Fund for Safety Grants is sponsored by Women's Foundation of Minnesota. Provides general operating grants to organizations addressing gender-based violence, including trafficking, harassment, sexual violence, intimate partner violence, and systemic violence.

Grants – Women's Foundation of Minnesota Skip to accessibility controls Investing in Organizations, Leaders, and Movements The Women’s Foundation has grant opportunities for organizations working in the impact areas of leadership & community power, safety, holistic well-being & reproductive justice , and economic justice . There are currently no open grants at this time.

Community Response, We Thrive, and sponsorship grantmaking are invitation-only. For general grant inquiries and questions, please contact LaCora Bradford Kesti , Vice President of Community Impact, at 612-236-1842 or lacora@wfmn. org .

View past grant programs: MN Girls Are Not for Sale | Pathways to Prosperity (P2P) Through the Community Response Fund , the Women’s Foundation responds quickly with grants to organizations and programs that ensure women’s safe and healthy lives. Applications are invitation only. For more information and eligibility, please contact Erika or LaCora through their community office hour times: Schedule a 1:1 Connect Meeting .

The Fund for Safety resources innovation to end gender-based violence, a continuum that includes sex trafficking, domestic violence, rape, sexual assault, and sexual harassment. For more information about this program, view the informational webinar or contact Erika Idrovo-Cuesta at erika@wfmn. org or 612-236-1814.

girlsBEST (Building Economic Success Together) Since 2002, girlsBEST has supported girl-led programs in Minnesota that increase the readiness of girls (ages 12-18) to achieve economic well-being. For more information about this program, contact Erika Idrovo-Cuesta at erika@wfmn. org or 612-236-1814.

WFM is making $50,000 grants through the Reproductive Freedom Fund to invest in programs that increase access and expand reproductive justice, which includes the human right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, have children, not have children, and parent the children we have in safe and sustainable communities, in addition to work that advances systems change for reproductive justice as it intersects with race.

As part of each grant, $10,000 will be dedicated to supporting staff wellness and development. Ripley Memorial Foundation The mission of the Ripley Memorial Foundation is to honor the legacy of Dr. Martha Ripley by funding programs that foster and enhance the health and well-being of women. Our funding focus is programming that promotes access to women’s health education and services built on cultural and community strengths.

For more information about this program, contact Erika Idrovo-Cuesta at erika@wfmn. org or 612-236-1814. Through We Thrive , the Women’s Foundation funds schools and education programs that teach workforce development, and entrepreneurship as pathways to wealth-building for low-income women, Black, Indigenous, and women of color, and women and gender-expansive people in greater Minnesota.

With community investments, We Thrive will increase access to education in high-wage jobs with benefits and support pathways to entrepreneurship. For more information about this program, contact Erika Idrovo-Cuesta at erika@wfmn. org or 612-236-1814.

Young Women’s Initiative of Minnesota The Young Women’s Cabinet is appointed by the Office of the Governor and Lt. Governor and is open to young women and gender-expansive leaders (ages 16-24) from eight Minnesota communities. The Innovators program provides direct investments to young leaders (ages 16-24) and supports their projects and professional development with in-person convenings.

For questions about these programs, contact Janet Jimenez at janett@wfmn. org or 612-236-1825. If we have an open grant opportunity, read our Grant Application Packet to see if you are eligible to apply.

Applications must be submitted through our online portal. If you’re a new applicant, you will need to set up an account first. We encourage you to start early — account and eligibility approvals can each take up to two business days.

Login to the Foundation Cloud Portal . For new applicants, create an account by selecting the Register option. (New accounts require staff approval before accessing grant applications — allow up to two business days.)

How to register as a first-time user After receiving account approval, complete the eligibility review by logging in and selecting the WFM Grant Application for Programs. You must answer “Yes” to all questions to be eligible.

Eligibility questions cover your organization’s legal status, Minnesota presence, focus on women/girls/gender-expansive people, non-discrimination practices, religious inclusivity, and reproductive health access policies. Begin your application once you receive an email confirming your eligibility has been approved. Are you a first-time user?

Learn how to apply by using our registration guide , including full application instructions and eligibility questions. For technical support in the grants portal, please contact Hannah Elias, Senior Manager, Systems & Database Administration at Hannah@wfmn. org .

For questions related to your sponsorship requests, please contact the Community Impact Team at Communityimpact@wfmn. org . We also fund groups that have fiscal sponsorship.

Learn more about it . NOTE: If you have already emailed the Community Impact Team a sponsorship request, they will reach out with next steps. Your emailed request is not complete until the inquiry application is received in the grants portal.

The Community Impact team holds community office hours for organizations, programs, and individuals to connect and learn more about our work. We fund community-led programs to build power and pathways to safety, leadership, holistic well-being, and economic justice. The Women’s Foundation of MN provides sponsorship grants between $1,000-$5,000.

Sponsorship inquiries are open through Wednesday, April 29, and close Wednesday, May 13 at noon. Meet Our Grantee-Partners Discover more about Women’s Foundation grantee-partners, statewide. Each year, the Women’s Foundation invests in and with communities so leaders and organizations can do their best work as part of an ecosystem that is transforming futures for women, girls, and gender-expansive people.

Join us for Community Connect! Community Connect is an informal biannual gathering for grantee-partners, community organization leaders, and staff to connect virtually and learn more about the work of the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota. Community Connect will be in-person in Rochester on July 16 and virtually on January 21, 2027.

Registration Link Coming Soon Community Connect is a biannual opportunity to network, share research, and resources, and deepen our connections between listening and grantmaking, policy, and narrative change. Our 2022 Summer of Convening with grantee-partners supported our visioning around narrative change and co-creating a culture of healing and holistic well-being. See the graphic harvest summarizing the series.

" * " indicates required fields This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Explore Our Grantee Stories Join WFM’s Participatory Grantmaking Committee Investing in Economic Opportunity Grows the Power of Community WFM Invests $45,000 in Innovative Young Leaders