Search Through San Francisco County Grants for Nonprofits in California

Strengthening communities

The Foundation, established in 1990, is an integral component of Amgen's commitment to dramatically improve people's lives and the principal channel for Amgen’s corporate philanthropy.  In addition to its primary focus on science education, the Foundation has committed an additional $180 million to local, regional and international nonprofit organizations that reflect Amgen’s core values and complement the company’s dedication to impacting lives in inspiring and innovative ways. 

Philanthropic Focus

In support of our mission, the Amgen Foundation seeks to improve access and advance excellence in science education to inspire the next generation of innovators, as well as invest in strengthening communities where Amgen staff members live and work. We support diverse organizations whose philosophies, objectives, and approaches align with the Foundation's mission and strategic goals.

Each year, the Foundation awards grants to local, regional, and international nonprofit organizations whose programs are replicable, scalable and designed to have a lasting and meaningful effect in Amgen communities. These grants reflect Amgen's dedication to impacting lives in inspiring and innovative ways.

Funding Priorities

Through our focus on science education, we are especially interested in the combined use of educational technology and hands-on science experiences to support learning outcomes. The Foundation prioritizes these areas:

• Teacher quality and professional development in science: We support comprehensive programs that enhance the quality of science teachers entering the classroom, and support teachers with meaningful professional-development opportunities that have a positive impact on student achievement.
• Pivotal science experience: We support programs that provide students and teachers with opportunities for authentic, inquiry-based learning experiences that significantly impact students' excitement about science and scientific careers and make the use of the latest educational technology.

Additionally, the Foundation supports programs that enhance civic engagement and align with our overall mission and priority-giving areas in the communities where Amgen has a presence.

Amgen Communities

Currently, the Amgen Foundation makes local grants in and around the following U.S. and Puerto Rico communities:

• Ventura County, CA
• San Francisco Bay Area, CA
• Greater Boston Area, Middlesex and Suffolk Counties, MA
• Juncos, Puerto Rico
• Rhode Island
• Tampa, FL
• Louisville, KY
• North Carolina
• Ohio
• Deerfield, IL
• Rockville, MD

About The Foundation

The Peggy and Jack Baskin Foundation was founded in 2008 to center the margin, creating and supporting strategies to reach gender and racial equity. The Foundation believes that intersectional feminism is an essential principle in our work and we intentionally prioritize women, girls, and gender-expansive individuals of color throughout our programming.

The Peggy and Jack Baskin Foundation awards grants to nonprofit organizations primarily in Monterey and Santa Cruz Counties (the tribal lands of the Amah Mutsun, Ohlone, Chalon, Awaswas, and Esselen nations), occasionally in the Greater San Francisco Bay Area, and organizations and programs with statewide impact across California or national impact across the US. Grants are restricted to the United States. We do not accept unsolicited applications.

The Peggy and Jack Baskin Foundation is a registered 501c3 non-profit.

Funding Priorities

The Peggy and Jack Baskin Foundation awards grants to nonprofit organizations that serve people and communities in Monterey and Santa Cruz Counties (the tribal lands of the Amah Mutsun, Ohlone, Chalon, Awaswas, and Esselen nations), occasionally in the Greater San Francisco Bay Area, and organizations and programs with statewide impact across California or national impact across the US. The Peggy and Jack Baskin Foundation believes that intersectional feminism is an essential principle in our grantmaking. We fund solutions to address the impact of racist and patriarchal structures facing women of color and gender-expansive individuals of color. 

Current Grant Opportunities/Funding Priorities

• Feminist / Gender / Women’s Studies
• Reproductive Rights and Justice
• Legal Advocacy for Immigrant Women
• Activist Fund
• Indigenous Women and Girls
• Girls in Engineering
• Women in Public Policy
• Transitional Housing for Survivors of Relationship Abuse
• Legal Services for Survivors of Relationship Abuse
• Women Re-Entering the Workforce
• Media Literacy
• Gender Economic Justice
• Environmental Gender Justice
• Farming: Gender and Racial Justice

Vision

While talent may be spread evenly throughout humanity, opportunity is not. Comis Foundation envisions that every child has access to opportunities to not only succeed in life, but to thrive.

Mission

Comis Foundation invests in organizations that provide opportunity and access to equip children with skills to explore, learn, and thrive in their chosen communities.

Guiding Principles

Comis Foundation has 5 principles which guide our focus: We work to build relationships of mutual trust with our grantees; We value sustainable systems and solutions; We are not experts, we want to learn and enable learning; We are willing to accept risk when warranted to achieve greater impact; We value both new and established ways of serving communities.

Area of Interest

Comis Foundation supports programs and policy work that drive improvements in educational outcomes for children and youth. We are interested in programs that support the community as well as children and youth directly. We embrace the whole child concept of full community engagement to drive better outcomes for the child and our society at large.

Comis Foundation Grant

Pilot and Proof of Concept: $5,000 – $25,000

• New programs within existing organizations, standalone new organizations just getting off the ground, or testing new approaches within a current scope
• Smaller-scale research or data collecting project or other similar short-duration investigations
• Timeframe is single-year; multi-year research or evaluation projects will not be considered under this program

Capacity Building and Innovation: $25,000 up to $75,000 per year

• Capacity building for organizations, including but not limited to staff professional development, strategic planning, leadership development, and supplemental expertise (e.g., communications)
• General operating support for innovative organizations. We consider the concept of innovation broadly: organizations that create opportunity for children to explore, learn and thrive are by definition innovative until all children can engage with the world through the same set of opportunities.
• Multi-year research or evaluation projects will be considered under this program, particularly as a pre-cursor to scaling innovative programs
• Multi-year grants will be considered under this program at $25,000 – $75,000 per year

Background

We empower courageous leaders and visionary artists who make a positive impact in their communities and inspire others to change the world.

Principles Guiding Our Grantmaking

The Gerbode Foundation supports projects that:

• Inform and empower communities by utilizing all forms of media and communication tools to advance truth;
• Advocate at the local, state or federal level for policy changes that improve social and economic outcomes for communities most in need;
• Mobilize action to change existing policies and practices that perpetuate inequality or discrimination; and
• Leverage key public, private, and philanthropic stakeholders in collaborations or coalitions that strengthen communities.

We look for organizations that are led by exceptional leaders, are fiscally sound, and have the potential to leverage our investment with other resources. We also maintain our founder’s entrepreneurial and pioneering spirit by looking for new opportunities to innovate, using unconventional approaches whenever appropriate.

The grants generally range from $2,500 to $100,000, depending on the scope of the project, whether it clearly fits within the Foundation’s programmatic priorities, and other internal factors that influence our funding decisions. An average size grant is $25,000.

Program Areas

• Advancing Truth
  • Truth is power. Gerbode seeks to elevate the voices of truth to counter misinformation.
  • We look to partner with organizations that use media and new technologies as tools to inform and engage the public on critical issues, as well as influence change in current policies and practices that cause harm to individuals, communities and our environment.
  • We are interested in supporting community leaders who are courageous truth tellers and can inspire passion for change, and we embrace authentic and diverse viewpoints, narratives, and solutions that have the potential to alter culture, policy and behavior.
• Justice
  • Gerbode is deeply committed to advancing justice for populations that are currently experiencing trauma and persecution due to factors including the color of their skin, immigration status, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, language spoken, or religious beliefs.
  • We believe in the importance of community-driven strategies and other appropriate approaches, including the critical power of collaboration across communities, sectors, and institutions, as key ingredients of positive social change.
• Environment
  • Gerbode seeks to use its resources to heal the relationship between people and the earth.
  • We value the role that communities play in addressing conservation, preservation, and quality of life concerns ranging from the quality of our air, water, and oceans to the preservation of open space and other natural resources.
  • We seek to elevate the issues of environmental justice, which includes access to healthy food, transportation, and safe and healthy neighborhoods.
  • And, we believe in the importance of strategic community planning to ensure that the public sector develops appropriate and effective plans, policies, and procedures to address important urban concerns that result in strong, diverse, and culturally vibrant neighborhoods.
• Arts
  • The Special Awards in the Arts Program supports the creation of new works in dance, theater production, and music composition.
  • These nationally respected awards have helped underwrite acclaimed new works that are culturally and aesthetically diverse, by prominent and emerging artists.
  • These grants have supported artists at critical junctures in their careers; enabled nonprofit local arts groups to develop and debut substantial, original works; and enriched Bay Area audiences, readers, and viewers by giving them first access to ambitious new creations.

About Amgen

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

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

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

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

Non-Healthcare Donations and Sponsorships

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

Rapid Response Fund for Movement  Building

The Rapid Response Fund for Movement Building provides quick-turnaround funds to frontline social justice organizations that are strengthening the voice and power of low-income residents and people of color. The fund offers grassroots organizations small, one-time grants within 30 days of receiving a funding request.

Grant size and duration

• One-time grants of $3,000–$20,000 for discrete projects
• If approved, grant will be processed within 30 days of application receipt.
• The project must be completed within six months of receiving the grant.

Guidelines – projects must demonstrate the following to be eligible for funding:

• Timely and urgent: Your organization must be responding to an unanticipated catalyzing event or urgent external challenge.
• Opportunity for immediate impact: The project is strategic with a clear timeline and goals, with the desired outcomes having the potential to positively affect the community right away.
• Clear focus on racial and/or economic equity: Your project specifically addresses racial and/or economic inequities. It should demonstrate a clear equity framework, explicitly responding to the unique needs, challenges, and strengths of marginalized communities.
• Movement- and power-building: The project must aim to build the voice and power of people of color or other marginalized communities.
• Representative leadership and staff: The project must be led by those who are most impacted by the racial and economic inequities that the effort aims to address (e.g. communities of color, immigrants, refugees, formerly incarcerated residents, youth, low-wage workers, people with disabilities, low-income residents, LGBTQ community members, etc.).

Emergency and Disaster Relief Fund

This 10-county fund provides flexible resources and focuses on community relief and recovery needs for current and future disasters.  Depending on the nature of the emergency or disaster, needs could include shelter, food, financial assistance and other services as they are needed.

The fund is designed to provide a continued, flexible source of funding, so that we may respond to our communities' immediate needs in times of emergency, assist in building community resilience, and be prepared to act quickly when future disasters occur. Grants disbursed by the fund will prioritize support for those most in need and facing the harshest circumstances.

The Henry Mayo Newhall Foundation, established in 1963, is a private foundation incorporated under California law.

The mission of the Foundation is to improve the quality of life within the communities associated with the career and legacy of California pioneer Henry Mayo Newhall. These communities include San Francisco, the Santa Clarita Valley of Los Angeles County and the Santa Maria Valley in central California.

Funding Priorities 

The Foundation accepts proposals for the following program priorities:     

• Academic and cultural enrichment programs for children and youth (e.g., math and science; fine and visual arts; performing arts; computer literacy; tutoring and mentoring).    
• Agriculture, animal welfare and conservation programs.    
• College scholarship programs.    
• Historical preservation programs.    
• Outreach programs for the disadvantaged (e.g., homeless shelters, food banks, health centers, domestic violence shelters, care for the elderly).

Grants are typically awarded for one year in the range of $5,000 to $20,000 and may be renewed based on grantee performance and program effectiveness. The Foundation does not assume any obligation to provide continuing support to grantees beyond the initial grant.

The Foundation will consider requests for multi-year funding to facilitate effective program planning by supported institutions.

The Kimball Foundation

The Kimball Foundation supports college access and persistence, workplace & vocational training, cultural enrichment, and environmental education programs serving the residents of San Francisco, Marin, San Mateo, and Sonoma counties and to a limited extent Santa Clara County as far south as Palo Alto.

Our Mission

We support college access and persistence, cultural enrichment, environmental education, and workplace success programs.

What We Fund

The Kimball Foundation supports college access and persistence, cultural enrichment, environmental education, and workplace success programs.

We work to ensure that students who come from low-income backgrounds persist on a pathway through secondary school and into and through two- or four-year college with the support of high-quality academic and college-bound programs. Attributes of successful grantee organizations and programs:

• Serves students ages 10-24 who demonstrate a commitment to achieve despite backgrounds that may include significant risk factors (e.g., first-in-family to attend college or status as an English language learner) and few supports
• Strong program model based on recognized best practices in the field that is offered in or after school, including summers
• Provides sequential support that bridges one or more critical transition phases over a number of years (e.g., middle to high school and/or high school to college) to ensure persistence and success
• When academic support is provided to students, it is articulated to promote A-G course attainment
• The foundation does not support scholarship programs unless they have a structured in-depth academic support component

We provide youth who face significant obstacles to employment with comprehensive training and services that prepare them for job placement with increased earnings potential. Attributes of successful grantee organizations and programs:

• At least 50% of program population served should be students aged 15-24 who demonstrate a commitment to employability despite backgrounds that may include significant risk factors  (e.g., poor academic preparation or former foster youth status) and few supports
• Skills training includes soft-skills development as well as vocational/technical skills training that leads to living-wage and career building jobs in growth industries
• Strong program model based on recognized best practices in the field that incorporates skills training and wraparound support services
• Provide opportunities for academic or marketable credentials, including GEDs, high school diplomas, and industry-recognized certificates and coursework

: We provide students with equal access to participatory arts education to foster an appreciation of the arts while promoting community engagement through cultural experiences. Attributes of successful grantee organizations and programs:

• Serves students ages 5-18 from low-income backgrounds
• Promotes an understanding of the arts and development of art skills (includes but is not limited to literary, media, performing, and visual)
• Long-term focus on program depth through in-school, after-school and/or out-of-school opportunities with priority given to programs with a robust, sequential curriculum or training that help students meaningfully build artistic performance or skills.

: We provide youth with high engagement programs that provide outdoor experiential, wilderness, and environmental science education. Attributes of successful grantee organizations and programs: Serves students ages 10-18 from low-income backgrounds

• Provides free or subsidized fees to program services and camps
• Create meaningful opportunities for youth to build careers in Environmental Preservation and addressing Climate Change with access to mentors, program leaders, internships and other paid employment.

Rest Year Policy

The Kimball Foundation seeks to provide both ongoing support for effective nonprofit organizations, and to identify and support new and promising organizations. To achieve this goal, the foundation employs the following “rest year” policy: organizations that receive four years of consecutive funding need to take a one-year rest before receiving additional support.

Investing in Our Communities

At Bank of Marin:

• We believe that doing our part to build a stronger community for all is essential to our collective success
• We strive to support nonprofits that foster community and economic vitality, equitable access to educational resources and an enriched quality of life.
• We commit to working with local organization in a collaborative manner through focused leadership, volunteerism, giving and financial education.

Since opening our doors in 1990, we—along with our employees—have donated millions of dollars, served on hundreds of nonprofit boards/committees and volunteered thousands of hours to local philanthropic endeavors.

Bank of Marin has consistently been ranked one of the “Top Corporate Philanthropists” by San Francisco Business Times since 2003, was inducted into NorthBay Biz’s “Best of” Hall of Fame in 2024, and ranked top 10 in Sacramento Business Journal’s Corporate Direct Giving List for philanthropic efforts in 2023.

Grant Funding Priorities

Social & Economic Vitality:

Foster a thriving economy and community by supporting efforts to meet basic needs.

Organization and programs related to:

• Basic needs and social safety net programs,
• economic development,
• affordable housing, and
• small business support, especially BIPOC and women-owned business.

Education

Enable youth and adults to gain the skills to thrive personally and professionally.

Organization and programs related to:

• youth financial literacy
• youth and professional development programs,
• access gaps in education (especially S.T.E.A.M. education) and professional development, and
• youth mentorship, college preparedness and academic success.

Enrichment & Wellness

Enhance quality of life and provide access to health and wellness programs.

Organization and programs related to:

• access to arts and cultural experiences,
• animal rescue and animal-human therapy,
• programs and services for people with diverse abilities.
• environment and sustainability.

Our Purpose

The Community Arts program ensures vibrant work is created, new voices are celebrated, and artists and audiences inclusive of the Bay Area’s diverse communities and cultures have opportunities to thrive. We support the creation of work by Bay Area artists and access to the arts for Bay Area communities. We celebrate the rich diversity of the region by awarding funds to emerging artists and small to mid-sized arts and culture organizations engaging their communities with meaning and purpose.

Community Arts Program

This year, through a quarterly open application process, Community Arts will award approximately $1 million in grants to individual artists and nonprofit arts and culture organizations in the Bay Area. Grants will be awarded in $5,000, $10,000 and $15,000 amounts.

Though we ask for grantseekers to apply with a specific project, all awards will be made as general operating support, to ensure grantees the greatest flexibility to respond to the unique needs of their project and organization.

Bothin Foundation

We help build the capacity of nonprofits with grants for durable capital investments. These capital grants go to social service, academic enrichment, youth development, arts, and environmental nonprofit organizations that provide direct services to:

• disadvantaged children and youth (ages 0 to 24),
• low-income families with children, and
• people with disabilities.

The foundation also considers durable capital requests from K-12 schools exclusively serving children with learning differences.

Examples of eligible capital grant uses include building improvements, vehicle requests, program equipment, and technology needs. Only one grant may be received within a 3-year period.

Funding Priorities

Building Construction & Renovation

• The foundation will fund any contracted labor directly associated with the project.
  • This could include labor for removal or installation of materials or the hiring of expertise needed to complete the project, such as engineers or contractors.
• The foundation does not fund planning or needs assessments for capital projects.
• The foundation does not fund staff time for project management.
• The foundation only supports building renovations for buildings located in San Francisco, Marin, Sonoma, and/or San Mateo counties.

Equipment & Furnishings

• The foundation considers funding furniture, program equipment, and medical equipment purchases.
• The foundation prioritizes requests to purchase equipment that will be used by or mostly benefit program participants.
• The foundation does not fund planning or needs assessments for capital projects.

Technology Grants

• The foundation considers funding furniture, program equipment, and medical equipment purchases.
• The foundation prioritizes requests to purchase equipment that will be used by or mostly benefit program participants.
• The foundation does not fund planning or needs assessments for capital projects.
• The foundation does not fund software or consultants to build out software projects.

Vehicles

• The foundation prioritizes vehicle purchases that transport participants.
• Insurance, gas, advertising on van (wrap-around printing), and warranties are not covered by grants.

Special Arts Grants

Special Arts Grants are awarded to anchoring arts and culture nonprofit organizations that have annual budgets between $750,000 and $2 million; produce and present new work; operate performance venues or exhibition spaces in San Francisco, Alameda, or Contra Costa counties; and meet the other eligibility criteria listed below.

The Foundation strives to make grants that advance a diverse array of artistic disciplines, aesthetic sensibilities, and forms of cultural expression. We prioritize grant requests that best support working artists and place particular emphasis on funding organizations that represent and engage historically marginalized artists and communities. 

The Special Arts Grants program accepts applications for general support from organizations that are engaged in the production and presentation of new work by Bay Area artists in the disciplines of dance, music, theater, visual arts, interdisciplinary arts, or film. 

Small Arts Grants

The Fleishhacker Foundation’s Small Arts Grants program provides general, unrestricted support to small and mid-sized arts and culture organizations in San Francisco, Alameda, and Contra Costa counties that produce and present new work by professional Bay Area artists in the disciplines of dance, music, theater, visual arts, interdisciplinary arts, or film.

The program also provides post-production support for film projects directed by filmmakers who reside in these counties.

The Foundation seeks to fund a broad range of arts groups and strives to make grants that support a diverse array of artistic disciplines, aesthetic sensibilities, and forms of cultural expression. 

General support grants are flexible and may be used for operations, staffing, facilities, artists’ compensation, rehearsals, performances, presentations, exhibitions, and other administrative, program, or production costs at the grantee’s discretion.

Post-production support for film projects directed by Bay Area filmmakers with budgets under $750,000 is also considered in this program, 

Grants in this program range from $5,000 to $10,000 and will usually be closer to $5,000.

The Venable Foundation envisions that its philanthropic investments provide essential resources to nonprofit organizations in communities across the country. Guided by the belief that everyone has the right to equitable employment opportunities, healthcare, housing, food, and a vibrant cultural community, Venable grantees ensure that economically disadvantaged people are given the tools they need to thrive.

The average size of a Venable Foundation grant is approximately $10,000. First-time awardees are usually on the smaller end of the spectrum. It is up to the organization to determine what it feels is an appropriate request.

Funding Priorities

Grant support is provided to assist with general operations and projects. Currently, the Venable Foundation’s funding priorities include:

• Human Services
• Legal Services
• Education
• Workforce Development
• Youth Impact
• Health
• Environment
• Arts and Culture

You can learn more about each of these funding priorities below:

Human Services – The Foundation has a strong track record of supporting a breadth of essential human services, including programs that impact people experiencing homelessness and food insecurity, incarcerated and returning citizens, LGBTQ+ and immigrant communities, and those affected by domestic violence and housing insecurity.

Legal Services – We support the delivery of free or affordable legal services in our communities. Pro bono consulting and representation focus on a variety of issues, including domestic violence, housing, immigration, public benefits, and discrimination, among other areas. Legal service nonprofits providing “know your rights” training and other activities are also supported. The Foundation also supports training for youth and adults to ensure diversity and access to careers in the legal profession.

Education – The Foundation supports a wide array of early childhood, in-school, and out-of-school time initiatives that provide in-depth opportunities for learning and engagement to position children for success and level the playing field for economically disadvantaged youth.

Workforce Development – We believe that every individual deserves the opportunity to pursue gainful employment. Thus, we support organizations with the goal of developing the workforce of today and tomorrow. Successful programs recruit and train individuals and place them in relevant jobs so that they can earn a sustainable living wage for themselves and their families. Skill development is focused on low-income, underemployed, and unemployed community members, and on preparing youth for careers after their schooling is complete.

Youth Impact – The Foundation invests in services that impact children in each of our communities. These initiatives ensure economically disadvantaged youth are healthy and safe and have opportunities to thrive.

Health – The Foundation is committed to improving wellness and increasing access to care for economically disadvantaged individuals in the region. Successful organizations and programs work to eliminate barriers to healthcare for all ages and provide accessible and no-stigma testing for a variety of diseases. We support pediatric to geriatric services that address a variety of health concerns.

Environment – We support organizations involved in the preservation of our natural resources and those that are addressing natural or man-made disasters in our target regions. Programs educate communities and work for change on a variety of environmental issues, from wildfires to pollution.

Arts and Culture – The Foundation supports initiatives in the arts that promote deeper public engagement and build up the creative economy, with an emphasis on low-income and underserved communities.

LGBTQ Donor Engagement Program

Horizons seeks to support LGBTQ donor engagement opportunities of large LGBTQ-primary organizations (annual budget over $1 million) based within the nine counties of the SF Bay Area. With a maximum award of $5,000, the LGBTQ Donor Engagement Program exists to support annual fundraising events(s), but if an organization does not have an annual fundraising event, it may be eligible for efforts that engage donors through alternative events (e.g., house parties, annual donor thank-you events, etc.). 

Selective Criteria

Horizons supports events that:

• Offer inspiring, engaging programming for and about the LGBTQ community 
• Incorporate strategies to build new relationships and increase giving, especially from individuals 
• Have clear goals for what a successful event looks like and a plan for measuring success 
• Are inclusive of people across the breadth of the LGBTQ community, e.g., geography, gender, race/ethnicity 
• Are closely aligned to Horizons Foundation’s mission

About Us

The Peaceful World Foundation was founded by the late Sami Sunchild and established in 2006. Sami’s mission was to foster a culture of global peace through the promotion of hosted conversations, the arts, and mindful education.

Today the Peaceful World Foundation strives to carry on her vision of mindful conversations while supporting, assisting, and encouraging organizations and communities in their peace building efforts.

Our charitable goal is to promote peace by supporting nonprofit organizations in their peace building efforts in the field of the arts and mindful education. We seek to fund peacebuilding programs which align to our mission and requesting an amount between $5,000-$20,000.

The Foundation however does not provide ongoing support. The Foundation only funds programs twice within a five-year period, upon submission and receipt of a financial summary.

COMMUNITY PEACE BUILDING

The Foundation aspires to collaborate with organizations in their community-based peace building efforts and fund programs which embrace any of the following practices within an art or mindful education program:

• Encouraging ecologically sustainable practices
• Innovative healing tools for community peace-making
• Participatory approaches to mindful leadership and community building

Arts

The Foundation is interested in art programs that build on global peace and social consciousness through visual and media art, music, and the performing arts. We are particularly invested in supporting art programs that contribute to:

• World Peace
• Diversity
• Integration
• Inner Peace

Mindful Education

The Foundation seeks to fund mindful educational and well-being programs that promote any of the following:

• Cultivating attention, compassion, and well-being across all peoples and ages
• Alternative methods to manage stress and increase inner awareness

Creative Work Fund Grants

The Creative Work Fund invites artists and organizations to create new art works through collaborations. It celebrates the role of artists as problem solvers and making of art as a profound contribution to we-making and artistic innovation that strengthens communities. Artists are encouraged to collaborate with organizations of all kind: nonprofits, fiscally-sponsored collectives, schools, and public agencies.

In June 2024, the Fund will award approximately $775,000 in grants to organizations and collaborating artists. Grants will range from $25,000 to $50,000 and be paid to the nonprofit partner in the collaboration. Grantees receive the maximum amount of funds requested. Projects are expected to be completed within two or three years, but those of longer duration are considered.

We Seek Projects Where

• the creation of an artwork is central
• the artist functions primarily as an artist, not as a teacher, an art therapist, or in another capacity
• an active, authentic working partnership between the artist or artists and the organization is central to the work’s development
• the organization’s constituents are engaged in the artist’s work
• artists’ creativity and problem-solving abilities are central to the collaboration
• the making of art can strengthen a community, draw attention to an important issue, or engage audiences in new ways
• artistic imagination and organizational thinking are challenged
• final presentations take place in Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, or Sonoma County
• at least two-thirds of the grant funds are paid to the principal artists and their direct expenses for creating the work

2024 Invitation: All Disciplines

Artists from all artistic disciplines are welcome to apply in collaboration with a nonprofit organization. Lead artists will be asked to identify primary and secondary artistic disciplines in which they have strong track records of accomplishment.

Projects may culminate in any form. Artists and organizations should plan projects and prepare and authorize their letters of inquiry together. If a project will use a fiscal sponsor, that sponsor also must review and sign off on the letter. Read the list of disciplines and their short definitions.

Liberated Paths Grantmaking Program

Building a More Just and Sustainable Outdoor and Environmental Movement Together

Black, Indigenous, and People of Color-led organizations are on the frontlines of the grassroots work being done to build a better planet but our work is chronically overlooked and underfunded. We know that when our voices are left out, our communities suffer, and our planet does too. With the Liberated Paths Program, we envision a way to bridge that gap.

Through this program, we are working to create a more just and sustainable outdoor and environmental movement by shifting resources to and building power with Black, Indigenous, and Communities of Color. The Liberated Paths Program supports outdoor initiatives and organizations that cultivate and celebrate the contributions of Black, Indigenous, and Communities of Color and affirm the many experiences and identities our communities hold, through grantmaking, capacity building, and network building.

Through our Liberated Paths regional grants, we support organizations and initiatives of all sizes located in California, the Pacific Northwest (Oregon and Washington), the Southwest (Arizona and New Mexico), and the Delaware River Watershed that work at the intersection of racial justice, outdoor experiences, and the environment. In 2023, we will also launch grantmaking in North and South Carolina. Our Liberated Paths: Youth Access to Nature Fund supports efforts in the San Francisco Bay Area that increase safe and equitable access to the outdoors for Young People of Color.

We work with leaders and organizations who are rooted within their communities with the lived experiences to understand how to best advance justice and center the needs of the community. We support Leaders of Color to design and lead the types of joyful outdoor experiences and environmental efforts that are most meaningful to them and their communities. 

Liberated Paths support looks like:

• Relationship-driven and trust-based support
• Multi-year grants of $1,000 to $20,000 per year when possible
• Long-term, deep engagement in financial, operational, and fundraising capacity building
• Network building with a cohort of grantees to facilitate shared learning and systems-level changes
• Eligibility that is not hinged on organization size, ability to do impact reporting, or 501(c)(3) status
• Support for organizations and initiatives of all sizes and in all stages of their development
• Prioritized funding for organizations and initiatives led by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color
• Capacity building trainings and workshops for grantee partners

Capacity Building

Our model offers financial grants, as well as consistent coaching and mentorship. We want to connect our grantee partners with the tools and resources they need to sustain their vital work. To that end, in addition to trainings and workshops for all grantee partners, we work with each partner to identify areas where they want to grow and tailor our support to their needs. These areas could include: board recruitment, financial sustainability, staffing and hiring considerations, executive leadership coaching, budget planning, program design, insurance and liability considerations, safety, guidance on applications for additional grants, and more.

Network Building

Through Liberated Paths, we seek to bring together organizations and leaders working at the intersection of environment and racial justice. We do this through virtual get-togethers and information sessions. We facilitate network building within each cohort of grantees to facilitate shared learning and systems-level changes.

We also bring together funders and partners through a webinar series to connect, share information about the Liberated Paths Grantmaking Program and to also hold critical conversations regarding topics such as the explicit role of race in Liberated Paths, the racial funding gap, and racial bias and its impact in philanthropy.

The In-N-Out Burger Foundation’s mission is to assist children and youth who have been victims of child abuse and neglect, and to prevent others from suffering a similar fate. The Foundation will only consider requests from organizations that closely align with our mission and that serve communities where In-N-Out Burger does business.

The In-N-Out Burger Foundation is happy to consider the following types of grants:

Traditional Grants: Grant awards range from $5,000 - $25,000.

Program: Restricted funding to support the development, expansion, or enhancement of programs within an existing organization.

General Operating Support: Unrestricted funding to support the overall operations and sustainability of your nonprofit. Applicants must present a strong case on how this funding will help sustain the organization’s mission and provide benefits to the children in their care. *Please note that all of your organization’s programs must align with our mission to be considered for this type of support.

Capital Grants: Grant awards range from $5,000 - $50,000.

Capital Campaign: Restricted funding for the construction of new facilities, renovations or upgrades to existing buildings, and other special projects that will enhance the organization’s mission.

Capital Purchase: Restricted funding to purchase equipment, furnishings, or any other major material purchases that will enhance the organization’s mission.

Capital grants are awarded on a very limited basis each year. The Foundation will only consider requests from organizations that meet all other funding criteria and who already have an established long-term funding relationship with the Foundation (minimum of 2 years).

Please carefully review the Capital Grant Guidelines above to ensure that your organization meets the requirements to apply. Capital Grants are invitation-only. Please contact us to set a 30-minute meeting to discuss your project and be prepared to send a draft summary of the project for review beforehand. 

The Ross McKee Foundation

The Ross McKee Foundation is nationally recognized for its support of accomplished pre-professional piano artists, cultivation of potential piano talent, and advancement of piano performance. Located in San Francisco, CA, the Foundation supports the musical arts throughout the Bay Area.

What kind of projects does the Ross McKee Foundation fund?

The mission of the Ross McKee Foundation is to support piano performance and education in nine San Francisco Bay Area counties. Toward this end, the Foundation supports piano-related expenses — typically artist fees, piano rental, moving and tuning fees — for performance organizations large and small in the Bay Area.

Piano education is supported primarily through scholarship programs at San Francisco State University and the San Francisco Conservatory, as well as grants to other educational organizations.

Priority Funding Areas

The Foundation funds organizations that directly benefit and serve community & social services, youth, primary & secondary education, and the arts.

Geographical Restrictions 

The Foundation limits its funding to organizations operating in and/or providing the majority of their services to the residents of the City and County of San Francisco.

Background & Purpose

The California Arts Council’s policies and practices prioritize racial equity and have a broad geographic reach into communities of all sizes and needs, and this includes providing critical services to artists and to the community at large. The CAC is committed to funding opportunities that support all of California’s creative ecosystem. Offering fellowship support to artists responds to the CAC’s Strategic Framework by directly supporting individuals who embody aesthetics, a key value of the CAC, recognizing all art forms and artistic traditions that enable full and meaningful creative expression.

Through a network of regionally-based Administering Organizations (AOs), the Individual Artists Fellowship (IAF) program will continue to recognize, uplift, and celebrate the excellence of California artists practicing any art form. In doing so, the CAC will showcase the centrality of artists’ leadership in guiding the evolution of our traditional and contemporary cultures.

Excellence, for purposes of this grant, is defined as an artist’s:

• Unique artistic vision
• Ongoing commitment to creative practice
• Engagement with and impact on the larger cultural ecosystem

This program will support artists at key moments in their careers, elevating their capacity for continued contribution to the field and our state. Fellowship grants support individual artistic practice through unrestricted funding. This program is intended to support a broad spectrum of artists working in all disciplines, from diverse geographies and communities of all sizes across the state of California.

Administering Organizations (AO)

The AOs will be responsible for the planning and implementation of the Individual Artist Fellowship program in their region, including but not limited to:

• Provide access and support for individual artists and culture bearers throughout the course of the application, award, and evaluation processes
• Engage in robust, culturally and discipline-specific engagement and outreach to ensure comprehensive geographic reach within the service area
• Convene fellows at least once over the course of the grant activity period to engage in networking and co learning
• Provide platforms including but not limited to virtual or print publications, exhibits, or performances to increase the visibility of the work of the fellows
• Engage in regular reporting to and collaboration with the CAC, including providing interim and final reports on program outcomes and findings.

Funding Structure

Administering Organizations will regrant fellowship awards to provide unrestricted funding in support of the fellows’ artistic practice. The following three tiers of funding are available. (Awards will be funded at the full dollar amount for each tier, partial awards will not be made):

CAC Emerging Artist Fellows - $5,000

Emerging artists are those in the beginning stages of making their work public and engaging the larger community in their practice. Individuals at this career stage may have had a few public showings of their work, but do not yet have ongoing resources or support.

CAC Established Artist Fellows - $10,000

Artists in the Established tier regularly make their work public and engage the larger community in their practice. Individuals in this tier can give multiple examples of artistic and/or cultural works that have made significant social impact.

CAC Legacy Artist Fellows - $50,000

Artists in the Legacy tier can point to a significant body of work, produced over a substantial period of time, that has engaged their communities and that has made significant social impact. Artists in this tier may be able to point to Emerging and Established Artists that they have mentored or otherwise positively influenced.

Each AO will make grants to a minimum of three fellows in each career tier. The total grant award is for $800,000.

AOs may use up to 20% of the grant award for administrative costs and costs associated with program design and implementation, including convening and publication and/or production costs to support visibility of fellows’ work.

AOs will regrant the remaining 80% of funds to individual artists and culture bearers in their region(s).

Education Focus

The Foundation intends to award grants for paid internships at nonprofits for

• students enrolled in community college, four year college undergraduate and/or college graduate school or
• "young professionals" defined as a person who graduated from community college, four-year college undergraduate, or college graduate school within the last two years.

Grants distributed in calendar year 2025 may be utilized for calendar year 2026 internships as needed. These internships must provide an above minimum wage stipend. The internship experience should include enrichment opportunities which should include skill building, visibility into nonprofit management, peer networking, professional seminars, capstone project/report, etc.

Priority will be given to internships that recruit using a DEI lens. Average size grants in this area of focus are $8,000-$12,000 per internship. You are welcome to request funding for more than one internship in an application if you have previously received funding from the Foundation.

Please note that grant recipients who received awards from us in this focus area each year for the last 3 consecutive years (2022, 2023, 2024) are not eligible for a grant in 2025. You will be eligible to reapply in 2026.​

Health & Human Services Focus (No new applications are being accepted in 2025. You are welcome to introduce yourself )

The Foundation is committed to supporting elders living in our communities by encouraging self-sufficiency and aging in place. We will be awarding two-year $20,000 grants (payouts of 2024: $10,000; 2025: $10,000) to organizations. We fund both projects and general operating support.

Funding is focused on housing specifically around aging in place:

• Home modifications for accessibility and home maintenance;
• Assistance with household tasks;
• Affordable permanent housing;
• Collaborative partnerships that advocate for age-friendly communities.

Walter & Elise Haas Fund

What We Do

We believe in collaborating with partners whose work provides access and opportunity, building a more equitable community. We invest in our Bay Area neighbors because doing so fosters a more just and vibrant society for current and future generations.

Our Focus

• The arts
• Economic well-being
• Jewish life
• Racial justice

Our Approach

Our grantmaking reflects our values:

• Family: protecting, caring, and planning for future generations today
• Shared Responsibility: embracing collective action
• Belonging: seeking equity and justice to make a “we” possible
• Possibility: fostering a society in which we all thrive

Policy Grants

Policy Grants support the systems that allow nonprofits to thrive, and transform the conditions in which nonprofits do their work.

Focus on Nonprofit Worker Well-being

The Walter & Elise Haas Fund holds that:

• Nonprofits have the vision and ability to meet their own goals and the community’s needs for justice, dignity, and joy; and
• Nonprofit work can and should be high quality, family-sustaining work that provides a pathway out of poverty, and that nonprofit worker well-being is crucial to the vitality and health of our communities.

We believe that our role as an institutional philanthropy is to fund nonprofits to win on their own terms, as well as to support the conditions for high quality, empowering nonprofit work. Along with our partner in this work, the James Irvine Foundation, we recognize that nonprofit worker well being matters when we seek racial and gender justice and is a component of how nonprofits meet their critically important missions with care, optimism, and capacity.

We aim to learn more about the current state of nonprofit work, the conditions that make that so, and paths to solve deep-seated barriers to nonprofit worker well-being. We hope that articulating the problems with clear data and analysis will allow more actors — including nonprofit staff and leaders, government, and private funders — to engage in thoughtful and collaborative problem solving.

Our Intended Outcomes

We are making one $300,000 grant to support:

• Building a body of data and knowledge on nonprofit worker well-being, with a particular focus on the San Francisco Bay Area and California
• Dissemination of findings to policymakers, funders, and nonprofit leaders and staff to:
  • Support common language and understanding of the key problems and barriers to nonprofit worker well-being in the region and state
  • Increase awareness of key opportunities for impactful policy and practice change

Arts & Culture – Small Arts Grants

The Fleishhacker Foundation’s Small Arts Grants program provides general, unrestricted support to small and mid-sized arts and culture organizations in San Francisco, Alameda, and Contra Costa counties that produce and present new work by professional Bay Area artists in the disciplines of dance, music, theater, visual arts, interdisciplinary arts, or film.

For Fiscally Sponsored Organizations

Small Arts Grants Program supports arts and culture fiscally sponsored arts and culture organizations in these counties with budgets under $750,00.

The Foundation accepts proposals from fiscal sponsors on behalf of fiscally sponsored organizations and groups through its Small Arts Grants program to allow important creative voices working outside of the 501(c)(3) nonprofit structure to be eligible for consideration. 

When using a fiscal sponsor, the fiscally sponsored organization must have entered into a written agreement with a sponsoring 501(c)(3) nonprofit that clearly delineates responsibilities for accounting, fiscal oversight, and grant reporting. A signed letter of sponsorship summarizing the specific nature of this agreement must accompany the application. 

All grant communication will be sent to the fiscal sponsor, and it is responsible for informing the sponsored organization of the status of the grant proposal, promptly forwarding any funds awarded, and ensuring that final grant reports are filed by the deadline provided. In the event of a positive decision, the fiscal sponsor will be the Foundation’s grantee. 

Community Issues Funding Program

Horizons’ flagship grantmaking program, Community Issues provides support to LGBTQ nonprofit organizations and programs based in our local community: the nine counties of the San Francisco Bay Area. Central to our mission, supporting these organizations’ programs, services, and advocacy helps advance a world where all LGBTQ people live freely and fully.

This year, Horizons expects to award substantially more funding than ever through Community Issues. We are committing these additional resources to respond to two critical and interconnected realities: the sharp decreases in funding from federal, state, county, and city sources, and the growing strain on LGBTQ organizations and programs caused by the current presidential administration and escalating anti-LGBTQ sentiment nationwide.

In light of these profound challenges, Horizons will provide more stable, sustained, multi-year support to help LGBTQ organizations continue their essential work in increasingly difficult conditions.

As we have since our founding, Horizons remains committed to ensuring that these grants deepen investment in historically under-resourced parts of the LGBTQ community, particularly those most impacted by the current anti-LGBTQ political climate and persistent inequalities. Through Community Issues, Horizons utilizes a systems-based grantmaking model that reflects our commitment to sustainability, equity, and responsive support for the SF Bay Area LGBTQ nonprofit ecosystem and the LGBTQ community it serves. We continue to focus on trust-based philanthropy and multi-year funding. 

We know that the LGBTQ community’s needs and opportunities constantly evolve, and it is essential to examine our grantmaking approach and priorities. Horizons 2018 LGBTQ Community Needs Assessment underscored the continuing significant challenges and often disproportionate needs the LGBTQ community faces in the SF Bay Area.

To help target our funding and achieve greater impact for the LGBTQ community, Horizons Foundation has updated our grantmaking strategy. Horizons seeks to strengthen our Community Issues grantmaking emphasizing the centrality of supporting organizations that are based in our community and led by LGBTQ people.

We proudly reaffirm our commitment as a community foundation to an “Open Door” policy in our community grantmaking, intentionally offering a wide range of LGBTQ nonprofits opportunities to seek funding.

Open Door Policy

Community Issues is open to all nonprofits and fiscally sponsored programs that meet eligibility criteria and whose work falls within these overall funding areas: 

• Advocacy and Civil Rights
• Arts and Culture
• Community Building and Leadership
• Health and Human Services

Key Updates to the 2025 Community Issues Program

Lift the $1 Million annual budget cap eligibility

For 2025, the Community Issues program will accept applications from LGBTQ-primary organizations of any organizational budget size. This change will maintain alignment with the LGBTQ-primary definition while expanding access to organizations with a range of capacities and infrastructure. LGBTQ-primary organizations are defined as organizations:

• whose missions include the LGBTQ population as the primary focus of the work;
• whose staff and boards predominantly reflect the LGBTQ community (65% or more);
• and which primarily serve LGBTQ people (65% or more).

Broaden Funding Priorities

The Community Issued program has expanded its priorities beyond the current focus on specific populations and organization types. This shift enables Community Issues funding to support a more ecosystem-wide strategy that encompasses a broader and more integrated range of LGBTQ organizations across four interconnected areas: Arts, Health and Wellness, Community Building, and Advocacy.