support for mass transit work. The city and region are uniquely shaped by the benefits and inequities of mass transit. These systems intersect with issues of economic access, health inequities, affordable housing, and, of course, climate. While almost all of the ECJ program’s grantees work at least tangentially on transportation issues, the Foundation funds a core group of grassroots organizing, advocacy, and policy groups and campaigns working exclusively for equitable mass transit.

The Foundation also supports a limited number of policy, legal, and technical support organizations allied with, and accountable to, frontline groups and coalitions.

National Climate Justice Groups

The Foundation will support a limited number of national Climate Justice groups distinguished by the following characteristics:

• A strong grassroots base in New York BIPOC communities, primarily through affiliations
• The capacity to both support and amplify New York climate justice groups
• An intersectional approach addressing racial, political, and economic justice in addition to climate
• A cohesive racial justice narrative built with other organizations and community partners

Friends Foundation for the Aging

FFA focuses its grant-making activity on innovative, impactful, collaborative and replicable programs that address aging issues and reflect FFA values. Most grants are made to Quaker organizations in the U.S. FFA also focuses on grants to 501C3 non-profit organizations in the PA-NJ-NY area which address unmet needs for aging adults in under-served populations. 

Mission

Friends Foundation for the Aging is a Quaker foundation supporting organizations that provide innovative, sustainable, equitable programs and leadership to advance healthy aging for older adults and their families, grounded in Friends’ values.

Vision

A world where older adults have dignity and self-determination, are valued and respected, and have adequate resources, housing, healthcare, support and community.

Values

Friends Foundation for the Aging values and philosophy flow from the Quaker testimonies of simplicity, peace, integrity, community, equality (equity), and stewardship, providing the lens through which possible grants are viewed. Guiding principles include:

Guiding Principles:

• Service to diverse populations
• Potential to create change
• Leveraging resources
• Collaboration
• Engagement of employees and participants
• Integration of services
• Continuing engagement of FFA

Our Mission

We empower nonprofits to think bigger, solve more problems, and make life better in the neighborhoods served by OceanFirst Bank.

Funding Priorities

Advancing Economic Stability and Mobility

The Foundation supports organizations that meet the needs of families and individuals with workforce readiness programs (job training, skills building, apprentice programs, career counseling), literacy and ESL education, financial literacy programs, employment initiatives, and small business technical assistance and access to capital.

Supporting Housing Solutions

OceanFirst Foundation supports organizations that help to create and sustain safe and affordable housing, meet the housing needs of special populations, and supports emergency shelters. The Foundation also supports community-led neighborhood revitalization, housing counseling, homebuyer education, and services that prevent homelessness and increase self-sufficiency.

Empowering the Next Generation

We support organizations that help foster conditions for youth of all ages to thrive and reach their full potential including mentoring, summer camp scholarships, before and after school programs, counseling, youth leadership and career development, program/activity scholarships to support inclusion, healthy behaviors, and leadership development, school based financial literacy education, civic engagement, arts and cultural programs, educator recognition, and much more.

Improving Health and Wellness

The Foundation addresses the health and well-being of individuals and local communities by supporting organizations that care for our neighbors. The Foundation is especially interested in supporting nonprofits that focus on access to care, especially for vulnerable populations and the underserved, mental health services, food security, the healing power of the arts, and the social determinants of health and well-being.

Investing in Higher Education

The Foundation provides scholarship support to nine partner Community Colleges and Universities in New Jersey to help students pursue their dream of higher education.

Funding

Two year grant cycle for General Operating Support. Awards set at $15,000 ($7,500/2 years).

The Gladys Brooks Foundation was created under the will of Gladys Brooks Thayer of New York. 

Its purpose is to provide for the intellectual, moral and physical welfare of the people of this country by establishing and  supporting non-profit libraries, educational institutions, hospitals and clinics.

Scope of Grants Considered

The Foundation will consider major grant applications for innovative projects in the fields of libraries, education, hospitals and clinics.

Grants for Libraries 

Grant applications will be considered generally for resource Endowments (print, film, electronic database, speakers/workshops) capital construction and innovative equipment. Projects fostering broader public access to global information sources utilizing collaborative efforts, pioneering technologies and equipment are encouraged.

Grants for Educational Institutions

Grant applications from universities, colleges and secondary schools will be considered generally for:

• educational endowments to fund scholarships based solely on educational achievements, leadership and academic ability of the student; 
• endowments to support fellowships and teaching chairs for educators who confine their activities primarily to classroom instruction in the liberal arts, mathematics and the sciences during the academic year;
• erection or endowment of buildings, wings or additions thereto of buildings, and equipment for educational purposes;
• capital equipment for educational purposes.

Grants for Hospitals & Clinics

Grant proposals from hospitals and clinics where the proposal addresses a new health need, an improvement in the quality of health care or reduced health costs with better patient outcomes will be considered generally for:

• endowments for programs;
• erection or endowment of buildings, wings of or additions to buildings;
• capital equipment.

Purpose

The purpose of this program is to provide funding to support the creation of housing units affordable to households that are low income as defined by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Local Arts Program (LAP) Grant

The Local Arts Program (LAP) Grant enables the New Jersey State Council on the Arts (NJSCA) to support local arts development within each of New Jersey’s 21 counties through a competitive grant application process by awarding funds to officially designated county arts agencies (CAAs). The Somerset County Cultural & Heritage Commission (SCC&HC) is the agency officially designated in Somerset County to apply for, receive, and administer this annual Local Arts Program Grant.

Though a small percentage of the annual total grant award supports local arts development through planned programming and other services provided by the Cultural & Heritage office, the greater percentage of the grant award (generally 75% ) is set aside for re-grants, through a formal application/independent peer review panel process to support eligible local arts organizations and other non-profit organizations within Somerset County that provide public art projects, programs, services and development to benefit diverse public audiences. Grant awards are competitive and seek to encourage artistic excellence at the local level.

Types of Grants Available

General Operating Support (GOS)

GOS is limited to non-profit organizations whose missions are exclusively devoted to the public presentation of the Arts. The organization must present a documented history of artistic excellence and outreach efforts within Somerset County. GOS funds provide support for the overall operations of these organizations for the calendar year, although there are specific uses for GOS funds that are considered ineligible, GOS funds may be used for most activities that support the organization’s Arts mission.

• Eligible Uses: To strengthen administrative capacity; to support on-going programs and/or to expand programs; to begin an innovative program/project. 
• Ineligible Uses: Capital improvements or construction costs; purchase of equipment; hospitality costs; reimbursement for deficits; out of state travel; fundraising; scholarships or awards, retroactive funding for work completed before submission of this application; projects primarily recreational, rehabilitative, or therapeutic in nature

Special Project Grant

Open to any organization that meets the eligibility requirements. A special project is a public Arts activity or event that occurs during the grant year with specific start and completion dates. The project may contain multiple events or activities, but these must be clearly related by discipline or theme. The planned activity or event MUST be presented in and benefit the general public of Somerset County. Examples of a special project include a concert, an exhibition, a festival, artist’s workshops, lectures and demonstrations.

• Eligible Uses: Eligible expenses include items such as artists’ fees, rentals, purchase of sheet music, printing and photocopying, in-state travel, postage, technical crew and other professional fees, promotion, project supplies, etc. related to the special project only. The hiring of New Jersey artists is encouraged and favored.
• Ineligible Uses: General administrative salaries; capital improvements; construction costs; renovations; purchase of permanent equipment; hospitality costs; previous program deficits; general operating expenses that are not related to the special project; fellowships/awards; student publications, activities which are normally the extra-curricular activities of public or private schools; projects in educational or religious institutions that do not seek a wide general public audience; scholarship funds; replacement of funds normally budgeted for the project or operation; reimbursement of deficits; retroactive funding for work completed before submission of this application; fundraising; projects primarily recreational, rehabilitative, or therapeutic in nature.

Creative Placemaking (CP)

Open to any organization that meets the eligibility requirements. Creative Placemaking is an evolving field of practice that intentionally leverages the power of the Arts, culture and creativity to serve a community's interest while driving a broader agenda for change, growth and transformation in a way that builds character and quality of place. Partners from public, private, nonprofit and community sectors strategically shape the physical and social character of a neighborhood, town, city or region around Arts and cultural activities or assets. Creative Placemaking animates public and private spaces, rejuvenates structures and streetscapes, improves local business visibility and public safety, and brings diverse people together to build shared understanding of culture and community. Creative Placemaking grants encourage and require Somerset County non-profit organizations, both cultural and non-cultural and Somerset County based governmental agencies or commissions to create new collaborative partnerships to integrate the Arts (Music, Visual Arts, Theatre, Dance, Film/Video, Literary Arts) into public venues to broaden and diversify public exposure, access to and participation in the Arts.

New Jersey Arts and Culture Renewal Fund - Phase 10 – Grant Program

The New Jersey Arts and Culture Renewal Fund provides financial support to stabilize and build resilience among New Jersey-based smaller nonprofit arts and culture organizations.  Funding is specifically for organizations whose primary mission is Arts, Arts Education, or History.

The New Jersey Arts and Culture Renewal Fund (NJACRF) was established in 2020 to ensure the survival and strength of the state’s arts and culture nonprofit sector during and after the pandemic. The Fund was created as a public-private partnership, capitalizing on the resources and expertise available through the government, corporate, community, and private philanthropic sectors. Strategic alignment of these partners ensures a coordinated approach to sector support and ongoing dialogue with the field and stakeholders.

Arts and culture experiences build social cohesion, enhance cross-cultural understanding, and improve the quality of life in communities.  The Renewal Fund acknowledges that cultural access and experiences have been unequally distributed, especially in historically under-resourced communities.  The Renewal Fund seeks to address this inequity through its funding such that smaller community-connected organizations will be sustained, individual artists will receive support, and cultural experiences will be available to all.  The Renewal Fund also seeks to address the underrepresentation and incomplete storytelling that has marginalized the creative, historical, and intellectual contributions of some groups including Black, Indigenous, Latinx and other People of Color (BIPOC) in New Jersey.

The New Jersey Arts and Culture Renewal Fund provides unrestricted grant support.

Lydia Collins deForest Charitable Trust

Mission

The Lydia Collins deForest Charitable Trust was established in 2002.

The deForest Charitable Trust specifically supports:

• Organizations that provide services to those who are visually limited
• Churches and organizations affiliated with the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States and other religious organizations in union with, or recognized by the Episcopal Church
• Organizations that provide services to those who are homeless, unemployed or substance-dependent

 All applications must specify the purpose of the grant request, provide a project budget and a detailed outline of how funds will be spent and indicate the expected outcome.

Funding

The Trust’s giving program has changed and now makes grants of $25,000 to $50,000 over 1, or multiple years to projects with the potential for significant impact.

Food Access Infrastructure Initiative Grant

Description

Farm Credit East's Food Access Infrastructure Initiative financially supports organizations with grants of up to $50,000 as they work to improve food security in the Northeast. If your organization, or one you know, has an upcoming infrastructure project to further food access, apply for a Food Access Infrastructure Initiative grant.

The goals of eligible projects could include but are not limited to:

• Increase produce handling functionality.
• Expand cooler or freezer storage.
• Improve inbound or outbound logistics.
• Enhance distribution capability.    

New Jersey Cultural Trust

The Cultural Trust’s grant programs further the Trust’s mission of ensuring a stable and healthy nonprofit cultural industry in New Jersey by supporting projects that build organizations’ financial and institutional stability and capacity, and by funding important capital projects.

The Cultural Trust offers three different grant programs on a rotating basis, typically with one program offered each fiscal year:

• Institutional and Financial Stabilization Grants for Arts Organizations
• Institutional and Financial Stabilization Grants for History/Humanities Organizations
• Capital Historic Preservation Grants for Arts, History, and Humanities Organizations

All Cultural Trust grants are one-year-long project-based grants. No match is required for any of the Cultural Trust’s grant programs.

Institutional/Financial Stabilization Grants for History/Humanities Organizations

The New Jersey Cultural Trust Institutional and Financial Stabilization Grant Program for History and Humanities Organizations is a funding program designed to assist groups in addressing financial and operational challenges that threaten their stability and to help build greater operational capacity to manage and advance their work and achieve their missions. The program is administered by the New Jersey Historical Commission and funded by the New Jersey Cultural Trust. All history and humanities organizations qualified by the New Jersey Cultural Trust are welcome to apply for this funding.

New Jersey Cultural Trust

The Cultural Trust’s grant programs further the Trust’s mission of ensuring a stable and healthy nonprofit cultural industry in New Jersey by supporting projects that build organizations’ financial and institutional stability and capacity, and by funding important capital projects.

The Cultural Trust offers three different grant programs on a rotating basis, typically with one program offered each fiscal year:

• Institutional and Financial Stabilization Grants for Arts Organizations
• Institutional and Financial Stabilization Grants for History/Humanities Organizations
• Capital Historic Preservation Grants for Arts, History, and Humanities Organizations

All Cultural Trust grants are one-year-long project-based grants. No match is required for any of the Cultural Trust’s grant programs.

Institutional/Financial Stabilization Grants for Arts Organizations

Institutional and Financial Stabilization Grants for Arts Organizations address the financial and institutional challenges that threaten nonprofit arts organizations’ stability and help them build greater operational capacity to manage and advance their work. Grants are available within the following categories:

• Establishing, replenishing or growing a working capital fund/cash reserve
• Debt/deficit reduction
• Strategic planning/assessment
• Technology upgrade
• Capital equipment purchase
• Professional development for staff/board
• New staff position

The New Jersey State Council on the Arts serves as the recommending agency for the IFS Arts program.