Brooklyn Accelerator January 2019

Funding & Opportunities 

Brooklyn Community Foundation supports local immigrant rights efforts through its Immigrant Rights Fund’s Sustained Response and Action Fund grants. Sustained Response: The Foundation has issued a Request for Conversations with immigrant-serving organizations seeking support ranging from $10,000 to $25,000 for organizing, mental health services, community safety, and legal services. Action Fund: Grant requests for up to $2,500 are considered on a rolling basis, and can support civil resistance and organizing efforts—including community-building, public education, action planning, and event logistics. Learn more here.

Resist, a foundation that supports people’s movements for justice and liberation, is accepting applications for their General Support, Multi-Year, Accessibility, and Rapid Response grants. Learn more about the grants and application instructions here.

TD Charitable Foundation is accepting applications for its nonprofit employee training program. Grants of up to $1,000 will be awarded to eligible community-based organizations so that employees can attend an approved class/course that enhances their job performance. Learn more here.

The Weinberg Foundation is seeking high-quality capital projects in Maryland, Northeastern Pennsylvania, Hawaii, Chicago, New York City, San Francisco, rural communities throughout the United States, and the State of Israel. The Foundation will consider capital projects that incorporate evidence-based best practices and provide direct services for low-income and vulnerable populations, including older adults, families, children, and youth. Projects will receive full consideration regardless of the requested grant amount—whether $100,000 or more than $1 million. Learn more here.

Citizens Committee for New York City awards Neighborhood Grants of up to $3,000 for community and school improvement projects carried out by unstaffed resident-led groups to address issues they identify as important to them. Application Deadline: January 21, 2019; 11:59pm

Brooklyn Historical Society is seeking dedicated, enthusiastic, creative teens to join the Teen Council in the Spring 2019 semester. The Teen Council will curate an exhibition for BHS's landmark building at 128 Pierrepont Street over the course of the spring semester in consultation with public historians, oral historians, museum experts, and graphic designers. Participating teens develop professional skills and awareness of careers in museums, libraries, and archives while earning a stipend for their work. The application deadline is midnight, January 21, 2019.

Arcus Foundation published a Request for Concepts for organizations looking for funding to support LGBTQ social justice work. The deadline to apply is January 22.

ReFrame’s Mentorship Program, a hands-on strategic communications mentorship program, supports economic, racial, and climate justice organizations and campaigns to integrate communications as a core strategy and develops the next generation of social justice communications. Applications accepted on a rolling basis until February 8.

New Media Ventures Open Call: NMV is calling for pitches from activists and entrepreneurs wrestling with the big challenges facing our democracy. NMV is looking for scalable solutions from diverse, mission-driven teams. Nonprofits and for-profits are both welcome to apply. Ideal for early-stage startups, the fund will disburse grants and investments from $50k to $250k. Applications due February 11th, 2019 11:59pm PT.

The Office of the Brooklyn Borough President has opened applications for capital funding for City agencies, borough schools, and community-based organizations (CBOs) for Fiscal Year 2020 (FY20). All requests for capital funding must be submitted via Borough President Adams’ online capital funding application by 11:59pm on Wednesday, February 13th. 

The Multi-Arts Production Fund supports original live performance projects that embody a spirit of deep inquiry, particularly works created by artists who question, disrupt, complicate, and challenge inherited notions of social and cultural hierarchy. Funded projects must address these concerns through the processes involved in creating and distributing live performances to the public and/or through the content and themes of the work itself. Application Deadline: February 15, 2019.

Brooklyn Community Board Membership Applications are now open. Community boards, which have existed in their current form for more than 40 years following the Charter Revision of 1975, are the most local representative bodies of government in New York City. They are responsible for dealing with land use issues, assessing neighborhood needs, and addressing community concerns. Brooklyn's 18 community boards are the epicenter of grassroots democracy in our borough, providing a voice for everyone to get involved. Applicants must be New York City residents and at least 16 years of age to apply. To qualify for a particular board, you must live, work in, or have a professional or other significant interest in that board's district. The closing date for application submissions for 2019 appointments is Friday, February 15th, but will be accepted on a rolling basis year-round.

The Korean American Community Foundation is accepting applications for its 2019 Community Grants program. Through the program, grants of up to $75,000 will be awarded to programs that strengthen the economic security of low-income Korean Americans in the greater New York metro area. The application deadline is Friday February 15, 2019.

Nominations for the 2019 Discount Foundation Legacy Award are now open! Nominate someone you know who is an outstanding worker justice leader, and they could have the chance to receive a $20,000 stipend. This stipend will provide the winner with the flexibility to expand upon their professional activities and achievements in the absence of reporting requirements or other specific obligations. Questions? See FAQs or contact Emily Griffin at emily@jwj.org. Nominations are due online by February 28. 

The New York State Health Foundation is accepting applications for its Special Projects Fund. All projects must have an impact on New Yorkers either at a local, regional, or statewide level. Special Projects Fund awards should be considered one-time, non-renewable funding opportunities. Applications are due March 5 at 1pm.

The William T. Grant Foundation is accepting applications for its Youth Service Improvement Grants Program. The program supports activities to improve the quality of direct services for young people in the five boroughs of New York City. Nonprofit organizations that provide direct services to youth ages 5-25 and have budgets between $1 million and $5 million and that 1) have existing programming tailored specifically to Mexican-descent or LGBTQ youth, 2) are led by people of color or LGBTQ individuals, or 3) provide direct services to youth in ten community districts identified as having the highest risk to child well-being by the Citizens’ Committee for Children (Mott Haven, Hunts Point, East Tremont, Soundview, Mount Hope, Concourse, and Bedford Park in the Bronx, and Brownsville, Ocean Hill, and East New York in Brooklyn) are welcome to apply. Awards are $25,000 each and support projects lasting one year. For complete instructions on preparing and submitting a proposal, download the 2019 Application Guide. Applications are due March 7, 2019, at 3:00pm EST.

The International Reading Association is accepting applications for the 2018 Regie Routman Teacher Recognition grant. They will award $2,500 to an outstanding elementary school teacher dedicated to improving the teaching and learning of reading and writing across the curriculum in grades K-6. The deadline to apply is March 15; access the application here.

Ezra Jack Keats Foundation will award grants of up to $500 to educators in support of special activities and events outside the standard curriculum. Any public school or library is eligible to apply. Applications will be accepted until March 31.

The World of Children is now accepting nominations for their 2019 Awards Program. The World of Children Award program was created to recognize individuals who make a difference in the lives of children in the United States and across the globe, regardless of political, religious, or geographical boundaries. The program awards grants to support proven, high-impact programs that these individuals have created to ensure that more children’s lives will be touched, improved, and changed forever. The World of Children Awards honors individuals in a range of categories, including Protection, Education, Humanitarian, Health, and Youth. Nominations are open until March 31, 2019 (at 11:59pm EDT).

The Ben & Jerry's Foundation is awarding one-year grants of up to $25,000 to nonprofit, grassroots community-organizing groups in the United States working to advance social and environmental justice and create sustainable and just-food systems. Pre-proposals may be submitted starting February 1, 2019, and must be received no later than April 15, 2019.

The Pelican Foundation for Creative Education is offering grants of $500 to New York City teachers of all disciplines. They will fund innovative projects for classroom teachers who seek to enhance their classroom lessons with creative activities. Access the application here.