Charitable Contributions

Our goal with financial contributions from BOK Financial and the BOKF Foundation is to enhance the quality of life and economic wellbeing in the communities where BOK Financial operates and where our employees work and live including Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas. Our charitable contributions are focused on four pillars of giving: United Way, economic development, education and basic needs

Our long-term strategic plan guides all contributions to assure maximum impact in the community and to develop mutually beneficial relationships with our nonprofit partner agencies. BOK financial contributions are budgeted on an annual calendar basis. We accept online charitable contribution/grant applications throughout the year.

Pillars of giving

Basic Needs

We provide volunteer and financial support to organizations serving the most vulnerable members of our community. Our efforts largely focus on organizations providing direct services addressing such issues as poverty, hunger, healthcare, housing and safety.

Education

An equitable, robust educational system drives long-term community growth. We support local nonprofits whose primary mission is promoting basic education, including public school foundations, early childhood education, financial literacy, and institutions of higher education.

Economic Development

Actions that raise the standard of living and economic health of our communities make them better places to live and work. We provide support to local chambers of commerce; nonprofits focused on workforce development, job training, etc.; and public/private partnerships investing in our communities.

ABOUT REACH

The REACH Healthcare Foundation is a charitable foundation dedicated to improving health coverage and access to quality, affordable health care for uninsured and medically underserved people. The foundation maintains a regional focus, with a six-county service area that encompasses Allen, Johnson and Wyandotte counties in Kansas, and Cass, Jackson and Lafayette counties in Missouri.

Historically, REACH has focused its community investments in areas including primary medical care, mental health, oral health, and health policy and advocacy. Our current funding priorities are outlined within a community investment framework, which describes the foundation’s three outcomes areas:

• Bridge the Coverage Divide,
• Close the Health Equity Gap 
• Strengthen the Safety Net

Each outcome area aligns with the foundation’s commitment to achieving equitable health outcomes throughout our six-county service area. These outcome areas, and the strategies within each, guide our work, partnerships and where we invest.

COLLABORATIONS

Collaborative efforts are eligible to apply provided the applicant organization meets the Foundation’s eligibility criteria and is exempt under Section 501(c)(3).

Since its inception, the Foundation, which is still led by Lester T. Sunderland's descendants, has focused on supporting construction projects, awarding grants to nonprofits in the Kansas City region and other markets traditionally served by the Ash Grove Cement Company. 

 The Foundation prefers to make grants for construction and special interest projects rather than for annual operating expenses. 

Grants for planning, design, construction, renovation, repairs and restoration of facilities are considered. Areas of interest include higher education, youth serving agencies, health facilities, community buildings, museums, civic projects and energy efficient affordable housing projects sponsored by qualified tax-exempt organizations. 

Funding Areas

In recent grant cycles, the Board of Trustees has awarded the majority of grants in four broadly defined areas:

Health Care and Hospitals

A growing area of need in many of the communities the Foundation serves. In 2017, more than $2.9 million was awarded to hospitals and health-care groups to build and improve their facilities. 

Human Services

The Foundation awarded over $7 million to human service nonprofits in 2017, and the majority of grants in this area were awarded to groups that provide essential services to youth and families. Grantees included a range of youth-focused groups, including the Kansas 4-H Foundation, Kids TLC, Ronald McDonald House & Boys & Girls Clubs. 

Higher Education

In 2017, the Foundation awarded more than $10 million to over 45 educational organizations. Grantees included community colleges, private colleges, and public universities. 

Arts and Culture

The Helen S Boylan Foundation

The mission of the Helen S. Boylan Foundation is to enhance the quality of life in our communities of Carthage, Missouri, the Greater Kansas City Area, and Lindale, Texas. We actively distribute quarterly grants to local non-profit organizations serving arts & education, women & children, health & wellness and the beautification of our communities.

Grant Guidelines

The Helen S. Boylan Foundation is a private family foundation established in 1982 to continue the family tradition of commitment to enhancing the quality of life of the community through grants to qualified charitable organizations. In carrying out its mission, the Foundation considers a wide range of proposals within the following areas: arts, education, health, human services, environment, and public interest.

NOTE:  The application deadline has been  extended to December 1, 2023.

About School-Based Healthcare Solutions Network (SBHSN).

Utilizing a unique framework of funding systems offered by the Department of Health and Human Services, managed care organizations, health insurers, and private donors, SBHSN promotes a system of care model (Coaching Model℠) offering a mix of evidenced-based intervention, prevention, and care coordination services to children in grades K-12. The Coaching Model aims to expand quality mental healthcare access on public school campuses and improve children's social, emotional, behavioral, family, and wellness outcomes.

School-Based Mental Health Implementation Grant

In response to the growing number of students who need mental health counseling, the School-Based Healthcare Solutions Network (SBHSN) is accepting applications from Local Education Agencies (LEA), Public and Private Universities, State and local Colleges, Charter School Management Companies, Public Schools, Charter Schools, and Non-Profit Organizations (501c3) to implement and expand mental health program services on local school campuses. Grantees will receive direct funding and reimbursement to support the following activities: 

• Expanding access to School-Based Social and Emotional Learning (SEL).
• Coordinating mental healthcare services with school administration and staff. 
• Delivering mental healthcare services and coordinating academic-support activities to students with a history of attendance, behavior, and poor academic performance.

FUNDING

5-Years, renewable based on meeting performance goals 5-year award ceiling is $5,500,000.

The Dane G. Hansen Foundation, Logan, KS, is partnering with the Community Foundation to facilitate grants to improve the quality of life for communities in North Central Kansas.

Grants will be awarded to projects or programs that address:

• Education: Enhances the learning environment and expands opportunities for students. Provides increased self-reliance on personal life skills and workforce capability.
• Health Care: Ensures access to quality health services and promotes healthy life practices.
• Community Social Services & Security: Enhance access to social services needed for individuals of special needs and supports systems to provide community disaster relief and general community emergencies.
• Conservation & Environment: Support efforts to improve and maintain high air and water quality, appreciation for our natural environment and enhances economic and social benefits of outdoor resources.
• Arts & Culture: Provide cultural and artistic opportunities to enhance the quality of life for local residents and to encourage tourism and the exchange of ideas.
• Community Beautification: Support efforts to improve and maintain public spaces to enhance community pride and encourage socialization among residents.

The Artistic Innovations Grant Program encourages the spirit of experimentation and exploration, exclusively engaging in-region artists and organizations in the creation of new, original works for audiences in the M-AAA region.

This grant program offers up to $15,000 in support of expenses incurred in the art-making process and premiere of these endeavors. Through generous support from the National Endowment for the Arts, M-AAA supports individual artists and arts-based nonprofit 501c3 organizations in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Texas for projects that meet the eligibility requirements listed below.

A great Artistic Innovations project is one that has in-person experiences of art, art making, or artists at the heart of the initiative and introduces a new or original idea or product to the applicant’s audience. Engagement through feature presentation and outreach includes but is not limited to performance, publication, lecture/demonstration, exhibition, master class and/or workshop.

Program Objectives

The objective of the Artistic Innovations Grant Program is to support the creation of new, original works of art by eligible in-region artists and organizations.

The works of art culminate in at least two public-facing events: one, the premiere feature presentation and the second, an educational outreach event that occurs in M-AAA’s six-state region between July 1, 2023 and June 30, 2024. 

M-AAA will incorporate principles of equity, access, and inclusion in our implementation of the Artistic Innovations Grant Program. Applications will be assessed for artistic merit and artistic excellence.

Awards will be made across the six-state M-AAA region, with at least two grants awarded per state (Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Texas). This program will disburse matching grants of up to $15,000 to no less than twelve grantees.

Project Eligibility

A great Artistic Innovations project is a work that has in-person experiences of art, art making, or artists at the heart of the endeavor and introduces a new original idea or artwork to the applicant’s audience. (M-AAA recognizes that in-person projects might not be possible given ongoing public health concerns surrounding COVID-19, but for the purposes of the application process we ask that the applicant plan for the best-case scenario in which in-person experiences are a safe option.)

Eligible projects must:

• be new and original work that culminates in at least two accessible, public-facing events: one, the premiere feature presentation and the second, an educational outreach event. These events must occur in M-AAA’s six-state region between July 1 of this year and June 30 of the following year. Public-facing events include but are not limited to performance, publication, lecture/demonstration, exhibition, master class and/or workshop;
• exclusively draw upon the talent of artists who reside in the M-AAA region at the time of application and throughout the grant period; and
• have an anticipated project budget that reflects a 1:1 dollar-for-dollar match for the grant amount requested. Grant requests are limited to $15,000. Organizational applicants must show evidence of a cash match. Individual artist applicants may meet the 1:1 match requirement through both cash and in-kind contributions. In-kind contributions and all other funding procured or pending for any project should be included in the budget. Federal and other M-AAA grant funding cannot be used to meet the 1:1 match requirement for any applicant.

Financial support is limited to most direct expenses incurred in the art-making process and the public-facing events. Allowed expenditures include, but are not limited to commissioning fees, artists’ fees, rehearsal or studio expenses, production or exhibition materials, as well as promotion and audience development for all public-facing engagements related to the project. Indirect costs and expenses associated with the project’s opening or closing (e.g., receptions) are not allowed.

Projects we support

Generally, the Mabee Foundation supports organizations or projects in the following areas:

• Educational
• Social and Humanitarian Services
• Medical and Health
• Cultural and Religious

The Mabee Foundation Board of Trustees considers grant requests at its quarterly meetings the second Tuesday in January, April, July and October. Grant requests must be received by the first business day of December, March, June and September to be considered at the corresponding Board meeting.

The Mabee Foundation only makes grants for construction projects, renovation projects and for the purchase of major medical equipment.

Grants

Mabee Foundation grants are ‘challenge grants,’ meaning that the organization must raise the remaining funds required to finish the project within one year of the awarding of the grant or risk cancellation of the grant.

The Mabee Foundation will grant up to 20% of the total costs of the project (with a maximum amount of $2,000,000).

Construction must commence within two years after satisfying the grant challenge. Payment is not made on the grant until the challenge has been satisfied and construction has started.

IMA Foundation

Shortly after the incorporation of IMA more than 40 years ago, the company’s founders showed true vision and commitment to the community by creating the IMA Foundation. With employee owners at the core of our business, the goal of the IMA Foundation is to represent the passions of our associates and make strategic contributions within the foundation focus areas.

IMA Foundation Vision

Empowering our communities to create opportunities which protect assets and make a difference.

IMA Foundation Mission

To provide philanthropic support in the communities where we work and live.

Focus Area

The IMA Foundation focuses its efforts in three key areas:

Advancing Youth

To reduce the drop-out rate and offer a chance of quality futures for our young people.

• Mentoring programs.
• After school programs.
• Youth Mental Health.

Arts & Culture

To improve the quality of life in our communities through the arts.

• Cultural institutions.
• Arts in Education programs that offer arts education programming in public schools.

Education

To support educational institutions so that young people graduate with increased skills and knowledge, resulting in a higher skilled workforce in the future.

• Educational institutions.
• K-12 public education.
• Higher education.