Eli Lilly and Company Foundation Grants for Indiana STEM

Eli Lilly and Company Foundation Grants for Indiana STEM is sponsored by Eli Lilly and Company Foundation. K-12 STEM education nonprofits in Indiana, especially those serving low-income students in Marion County, can apply for Eli Lilly Foundation's Global Health, K-12 STEM Education and Economic Mobility Grant to support focused K-12 STEM initiatives.

How to get funding from the Eli Lilly and Company Foundation | Inside Philanthropy OVERVIEW: The Eli Lilly and Company Foundation supports global health initiatives in resource-limited settings, K–12 STEM education and economic mobility in Marion County, Indiana. It also supports employee matching gifts, disaster relief and selected community-development efforts.

IP TAKE: Not to be confused with the much larger and independent Lilly Endowment , the Eli Lilly and Company Foundation is the pharmaceutical company’s corporate philanthropy arm. It has become more transparent and accessible in recent years, publishing detailed guidelines, recent grants and an impact report, while introducing an open pre-application process in 2026.

That round is closed, but Lilly plans to offer one annual open call beginning in 2027. Eligible nonprofits may submit a brief pre-application without an invitation; only selected organizations advance to a full proposal. Competition is steep, and prior grant history may influence review, giving established partners an edge.

Lilly focuses on global health, K–12 STEM education, economic mobility and community strengthening, with particular attention to Indianapolis and to health-related inequities. The foundation is separate from the Lilly Grant Office, which supports medical education, patient advocacy and healthcare-improvement projects. Relationships still matter.

The strongest prospects will be visible in Indianapolis civic networks, connected to Lilly employees or retirees, or embedded in STEM, workforce, housing or global-health partnerships. Lead with a clearly defined problem, measurable outcomes and a credible path to scale—not a generic appeal for support.

PROFILE: Established in 1968, the Eli Lilly and Company Foundation is a private foundation supported by donations from Eli Lilly and Company, which is among the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. Its grantmaking aims to expand opportunities for people to live healthier lives and focuses on locally informed, data-driven programs addressing gaps in healthcare, education and economic opportunity.

The foundation currently names four areas of support: Global Health, K–12 STEM Education, Economic Mobility and Strengthening Communities. Only the first three were included in the 2026 open call. The foundation’s Global Health program supports eligible U.S. charities working to improve access to quality healthcare in resource-limited U.S. communities and low- and lower-middle-income countries.

Funding prioritizes noncommunicable diseases and, where permissible, cardiometabolic health.

Supported activities may include: Public education and awareness about health risks Community screening and early diagnosis Nutrition and physical-activity initiatives Primary-care and health-system strengthening Training for patients, providers and frontline health workers Expanded diagnostic capacity Digital and AI-enabled healthcare tools Programs that connect patients to appropriate care Direct applicants must be eligible U.S. charitable organizations, although their funded work may occur internationally.

Recent grants have supported Partners In Health, PATH, Global Communities, Indiana University’s AMPATH partnerships, UNICEF USA, BRAC USA, Americares and the American College of Cardiology Foundation. Awards announced in 2025 and 2026 ranged from $225,000 to $3. 5 million in this area.

Grants for K–12 STEM Education and Work Opportunity K–12 STEM funding is geographically restricted to programs benefiting students from low-income communities in Marion County, Indiana . Lilly supports initiatives across the K–12 pipeline, but places particular emphasis on the middle-school years, when students are developing their interest and identity in STEM fields.

Hands-on and inquiry-based elementary STEM exposure Project-based learning and mentorship for middle-school students High-school technical education and career preparation College and career readiness Career and technical education pathways Teacher training and professional development Recent grants include $5. 5 million to the Indianapolis Public Schools Education Foundation, $2 million to the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, $1.

5 million to Teach For America, $1. 5 million to The Mind Trust and $750,000 to the Pacers Foundation for NBA Math Hoops. Colleges and universities may receive funding when their programs directly advance K–12 STEM opportunities, but higher education is not a separate current grantmaking program.

Grants for Economic Mobility and Indiana The foundation’s Economic Mobility program supports charitable and educational initiatives that improve long-term economic opportunity for low-income residents of Marion County, Indiana .

Areas of interest include: Workforce readiness and job placement Upskilling, mentoring and apprenticeships Career-connected education Postsecondary and skills-based pathways GED, certification and license attainment Housing development and housing stability Connections to health and social services that support stable housing Recent grants include $3 million to the Fathers and Families Resource Research Center for employment, housing and family supports; $600,000 to EmployIndy for workforce-aligned pathways; $500,000 to the Greater Indianapolis Multi-Faith Alliance for housing stability; and $300,000 to TeenWorks for youth employment and professional development.

Grants for Community Development and Disaster Relief Lilly also supports strengthening communities through matching gifts for eligible employee and retiree donations, responsive disaster relief and selected charitable community-development initiatives addressing urgent local needs. Employee matching is a substantial part of this funder’s giving. Lilly reported $17.

4 million in matching gifts in 2025. However, the Strengthening Communities category was not included in the 2026 open call, and the foundation does not describe a general external application process for its disaster-relief or targeted community grants. These opportunities appear to be more discretionary or connected to existing community and employee relationships.

Earlier grantmaking included arts, culture and racial justice, but these are not current open-call priorities. Lilly and the foundation announced a five-year, $25 million racial justice commitment in 2020. Grantseekers should treat this as a time-limited historical initiative rather than a standing program.

Early funding supported a virtual event, Indy Day of Solidarity-We Stand Together, produced in partnerships with the Indianapolis Recorder, Radio One Indianapolis and WISH-TV, all of which are operated by and serve Indianapolis’s African American community. Eli Lilly and Company separately operates the Lilly Grant Office , which should not be confused with the Lilly Foundation.

The Grant Office accepts online requests for independent medical education, patient advocacy and consumer education, basic or preclinical science education and Healthcare Improvement initiatives. It also considers scientific fellowships and charitable contributions on a limited basis.

Healthcare Improvement grants focus on translating evidence into clinical practice and producing measurable improvements in healthcare delivery and patient outcomes. The Lilly Cares Foundation is another separate nonprofit. It runs a patient-assistance program that provides prescribed Lilly medications at no cost to qualifying U.S. patients with financial need.

Lilly Cares does not operate as a conventional grantmaker for nonprofit organizations. The latest available Form 990-PF reports approximately $29. 6 million in charitable disbursements in 2024 .

Lilly’s 2025 impact report lists about $48. 3 million in grant commitments, including $17. 4 million in employee matching gifts.

These figures are not directly comparable because multiyear commitments may be disbursed over several years. The foundation publishes no minimum or maximum request amount. Recent named grants range from $60,000 to $5.

5 million. For additional information about past grantmaking, see the Eli Lilly Company’s corporate responsibility reports . The foundation does not provide a direct avenue for getting in touch but posts profiles of its executive committee and board of directors on its website.

Multiyear grants of up to three years are available, with payments generally issued annually. Project support may include direct administrative or overhead costs tied to the funded work. Unrelated general overhead is not eligible.

General operating support is available at the foundation’s discretion for organizations whose broader work aligns closely with its priorities. Fiscal sponsors may apply for eligible sponsored projects if the sponsor meets Lilly’s requirements, has a formal sponsorship agreement and retains control of the funds. Proposed grant-funded activities may not include advocacy, lobbying, propaganda or efforts to influence legislation.

The foundation evaluates alignment, measurable outcomes and its five-part impact framework: reach, capacity building, sustainability, innovation and outcomes. It may also consider geography, prior grant history and balance across its portfolio. The foundation’s application process has two stages.

Organizations may submit up to two pre-applications during an open cycle. Lilly then invites selected organizations to complete full proposals covering goals, methods, budgets, timelines, metrics and expected outcomes. The 2026 open call is closed, and prospective applicants should monitor the foundation’s website for the planned 2027 opportunity.

Program Guidelines and FAQs Corporate Responsibility Reports Enable JavaScript to continue This site uses JavaScript to verify your account, display articles, and provide other features. Please enable JavaScript or allow scripts for Inside Philanthropy, then reload the page. Chrome: Open Chrome Settings, then go to Privacy and security > Site settings > JavaScript, and select “Sites can use JavaScript.

” Safari: Open Safari Settings, then check the Security settings for JavaScript. Make sure JavaScript is enabled, then reload this page. Brave: Click the Brave Shields lion icon in the address bar and allow scripts for this site.

If scripts are blocked, article access and account verification may not work. Full Brave Shields instructions