Search Through Grants for Dance Nonprofit Organizations in the U.S.

Charitable Contributions

Costco Wholesale’s primary charitable efforts specifically focus on programs supporting children, education, and health and human services in the communities where we do business. Throughout the year we receive a large number of requests from nonprofit organizations striving to make a positive impact, and we are thankful to be able to provide support to a variety of organizations and causes. While we would like to respond favorably to all requests, understandably, the needs are far greater than our allocated resources and we are unable to accommodate them all.

Warehouse Donations:

Warehouse donations are handled at the warehouse level - please consult your local warehouse for up-to-date information regarding their donations contacts and review process.

Grant Applications

If the request is under consideration, you may be contacted by staff for any additional information needed. Applications are reviewed within 4-6 weeks, and decisions are made based on several factors, including: type of program; identified community need not otherwise available; indication that evidenced based data will establish measurable results of intended outcomes; community collaboration; broad base of financial support; project budget and operating expenses.

Mission

The DanPaul Foundation will use its resources to help train teachers and parents in early childhood development, protect children from abuse and neglect, stimulate children's personal social responsibilities, and offer them opportunities for enrichment and growth.

The Foundation will also encourage children to be concerned and informed about the environment and the underprivileged, particularly with regard to clean air and water, and adequate housing and nutrition for all.

Beliefs

The DanPaul Foundation believes that children should have ample opportunities for enrichment in their lives, and thus strives to provide many different ways to enrich and expand children's minds through direct programs and monetary support to organizations doing similar work.

We have provided or currently provide grants related to the following program areas:

• Workshops, Conferences, + Seminars: We strive to offer educational workshops, conferences, and seminars for parents and teachers on topics related to early childhood development.
• Student Scholarships: We aim to help students attending post-secondary education institutions by providing need-based and academic scholarships.
• Scientific Endeavors: We desire to advance scientific endeavors which seek to improve the quality of life for everyone in the world.
• Clean Air + Water: We hope to pass on knowledge and practical life skills to youth regarding their personal responsibility to the environment, teaching them about issues surrounding clean air and water.
• Child Advocacy: We believe in protecting children from abuse and neglect and particularly love to support programs that provide education and assistance to children as well as organizations advocating or caring for vulnerable children.
• Homelessness: We want to encourage young people to take a personal interest in seeing that adequate housing and proper nutrition, especially for the underprivileged and homeless, are available.
• Poverty + Neglect: We seek to help those in poverty as well as educate youth about their responsibility to consider the underprivileged and take care of those most in need of life's basic essentials like adequate housing and proper nutrition.
• Refugee Enrichment: We wish to help refugee youth by supporting programs that provide them enrichment and help them transition to life in a new country.

The DanPaul Foundation provides grants to 501(c)3 tax-exempt non-profit organizations as defined by the IRS. The Foundation is interested in providing funding to programs that directly serve the health, education, development, and welfare of the world's youth.

Grants range from a few hundred dollars up to $15,000 per calendar year.

Background

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

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

Capacity

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

Capital

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

Community

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

What We Fund

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

What stage of growth does DRK Foundation typically fund?

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

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

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

Focus Areas

Entergy’s Open Grants Program focuses on improving communities as a whole. We look for giving opportunities in the areas of arts and culture, education and workforce development, poverty solutions and social services, healthy families, and community improvement.

Arts and Culture

The arts are expressions of ourselves – our heritage, feelings and ideas. To cultivate that, we support a diverse range of locally based visual arts, theater, dance and music institutions. Our long-term goal is to increase the access to contemporary art for a wider public, including children and the financially disadvantaged.

Community Improvement/EnrichmentEntergy supports community-based projects that focus community enrichment and improvement. A few examples include civic affairs, blighted housing improvements, and neighborhood safety. By giving to communities in this way, we actually help them become more self-sufficient.Healthy FamiliesChildren need a good start to grow into healthy, well-adjusted adults. With that in mind, we give to programs that have a direct impact on children educationally and emotionally. We’re also interested in family programs, like those that better prepare parents to balance the demands of work and home. The amount and nature of an organization’s request will determine which type of grant the organization would need to apply for.In considering requests for grants, priority is placed on programs in specific counties/parishes. 

Global Impact Cash Grants

Cisco welcomes applications for Global Impact Cash Grants from community partners around the world who share our vision and offer an innovative approach to a critical social challenge.

We identify, incubate, and develop innovative solutions with the most impact. Global Impact Cash Grants go to nonprofits and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that address a significant social problem. We’re looking for programs that fit within our investment areas, serve the underserved, and leverage technology to improve the reach and efficiency of services. We accept applications year-round from eligible organizations. An initial information form is used to determine whether your organization will be invited to complete a full application.

Social Investment Areas

At Cisco, we make social investments in three areas where we believe our technology and our people can make the biggest impact—education, economic empowerment, and crisis response, the last of which incorporates shelter, water, food, and disaster relief. Together, these investment areas help people overcome barriers of poverty and inequality, and make a lasting difference by fostering strong global communities.

Education Investments

Our strategy is to inclusively invest in technology-based solutions that increase equitable access to education while improving student performance, engagement, and career exploration. We support K-12 solutions that emphasize science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) as well as literacy. We also consider programs that teach environmental sustainability, eliminate barriers to accessing climate change education, and invite student engagement globally to positively affect the environment.

What we look for:

• Innovative early grade solutions using the internet and technology to bridge the barriers preventing access to education for underserved students globally.
• Solutions that positively affect student attendance, attitudes, and behavior while inspiring action by students to improve learning outcomes, whether they participate in person, online, or in blended learning environments. 
• Solutions with high potential to replicate and scale globally, thereby increasing the availability of evidence-based solutions that support student-centricity, teacher capacity in the classroom, and increased parental participation to help students learn and develop.

Economic Empowerment

Our strategy is to invest in early stage, tech-enabled solutions that provide equitable access to the knowledge, skills, and resources that people need to support themselves and their families toward resilience, independence, and economic security.

Our goal is to support solutions that benefit individuals and families, and that contribute to local community growth and economic development in a sustainable economy.

We target our support in three interconnected areas:

• Skills development to help job seekers secure dignified employment and long-term career pathways in technology or other sectors, including environmental sustainability/green jobs.
• Inclusive entrepreneurship with small businesses as engines of local growth as well as high growth potential start-ups as large-scale job creators nationally and internationally, in technology or other sectors, including environment sustainability/green businesses.
• Banking the unbanked through relevant and affordable financial products and capacity building services.

Cisco Crisis Response

We seek to help overcome the cycle of poverty and dependence and achieve a more sustainable future through strategic investments. We back organizations that successfully address critical needs of underserved communities, because those who have their basic needs met are better equipped to learn and thrive.

What we look for:

• Innovative solutions that increase the capacity of grantees to deliver their products and services more effectively and efficiently
• Design and implementation of web-based tools that increase the availability of, or improve access to, products and services that are necessary for people to survive and thrive
• Programs that increase access to clean water, food, shelter, or disaster relief and promote a more sustainable future for all
  • By policy, relief campaigns respond to significant natural disaster and humanitarian crises as opposed to those caused by human conflict. Also by policy, our investments in this area do not include healthcare solutions.

Climate Impact

Our strategy is to invest US$100 million in Cisco Foundation funds over the next decade to help reverse the impact of climate change, working toward a sustainable and regenerative future for all.

The commitment includes both grant and impact investment funding for early-stage climate innovation. Both categories of support will be focused on bold climate solutions, and the grants side will also concentrate on community education and activation. Grants will go to exceptionally aligned nonprofit organizations, while impact investments will go to highly promising for-profit solutions through the private sector and climate impact funds.

Funding comes from the Cisco Foundation and will focus on:

• Identifying bold and innovative solutions that:
  • Draw down the carbon already in the atmosphere
  • Regenerate depleted ecosystems and broadly support the transition to a regenerative future
• Developing curricular initiatives to spur community engagement that can lead to measurable behavioral change and collective action

We will prioritize organizations that can achieve, measure, and report outcomes such as:

• Reduction, capture, and/or sequestering of greenhouse gas and carbon emissions
• Increased energy efficiency and improved mapping and management of natural resources, such as ecosystem restoration, forest treatments, reforestation, and afforestation that also will help repair our water cycles
• Transition to inclusive, just, coliberatory, and regenerative operating models, ways of being, and ways of organizing economies
• Creation of, and increase in, access to green jobs and job training
• Changes in community and individual behavior that lead to carbon footprint reduction, community climate resilience, and localized roadmaps to a sustainable shared climate future for all

Mission

The mission of the Hearst Foundations is to identify and fund outstanding nonprofits to ensure that people of all backgrounds in the United States can build healthy, productive and satisfying lives. Through its grantmaking, the Hearst Foundations support well-established nonprofit organizations that address significant issues within their major areas of focus—culture, education, health and social service—and that primarily serve large demographic and/or geographic constituencies. In each area of funding, the Foundations seek to identify those organizations achieving truly differentiated results relative to other organizations making similar efforts for similar populations. The Foundations also look for evidence of sustainability beyond their support.

Whether providing a scholarship to a deserving student, supporting a rural health clinic or bringing artists into schools so children can see firsthand the beauty of the arts, the Foundations’ focus is consistent: to help those in need, those underserved and those underrepresented in society. Since the Foundations were formed in the 1940s, the scale and capabilities of the grant making have changed, but the mission has not.

Culture Grant

The Hearst Foundations fund cultural institutions that offer meaningful programs in the arts and sciences, prioritizing those that enable engagement by young people and create a lasting and measurable impact. The Foundations also fund select programs nurturing and developing artistic talent. Supported organizations include arts schools, ballets, museums, operas, performing arts centers, symphonies and theaters.

Funding Priorities in Culture

In the recent past, 25% of total funding has been allocated to Culture. Organizations with budgets over $10 million have received 60% of the funding in Culture.

The Hearst Foundations are only able to fund approximately 25% of all grant requests, of which about 80% is directed to prior grantees and about 20% is targeted toward new grantees.

Types of Support

Program, capital and, on a limited basis, general and endowment support

Philanthropy is our commitment to communities in which we operate and broader society. We focus our resources on a limited number of key projects that can deliver valuable benefits from our contributions and those of our partners. We give priority to innovative, high-quality projects that meet the following criteria:

• promote sustainable development
• offer an opportunity for Roche to use its expertise and logistics capabilities
• involve Roche actively at an early stage with local authorities and established partners
• engage Roche employees in cultural (focus on contemporary arts), educational and social activities
• managed by an accredited charity

Our four focus areas

Humanitarian and Social

We direct the majority of our philanthropic donations to humanitarian and social development projects.

Science and education

We are dedicated to programmes that promote scientific interest and provide educational opportunities for young people around the world.

Community and Environment

We are committed to building stronger communities and responding to natural disasters sustainably.

Arts and Culture

We support groundbreaking contemporary art, cultural projects and activities that explore the parallels between innovation in art and in science. 

Mission

Driven by a philanthropic calling to support marginalized communities throughout the world, the Semnani Family Foundation partners with on-the-ground organizations and leverages its resources in a cost-effective and efficient manner that delivers the maximum benefit.

History

Guided by his grandmother Maliheh’s example and teachings, Khosrow Semnani and his wife Ghazaleh established the Semnani Family Foundation in 1993. The foundation’s first grant was issued through CARE International to an orphanage in Romania that cared for newborns affected by HIV. Over the last few decades, the foundation has continued to build upon its mission to empower the disaffected, partnering with a variety of organizations in different countries who can make the greatest impact.

In addition to its global influence, the Semnani Family Foundation established roots within the state of Utah with the founding of Maliheh Free Clinic in 2005 to provide free healthcare to thousands of uninsured people in the Salt Lake City area.

Where We Work

The Semnani Family Foundation focuses primarily on promoting health, education, and disaster relief for marginalized communities all around the world. Driven by a clear mission to adapt and serve at the global level, we have leveraged our resources to make a meaningful impact in the following countries so far:

• Afghanistan
• Bosnia
• Colombia
• England
• Ethiopia
• Ghana
• Guatemala
• India
• Iran
• Kenya
• Madagascar
• Mali
• Mexico
• Pakistan
• Philippines
• Romania
• Somalia
• South Africa
• Tanzania
• Tonga
• Uganda
• United States
• Yemen

At the heart of the Foundation lies a fervent commitment to human welfare, always prioritizing health and the needs of society’s most vulnerable.

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

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

About

The Audacious Project is a collaborative funding initiative catalyzing social impact on a grand scale. Every year we select and nurture a group of big, bold solutions to the world’s most urgent challenges, and with the support of an inspiring group of donors and supporters, come together to get them launched.

Housed at TED, the nonprofit with a long track record of surfacing ideas worth spreading, and with support from leading social impact advisor The Bridgespan Group, the funding collective is comprised of several respected organizations and individuals in philanthropy.

Our goal is to match bold ideas with catalytic resources.

• We encourage the world’s inspirational changemakers to dream bigger than ever before.
• Help shape their best ideas into viable multi-year plans.
• Present those solutions in a compelling way to potential supporters.

The Process

Every year, The Audacious Project works with proven change-makers to surface their best, boldest ideas for tackling global problems.

Sourcing & review

Projects are sourced from public applications and a global network of partners and donors. They are narrowed down to a group of finalists whose ideas are representative of a broad range of geographies and issue areas while elevating leaders with proximity to the communities they serve.

Idea shaping & investment support

Each finalist project goes through a rigorous ideation, due diligence, and investment support process, to ensure their proposal is achievable and compelling.

Funding & launch

Finalist projects are presented privately to groups of donors and are then publicly unveiled at TED. Funded projects then pursue their plans and share regular updates on key milestones reached with donors and the public.

Is Your Idea Audacious?

• Are you a changemaker with a bold vision?
• Are you a non-profit with an experienced team equipped to receive large scale philanthropic support?
• Is your idea a proven concept that aspires to create a better world?
• We look for ideas that cover a wide range of issues, from global health and climate change, to social justice and education.

What Makes An Idea Audacious?

Inspire

• Transformative vision
  • Your idea should capture a bold vision for tackling one of the world's most urgent topics.
• Creating a better world
  • It is your opportunity to take a giant leap forward; you may be tempted to think incrementally, but remember for it to be bold, your idea should offer significant, enduring impact.
  • This vision should bring us much closer to your version of an ideal world in a matter of years rather than generations.
• Innovative and original
  • There should be a unique aspect or creative element to your approach that challenges convention or status quo or changes the narrative for the greater good.

Convince

• Proven concept
  • There should be evidence that the idea will have impact based on a track record of past success, a demand from those that would be affected, and justified confidence that results can be sustained in the future.
• A bold vision that has clear outcomes
  • There should be a sense of where you will be at the end of a multi-year funding term and the strategy, resources and timeline required to achieve it. We want to hear about the changes that would take place because of your idea, not just the components that go into implementing it.

• Established support
  • You and your capable and confident team have the backing of a nonprofit, NGO, or institution (or is part of a collaboration between multiple such entities). This organization should be able to receive philanthropic funds and have the core infrastructure necessary to support the work. (Note: Past projects have had an annual operating budget of $1 million or more.)

Please refer to FAQ for additional guidelines.

Helping Build Better Futures

Our mission is to deliver great value to our customers every day. For over four decades, our deep commitment to the principles of providing value and caring for others has helped define our culture. It extends beyond the walls of our stores, distribution centers, and offices, and into our local communities around the world. The intersection of these principles defines our global community mission:

Deliver great value to our communities by helping vulnerable families and children access the resources and opportunities they need to build a better future.

Our Social Impact Areas

We bring our community relations mission to life around the world by focusing our giving on four social impact areas where we believe we can have the most impact and are critical to helping families and children succeed and thrive.

Basic Needs

We are passionate about supporting nonprofit organizations that help fill critical basic needs such as a warm meal, clean clothing, and a safe place to sleep for vulnerable families.

Education & Training

Our efforts have focused on quality enrichment and extracurricular programs that provide skills, resources, and opportunities to support school and career success for children, teens, and young adults.

Patient Care & Research

We support organizations that deliver services to families and children facing health challenges and life-threatening illnesses.

Empowering Women

We support programs that provide services ranging from help for those fleeing domestic violence, to others that offer education, training, and job placement resources.

Our Mission

The Tony Robbins Foundation is a nonprofit organization created to empower individuals and organizations to make a significant difference in the quality of life of people often forgotten.

We’re dedicated to creating positive changes in the lives of youth, seniors, the hungry, homeless and the imprisoned population, all who need a boost envisioning a happier and deeply satisfying way of life. Our passionate staff, generous donors and caring group of international volunteers provide the vision, inspiration, and resources needed to empower these important members of our society.

Grants

Dedicated to meeting challenges within the global community, creating solutions and taking action, The Tony Robbins Foundation provides monetary donations to various organizations around the world. Funding requests are evaluated on an ongoing basis. We look for organizations that align with our mission to empower individuals and organizations to make a significant difference in the quality of life of those often forgotten.

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

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

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

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

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

Our selection criteria include:

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

About the Foundation

Jesse W. Couch lived a life of zeal, honor, and dedication to the betterment of his community. The Couch family now humbly stewards the foundation he created to carry on his legacy of service for future generations. We believe that impact is best accomplished through partnerships with local organizations that know the people and communities they serve. We invest in and support efforts to protect the environment, further conservation and preservation initiatives, and save historical architecture that preserves community heritage. We also support initiatives that promote wellness and mental health and organizations seeking to provide and further education for all communities.

Annual Grant Focus

Each year, we seek to partner with and support non-profit organizations making an impact in the focus areas listed here.  The focus areas for 2025 are:

• Animal Wellbeing: We are dedicated to helping nonprofit organizations that nurture compassion and respect for all living animals. We must have animal-focused organizations that advocate for animal rights and provide humane treatment across all spectrums.
• Early Childhood Education: We are looking for schools that are providing young children with a creative and balanced approach to education. Things we love in early childhood curriculums:
  • Life Skills
  • Collaboration With Their Peers and Teachers   
  • Having Fun   
  • Montessori Teachings   
  • Project Based Teachings   
  • Diversity   
  • More Time Outside   
  • Less Screen Time
• Teachers: Teachers are essential to providing children with the best possible education. We must invest in their future and are always looking for teams that help them succeed in educating future generations.
• Get Outside: Being outside can improve memory, fight depression, lower blood pressure, and more! We support organizations that facilitate and encourage more outdoor activities that help create healthier communities. 

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

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

Grant Amount and Types

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

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

Centene Charitable Foundation

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

Vision

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

Areas of Focus

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

• Healthcare Access
• Social Services
• Education

The Princess Grace Foundation-USA is dedicated to upholding the legacy of Her Serene Highness Princess Grace of Monaco, (née Grace Kelly). Her commitment to advance the arts in the United States is sustained by the Princess Grace Awards which supports and elevates extraordinary early career artists in theater, dance and film through game-changing grants; and nurtures and supports Princess Grace Award winners throughout their careers.

 Funding

The Princess Grace Award is an unrestricted cash grant of $15,000 paid directly to the artist.

About National Dance Project

Now in its third decade, National Dance Project is widely recognized as one of the country’s major sources of funding and field building for dance. NDP has invested more than $38.5 million in funding primarily to support the creation and touring of new dance works, as well as other initiatives, including production residencies and regionally focused professional development for dance artists.

About NDP Production Grants

Production Grants are awarded to 20 dance projects annually through a competitive two-stage application process. Artists/choreographers and/or companies apply to receive a package of support that includes:

• $45,000 for the creation of a new dance project
• $10,000 in general operating support for the artist/company
• $10,000 for production residency and/or community engagement plans
• $35,000 to support a U.S.* tour** of the work

Creation funds and general operating funds are paid directly to the artist/company or their fiscal sponsor to cover expenses related to making the new dance project during the creation period (defined as the period from the receipt of funds to the premiere of the performative work). Works may not premiere before October 1, 2025. Production residency and/or community engagement funds are also paid directly to the artist/company or their fiscal sponsor and may only be used to:

• Cover the costs of activities that support the full realization of the new dance project during a residency experience, and/or
• Cover costs related to deepening relationships with existing communities or engaging new communities via activities directly related to the new dance project.

The $35,000 reserved for each work's U.S. tour is distributed by the artist/company to U.S. based organizations to subsidize a presentation of the NDP-funded project, and must be used during the project’s NDP touring period. 

The Foundation is dedicated to providing financial assistance to organizations committed to improving our world. Solutions to the problems of today's world still lie in the values of innovation, practicality, hard work, and compassion.

The Foundation considers applications for grants in the following areas:

• Education
• Social Service
• Health care
• Civic and cultural
• Environmental

The categories above are not intended to limit the interest of the Foundation from considering other worthwhile projects. In general, the Foundation guidelines are broad to give us flexibility in providing grants.

The majority of our grants are made in the U.S. However, like Dr. Scholl, we recognize the need for a global outlook. Non-U.S. grants are given to organizations where directors have knowledge of the grantee.

Our Mission & Vision

Riley’s Way invests in and supports the next generation of kind leaders. We provide young people with the programs, support and inclusive community they need to thrive as changemakers. Riley’s Way is committed to supporting these young leaders to build a better world that values kindness, empathy, connection and the voices of all youth.

We envision a future where kind leaders build a better world.

Riley’s Way works with emerging leaders, ages 13-23, who are leading social impact projects in areas like food insecurity, homelessness, education equity, and environmental justice – all through the lens of kindness, empathy, and connection. We support these young leaders to envision and achieve change. To date, we have invested in more than 3,500 young people across the country with over $4 million in grants and programming, impacting hundreds of thousands of people across the globe.

Our organization is built on the values of kindness, empathy, community, and youth leadership. We believe the best leaders have these values at their core and that young people are the key to advancing social change. We see Riley’s Way Alumni as future leaders in business, nonprofit, arts, education, STEM, public service, and their communities.

Call For Kindness (C4K) Fellowship

The Call For Kindness (C4K) Fellowship gives young leaders (ages 13-23) across the country the skills, connections, and funding they need to run social impact projects that inspire kindness and strengthen their local, national, or global communities. The Fellowship consists of a 12-month leadership development fellowship and a startup grant of up to $5,000. Fellows receive 1:1 coaching and project support, virtual skill-building sessions, an in-person leadership Retreat, mentorship opportunities, and a peer community of other young changemakers. Fellows can also apply for Continuation Grants with ongoing project support and coaching.

In addition to the General Category (28 awards), 10 awards will be given in the Special Category: LGBTQIA+ Community Award. Awards will be given in the following Sponsored Categories: A Kinder World for Animals Award (3 projects), the Equity in Law Award (up to 2 projects), the Civil Discourse & Connection Innovation Award (1 project) and the Yuriko Kikuchi Arigato Award (1 project).

Eligible Projects

You can submit any project that is youth-led and inspired by kindness, drives change in your community, and builds connections. Past projects have ranged from social justice projects to clubs at school, and anything in-between. This year, our special topic is environmental justice, but we are also accepting application in the general category and for the Yuriko Kikuchi Arigato Award, which supports one award in a special dance and performing arts category.

Purpose

The Fordney Foundation is an educational and charitable nonprofit foundation for dance formed in May, 2002 with a three-fold mission:

• Discover and train talented individuals with the ultimate goal of having them establish a professional career in dance or a dance-related profession.
• Develop an understanding of dance sport in the community, enhance youth awareness and participation, and encourage young talent in the United States.
• Award grant monies to those who pursue dance as a career and prize monies to amateur dancers 25 and under who dance competitively.

Goals and Objectives

• Help children and young adults to realize their dreams of artistically expressing themselves through ballroom dancing. The Fordney Foundation was established to promote ballroom dancing to individuals of all ethnic groups without regard to religion or creed that are 6 to 25 years of age who qualify as amateur dance students.
• Award grant monies to individuals who pursue dance as a career who are either dependents attending school 6 to 18 years of age or dependents 19 to 25 years of age who do not have the means to support their dancing.
• Award prize monies to amateur dancers ages 6 to 25 who dance competitively.

Dancestart Program

The DanceStart Program is part of the Fordney Foundation and helps families support their children’s learning and training of ballroom dancing at a competition level, however, under Internal Revenue Service guidelines for 501 (c) 3 nonprofit organizations, nonprofit funds may only be given to other nonprofit organizations in the applicant’s name.

Dancesports Benefits

Ballroom dancing is beautiful, graceful, elegant, and sophisticated. It requires top physical conditioning. It improves communication skills, social interaction, coordination, creativity, spatial ability, stamina and endurance, and positive psychological benefits by elevating self-esteem.

Financial Aspects of Dancesports

When watching amateur youth/junior dance competitions, you will become aware that competitors must dress in beautiful costumes, have impeccable grooming, and straight posture. Private and group dance lessons, coaching sessions, and practice sessions are required as the skill to dance as a unit becomes perfected. Transportation to and from the competitions, entry fees, hotel lodging, and meals may also be required. It takes a great deal of time and financial resources to become a top contender. By nurturing youth dance sport, the foundation can help educate the public in the United States about this activity as a sport.

Society of Health and Physical Educators

SHAPE America – Society of Health and Physical Educators serves as the voice for 200,000+ health and physical education professionals across the United States. The organization’s extensive community includes a diverse membership of health and physical educators, as well as advocates, supporters, and 50+ state affiliate organizations.

Since its founding in 1885, the organization has defined excellence in school-based health education and physical education. For decades, SHAPE America’s National Physical Education Standards have served as the foundation for well-designed physical education programs across the country, just as the SHAPE America National Health Education Standards serve as the foundation for effective skills-based health education. Together, these national standards provide a comprehensive framework for educators to deliver high-quality instruction and make a positive difference in the health and well-being of every preK-12 student.

Our Mission: To advance professional practice and promote research related to health and physical education, physical activity, dance and sport.

Tommy Wilson Memorial Grant

Dr. George T. Wilson and his wife, Irene, established the Tommy Wilson Memorial Award in honor of their youngest son, Tommy, who was born with cerebral palsy and passed away in 1974 at the age of 16. Because of Tommy, Dr. Wilson became involved in recreation for developmentally disabled individuals. Dr. Wilson is remembered as a great leader and inspiration in the field of leisure and recreation. His legacy carries on through the Tommy Wilson Memorial Grant.

The grant supports recreational programs for individuals with disabilities. Applicants may be funded under this grant only once per five-year period.

Performance Program

Funds are available for General Operating Support for professional performing ensembles and presenting organizations with a history of substantial commitment to contemporary American music and with plans to continue that commitment. The program also provides Project Support for exceptionally important activities relating to contemporary American music proposed by professional performing ensembles and presenting organizations that do not normally feature such music in their programming.

• An eligible project is a clearly defined endeavor that includes one or more performances of contemporary American music and, often, other activities related to the performance(s) that improve the public’s knowledge of such music.

The Performance Program also supports the electronic dissemination of live performances, including both live streams or broadcasts and delayed streams or broadcasts. Expenses such as recording and electronic distribution costs can be considered as eligible costs in a request for general operating or project support when related to live performance. Stand-alone recording projects (e.g., a studio album) and projects involving the acquisition of equipment (e.g., microphones, cameras, etc.) are not eligible for support in this program.

Special note for dance applicants

The Fund’s primary focus for dance applicants is on the quality of the music and the performance, which must be by live musicians, not the choreography. However, the choreography must enhance the performance of contemporary American music.

Special note for festival applicants and other applications with professional training activities

If the primary focus of the organization or project is public professional performance of music, the applicant should apply to the Performance Program. If the primary focus of the organization or project is educational activities, workshops, professional training, or career development, the applicant should apply to the Supplemental Program.

Funding Provisions

In general, grants range from $1,000 to $20,000. Grant amounts for larger organizations with a demonstrated extraordinary commitment to contemporary American music may exceed these amounts at the discretion of the panel. Please note that the awarding of a grant for general operating support in one year does not imply continuation of that support in subsequent years. Project support grants are for that project only, and no more than one grant will be awarded for a single project.

Please refer to FAQ for additional guidelines.

About Decolonizing Wealth Project 

Established in 2018, Decolonizing Wealth Project (DWP) is committed to bringing truth, healing, and repair to our global community. Reparative Philanthropy, our signature framework, is at the heart of our work and aims to transform wealth into collective wellbeing. DWP operates through three key strategies: sector transformation, storytelling and culture, and reparative giving. Our work has radically transformed the philanthropic sector and has facilitated the distribution of nearly $1 billion for truth, healing, and reparative efforts. Liberated Capital, DWP’s fund and donor community, has directly granted over $23 million to support economic solidarity, wellbeing, and earth and climate efforts primarily led by communities most impacted. 

Youth Mental Health Fund - Anchor Grant

Background

Decolonizing Wealth Project is excited to launch a new culturally responsive care fund focused on supporting and expanding mental health care for youth in the United States, prioritizing access for LGBTQ+ youth and youth of color. The fund will redistribute a minimum of $15 million in grants over three years starting this year.

Throughout history, young people have been drivers of social change. They have led efforts from Selma to Standing Rock, inviting us all to imagine a better future. Youth today face a world of compounding challenges with the changing technology and social media, climate crises, income inequality, and deadly extremist violence in the United States and beyond. However, the burden of these challenges is not carried equally. Young people of color and queer youth are often forced to navigate a world that refuses to honor their brilliance and embrace their identities. As a result, BIPOC and LGBTQ+ youth are more likely to experience depression, anxiety, or even suicide.

Suicide is the leading cause of death for American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders ages 10-24, and the second leading cause of death for young Black or African Americans (CDC, 2023; NAMI, 2023; ACAMH, 2023) and nearly half of all LBGTQ youth considered suicide, and 60% of those who sought mental health support were not able to access it (The Trevor Project, 2022).

One of the most significant barriers to supporting BIPOC and LGBTQ+ youth mental health is the lack of access to culturally responsive care. Youth of historically marginalized identities are in dire need of access to mental health providers who actively implement culturally responsive practices and care in affirming spaces that honor their identities. Culture also carries unique protective factors, and centering these strengths will ensure healing for both young people and society. 

The Opportunity

A Community-Aligned Fund that Centers Marginalized Youth

In collaboration with an external advisory committee composed of youth leaders and experts and practitioners in the field of adolescent mental health, DWP is launching the Youth Mental Health Fund (YMHF) – a culturally affirming initiative focused on expanding access to community-based mental health care for BIPOC and LGBTQ+ youth between the ages of 12-24. In addition to supporting community-based programs and partnerships, YMHF will also fund work to shift narratives around care and programs that offer culturally grounded healing experiences that center the unique needs and strengths of marginalized youth living at the intersections.

The YMHF fund will invest at least $15 million in grants over the next 3 years, for a minimum of $5 million annually. Alongside grantmaking, DWP will invest in capacity-building opportunities for grantee partners and elevate critical issues undergirding the Fund through communications and field-building efforts.

Fund Priorities: Culturally Responsive Care

Decolonizing Wealth Project seeks to nurture healing, belonging, and empowerment for youth. We will prioritize initiatives that are community-led or engage young people directly in decision-making processes and efforts. Examples of meaningful youth leadership may be in staffing, youth steering committees, youth boards, and processes that generate regular feedback from youth. An external, intergenerational Advisory Committee will review every eligible application.

Applications will be accepted across the following three priority areas:

• Community-Based Programs -
  • Increasing access to culturally responsive mental health care by providing services in places where youth live, learn, and play (e.g. in schools, churches, community centers, particularly in rural areas, etc). (Note: in the case of partnerships between community-based organizations and clinics/health care system units, grants will be awarded to the community-based nonprofit).
  • Youth-led organizations that provide programs to improve mental wellbeing outcomes, such as peer support, skill-building, and youth advocacy. These programs should create spaces where youth can connect, share experiences, and learn coping strategies, while advocating for changes in policies and practices that impact their mental well-being.
• Cultural-Based Healing -
  • Innovative culturally relevant delivery models that promote connection to belonging, culture, and improve mental health care. This may include programs that use creative expression such as: language, movement, art, music, dance, and theater as therapeutic tools to explore identity, process trauma, and build resilience.
  • Storytelling projects that amplify communal and personal stories of mental health journeys to foster solidarity and representation.
  • Heritage-based wellness programs that integrate cultural practices, rituals, and spirituality into mental health approaches for young people.
• Awareness and Advocacy Campaigns -
  • Community-based education programs tailored to equip youth, families, providers, and educators with tools to recognize and address mental health challenges.
  • Campaigns that challenge cultural and systemic stigmas around mental health care and identity, and work to expand access to services and support, as well as post-traumatic growth and joy.
  • Support for organizations working towards systemic change in mental health services and care delivery to dismantle inequities in mental health care systems impacting youth; Priority given to programs that train youth as advocates for systemic change in mental health policies and systems.

Funding

In this first year of grantmaking, we will use the following approach to grant $5 million:

• There are two grant types organizations can apply for (this grant page focuses on the Anchor Grant)
  • Anchor Grants: General operating support grants ranging from $100,000-$250,000 for youth mental health organizations or projects that have been operating for 5 years or more with organizational budgets over $2,000,000.

About Decolonizing Wealth Project 

Established in 2018, Decolonizing Wealth Project (DWP) is committed to bringing truth, healing, and repair to our global community. Reparative Philanthropy, our signature framework, is at the heart of our work and aims to transform wealth into collective wellbeing. DWP operates through three key strategies: sector transformation, storytelling and culture, and reparative giving. Our work has radically transformed the philanthropic sector and has facilitated the distribution of nearly $1 billion for truth, healing, and reparative efforts. Liberated Capital, DWP’s fund and donor community, has directly granted over $23 million to support economic solidarity, wellbeing, and earth and climate efforts primarily led by communities most impacted. 

Background

Decolonizing Wealth Project is excited to launch a new culturally responsive care fund focused on supporting and expanding mental health care for youth in the United States, prioritizing access for LGBTQ+ youth and youth of color. The fund will redistribute a minimum of $15 million in grants over three years starting this year.

Throughout history, young people have been drivers of social change. They have led efforts from Selma to Standing Rock, inviting us all to imagine a better future. Youth today face a world of compounding challenges with the changing technology and social media, climate crises, income inequality, and deadly extremist violence in the United States and beyond. However, the burden of these challenges is not carried equally. Young people of color and queer youth are often forced to navigate a world that refuses to honor their brilliance and embrace their identities. As a result, BIPOC and LGBTQ+ youth are more likely to experience depression, anxiety, or even suicide.

Suicide is the leading cause of death for American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders ages 10-24, and the second leading cause of death for young Black or African Americans (CDC, 2023; NAMI, 2023; ACAMH, 2023) and nearly half of all LBGTQ youth considered suicide, and 60% of those who sought mental health support were not able to access it (The Trevor Project, 2022).

One of the most significant barriers to supporting BIPOC and LGBTQ+ youth mental health is the lack of access to culturally responsive care. Youth of historically marginalized identities are in dire need of access to mental health providers who actively implement culturally responsive practices and care in affirming spaces that honor their identities. Culture also carries unique protective factors, and centering these strengths will ensure healing for both young people and society. 

The Opportunity

A Community-Aligned Fund that Centers Marginalized Youth

In collaboration with an external advisory committee composed of youth leaders and experts and practitioners in the field of adolescent mental health, DWP is launching the Youth Mental Health Fund (YMHF) – a culturally affirming initiative focused on expanding access to community-based mental health care for BIPOC and LGBTQ+ youth between the ages of 12-24. In addition to supporting community-based programs and partnerships, YMHF will also fund work to shift narratives around care and programs that offer culturally grounded healing experiences that center the unique needs and strengths of marginalized youth living at the intersections.

The YMHF fund will invest at least $15 million in grants over the next 3 years, for a minimum of $5 million annually. Alongside grantmaking, DWP will invest in capacity-building opportunities for grantee partners and elevate critical issues undergirding the Fund through communications and field-building efforts.

Fund Priorities: Culturally Responsive Care

Decolonizing Wealth Project seeks to nurture healing, belonging, and empowerment for youth. We will prioritize initiatives that are community-led or engage young people directly in decision-making processes and efforts. Examples of meaningful youth leadership may be in staffing, youth steering committees, youth boards, and processes that generate regular feedback from youth. An external, intergenerational Advisory Committee will review every eligible application.

Applications will be accepted across the following three priority areas:

• Community-Based Programs -
  • Increasing access to culturally responsive mental health care by providing services in places where youth live, learn, and play (e.g. in schools, churches, community centers, particularly in rural areas, etc). (Note: in the case of partnerships between community-based organizations and clinics/health care system units, grants will be awarded to the community-based nonprofit).
  • Youth-led organizations that provide programs to improve mental wellbeing outcomes, such as peer support, skill-building, and youth advocacy. These programs should create spaces where youth can connect, share experiences, and learn coping strategies, while advocating for changes in policies and practices that impact their mental well-being.
• Cultural-Based Healing -
  • Innovative culturally relevant delivery models that promote connection to belonging, culture, and improve mental health care. This may include programs that use creative expression such as: language, movement, art, music, dance, and theater as therapeutic tools to explore identity, process trauma, and build resilience.
  • Storytelling projects that amplify communal and personal stories of mental health journeys to foster solidarity and representation.
  • Heritage-based wellness programs that integrate cultural practices, rituals, and spirituality into mental health approaches for young people.
• Awareness and Advocacy Campaigns -
  • Community-based education programs tailored to equip youth, families, providers, and educators with tools to recognize and address mental health challenges.
  • Campaigns that challenge cultural and systemic stigmas around mental health care and identity, and work to expand access to services and support, as well as post-traumatic growth and joy.
  • Support for organizations working towards systemic change in mental health services and care delivery to dismantle inequities in mental health care systems impacting youth; Priority given to programs that train youth as advocates for systemic change in mental health policies and systems.

Funding

In this first year of grantmaking, we will use the following approach to grant $5 million:

• There are two grant types organizations can apply for (this grant page focuses on the Opportunity Grant)
  • Opportunity Grants:
    • General operating support grants ranging from $30,000– $100,000 for organizations or projects that have been operating for less than 5 years; or
    • Project-specific grants for new innovative solutions, pilots, convenings, one-time special opportunities, etc.