Seed Grants for Nonprofits

New Initiative Seed Money

The Department of Jewish Life & Learning of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh seeks to fund new initiatives that help advance the department's goal of maximizing the number of Jewish Pittsburghers engaged in meaningful Jewish learning and experiences.

The Jewish Life & Learning Department has made available $15,000 for New Initiative Seed Money grants. Applicants can apply for up to $3,000 per project per fiscal year. Applications for repeat funding will be entertained. Funds are awarded on a rolling basis.

The Department is especially open to new initiatives that:

• Utilize a model that is research-based.
• Have not been done before in Pittsburgh.
• Serve a community that is currently under-served by existing institutions.
• Bring together Jews from various affiliations and communities.
• Demonstrate potential to grow into an ongoing and meaningful program.
• Are created and owned by more than one person or organization, or are grassroots.

NOTE: Seed Grants are awarded monthly, usually February through November (or until the funds are spent down). The application deadline is rolling but we encourage you to turn in your application by the 1st of the month.

Seed Grants

Seed Grants are small general operating grants of $2,000 to support new and emerging groups that are developing their community organizing work but might not yet meet all the qualifications for SJF’s Giving Project grants.

Funds are general operating funds.

The North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation is committed to embracing the entire state through our various grant programs. We seek the creative spark that makes a true difference in people's lives by supporting innovative programs promoting the sciences, health and education. 

The North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation is an independent self-funding 501(c)3 nonprofit organization supporting activities that help meet the educational and health needs of today's society and future generations. For decades, the Foundation has been a proud supporter of programs in our state that help advance science, health and education.

The Foundation is governed by a Board of Directors that includes community leaders and GSK corporate executives. The day to day operations are overseen by the staff.

The Foundation was the vision of Glaxo chairman and chief executive, the late Joseph J. Ruvane, Jr. Mr. Ruvane brought the company from Florida to the Research Triangle Park and with it his passion for community. His vision was to establish an annually budgeted corporate giving program and a stable, long-term source of support for our state. In 1996, the company ceased funding the foundation. The foundation's growth is based solely on investment and market growth derived from its own independent endowment.

Since our establishment in 1986, we have awarded $68.9 million in grants over 30 years! We pay approximately $3 million in grants each year to North Carolina nonprofit organizations.

Ribbon of Hope Grants

The North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation invites nonprofit organizations to apply for one-time grants of $25,000 for projects furthering science, health and education in their local communities. These grants are intended to offer organizations a one-time opportunity to develop a new initiative or to grow and expand and/or enhance an existing program. The Foundation does not fund core mission support, general operating, indirect or overhead costs, construction or renovation projects, medical assistance or services, or equipment.

Many nonprofits are providing outstanding services, but are struggling with limited resources to meet the needs of their local communities as their own budgets are squeezed. These grants are intended to offer organizations a one-time opportunity to expand and/or enhance an existing program or provide seed funds for a new initiative. In addition to the financial assistance, recipients benefit from customized consulting services and technical assistance provided by the North Carolina Center for Nonprofits.

Ribbon of Hope proposals will be considered that relate to the establishment and implementation of new projects or expansion of an existing program which:

• address critical community needs that have been identified through comprehensive needs assessment activities
• tightly align with goals and objectives of local community agencies
• demonstrate their sustainability after grant funds are expended.

Who We’re Looking For

We support nonprofit organizations that run some of the top public charter schools in their communities and are redefining what is possible in America’s public schools. Our portfolio members typically share the following traits:

Academic Excellence

They have had strong academic performance for multiple years, as demonstrated by measures such as student academic growth, achievement on state tests relative to peers, sub-group performance and, when available, long-term student outcome data.

Commitment to Financial Stability

They are committed to operating their schools on public funding and will not require significant philanthropy when they finish growing their networks of schools.

Ambition to Grow

They typically have waiting lists and want to expand their impact by opening more schools. The “Seed” organizations we support seek to open 1-2 more schools within the next two years, while our “Scale” strategy supports leaders who plan to launch 3+ more schools over a five-year period.

Strong Leadership Committed to Underserved Students

School leadership teams have the capacity to build the skills and expertise needed to accomplish their ambitious goals. They share a commitment to serving students who have limited access to high-quality public schools in their communities.

Seed Funding

We are looking for leaders who want to expand their high-performing public charter schools by serving 250 to 1,000 additional students in the next two years.

What We Offer

Funding

We award general operating grants of between $250,000 and $600,000 to help promising leaders open their next one to three schools. Once awarded, these grants are disbursed over a two- to three-year period.

Early-Stage Support

We support charter leaders in overcoming the common challenges facing schools and networks that are beginning to grow. The targeted support we provide includes business planning, facilities insights, and access to the best resources from the CSGF portfolio.

Cohort-Based Learning

Selected Seed leaders will join a cohort of their peers who lead public charter school networks in the early stages of growth. As a community, they participate in annual events including the Portfolio Retreat and smaller convenings.

Leaders of Color

We seek to significantly expand the impact of public charter schools led by entrepreneurs who have backgrounds similar to those of the students and families they serve. Within each cohort, there are unique learning, support and community-building opportunities, specifically for leaders of color.

Crossroad Fund Grants

Crossroads Fund supports grassroots groups working for racial, social and economic justice in the greater Chicago metropolitan area (including Northwest Indiana, which we define as the area between the state border and Gary, IN.

We prioritize groups who are:

• Working for Social Change: organizing community members to examine and challenge the underlying causes of their problems and conditions
• Cross-Issue Organizing: working with an understanding of the connectedness among the various people and issues that make up the whole community
• Grassroots Leadership: involving the people who are directly affected at all levels of the organization – in planning, organizing and leading, and working to continue building leadership within the grassroots community

We prioritize proposals from historically marginalized communities, and we look for work that is collaborative, risk taking, and strategic. We fund groups with budgets under $300,000, and look for organizations with diverse funding sources. We accept proposals from groups without 501c3 status as long as they have a fiscal sponsor or organizational bank account.

Types of Work Supported for ALL grants

Crossroads supports many different forms of social change organizing, such as (but not limited to):

• Direct Action Organizing;
• Public Policy Advocacy;
• Art & Cultural work that is community-based and linked to activism;
• Economic Development;
• International Solidarity;
• Action Research as an organizing strategy to identify, document and analyze information, in partnership with a community group;
• Media Advocacy that promotes greater public understanding of critical issues and increasing organizing outreach efforts;
• Social Services linked with Activism;
• Leadership Development and Training;
• Providing Resources for Local Activists;
• Working Collaboratively Across Issues and Communities;
• Gatherings and Conferences.

Seed Fund

The Seed Fund supports new, emerging and small community-based organizations that are actively engaged in social change work. Funding is provided for general operating, start-up costs, or project expenses. The maximum grant in this program is $10,000.