Responsive Program Grants

Responsive Program Grants is sponsored by The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven. Provides program support for organizations with less than 75% of their service population in Greater New Haven and/or the Valley.

Community Foundation for Greater New Haven | Inside Philanthropy OVERVIEW: This well-established community funder supports a 20-town region surrounding the city of New Haven in Connecticut. Areas of interest include racial justice, economic opportunity, basic needs, women’s causes, the environment and animal rescues.

IP TAKE: In 2020, the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven realigned some of its grantmaking programs to emphasize opportunity and equity for marginalized groups. This is an approachable and supportive funder for organizations of any size in New Haven and surrounding communities.

Its website is well-organized with links to various grantmaking programs located in one place, and contact information for relevant staff available on individual program pages. Get to know this funder by attending one of its nonprofit workshops or events. PROFILE: The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven (CFGNH) is is one of the oldest and largest community funders in the Tri-State Area.

Established in 1928, provides vital support to a 20-town region in Central Connecticut. CFGNH manages over $350 million in charitable assets and makes more than $30 million in grants each year. The foundation’s broad mission is to “inspire, support, inform, listen to and collaborate with the people and organizations of Greater New Haven to build an ever more connected, inclusive, equitable and philanthropic community.

” In 2020, the foundation refocused its strategy to emphasize “ Oppor tunity + Equity with the purpose of creating greater opportunity and greater equity in our region. ” CFGNH manages close to 1000 donor-advised funds, the great majority of which do not run application programs.

Competitive grantmaking programs, however, stem from the foundation’s “unrestricted and preference funds established to respond to community needs in Greater New Haven. ” Through these vehicles, the foundation supports local organizations in the areas of racial justice, economic development, women’s causes, education, housing and basic needs, animal rescue and environmental conservation.

Grants for Racial Justice, Work and Opportunity A significant portion of CFGNH’s discretionary grantmaking reflects the greater New Haven area’s racial, ethnic and religious diversity and strives to “reduce inequities. ” The foundation’s Black Futures Fund was established in 2020 to “to advance racial equity in Greater New Haven and to tackle the structures that contribute to racial disparities in our community.

” Grants typically go to “Black-led organizations and the promotion of Black leadership and grassroots advocacy, including emerging voices, ideas and collaborations on the front lines of challenging historical and cultural attitudes.

” The Progresso Latino Fund makes grants to “organizations working to bridge the skills gaps faced by members of the Latino community at all stages of life” including education, career skills, literacy and language, financial literacy and more. Grants range from $3,000 to $10,000, and applications for this program are usually due in early June.

The Nonprofit Management Program for Emerging Leaders of Color is a collaboration between the foundation and the University of Connecticut that provides executive leadership training for “middle-management nonprofit staff. ” This is a two-year program that offers “academic credit and certificate of completion. ” A new cohort of approximately ten leaders of color will be chosen in 2025.

Check the program page for updated application guidelines and due dates. New Haven Equitable Entrepreneurial Ecosystem grants support small local businesses “with at least one year record of sales managed with a formal digital bookkeeping system. ” Grants are awarded in amounts of up to $10,000.

This program has run an open application program in from December 1 through January 31 in past years. Check the program page for updated guidelines and due dates.

Grants for Housing, Food Systems and Community Development CFGNH’s Basic Needs Fund provides grants of up to $10,000 to local organizations assisting area residents with “material basic needs in the areas of shelter, housing stability (including evictions support, cash assistance, furniture, energy assistance); and/or food security.

” To apply, organizations must have an annual budget of less than $2 million and serve at least one of the Connecticut communities of New Haven, Hamden, West Haven, East Haven, Ansonia and Derby. This program prioritizes organizations that “have a reach into neighborhoods and areas that are underserved and have barriers to accessing resources. ” Applications for this program are typically due in mid-November of each year.

Grants for Women and Girls Grants stemming from the foundation’s Community Fund for Women & Girls focus on increasing women’s economic security and opportunity. Priority areas include workforce participation, entrepreneurship, housing security and childcare innovation. The foundation notes that it includes in its definition of women “those who identify as cisgender, transgender and nonbinary.

” Grants from this fund are awarded in amounts up to $15,o00, and applications are due at the beginning of April.

Past grants have gone to the New Haven chapter of the National Association of Negro Business and Professional Women’s Club, the Spanish Community of Wallingford, which provides technology education to women and families, and Winning Ways, which runs “a career readiness course for women in Department of Corrections halfway housing in New Haven.

” Nonprofit Animal Shelter Grants support “nonprofit animal shelters in the Greater New Haven area in performing the services for which they have been established. ” Grants are awarded in amounts up to $10,000 “to strengthen the infrastructure of an organization for long term success. ” Applications are accepted each year until funds are depleted.

Check the program page for its current status. Grants for Environmental Conservation The Quinnipiac River Fund gives away about $100,000 in grants annually for “projects that conserve and protect the River and surrounding watersheds. ” Relevant projects include but are not limited to “research, public access, land use planning, land acquisition, habitat restoration, advocacy and education.

” The application process for this fund begins with a recommendation from the fund’s advisory committee, but interested grantseekers may contact Denise Canning at dcanning@cfgnh. org or 203-777-7076 for additional information.

Recent grant have ranged from $12,000 to $18,000 and have supported organizations including the River Advocates of South Central Connecticut, Gather New Haven and research programs at Quinnipaic University, the University of New Haven and Southern Connecticut State University, among others.

Grants for Higher Education Most of CFGNH’s scholarships are awarded “by schools and other organizations,” but the foundation does administer a few of scholarship opportunities for students in the New Haven area. See the foundation’s scholarships page for current opportunities. Other Grantmaking Opportunities The following grant programs support organizations in the greater New Haven area across all areas of interest.

Event Sponsorship grants offer funding for fundraising or community events with grants of up to $2,500. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis until funds are depleted. Small Grants support support local organizations with annual budgets of less than $1.

5 million with project, capacity building or general operation grants of up to $10,000. Two rounds of funding are awarded each year. The first round accepts applications from January 2 through April 1, and the second runs from August 1 “until funding is no longer available.

” To inquire about the application process, email Logan Roddy at lroddy@cfgnh. org . Responsive General Operating Support Grants offer “flexible funding” to organizations “with 50% or more of the population it serves residing in the 20-town region .

” Grants of up to $50,000 per year are available for one to three years. Applications are due in March. Check the program page for updated application information and due dates.

Responsive Program Grants offer funding to “multi-regional and statewide organizations that provide programming in Greater New Haven. ” Grants of up to $10,000 per year are available for terms of up to three years. Applications are typically due in March.

Grantseekers should check the program page for the latest information about applications and due dates. The great majority of CFGNH’s grants remain under $50,000 and are awarded in amounts prescribed by individual programs. However, this funder makes much larger grants to nonprofits which which it maintains ongoing relationships and that provide significant services to New Haven and surround communities.

This funder administers about 1000 donor-advised funds for which it does not accept applications, but runs competitive programs for its unrestricted and preference funds, many of which name thematic or geographic areas of interest. All competitive grantmaking opportunities are organized on the foundation’s Grants to Apply For page. A webinar on the application process is linked to the page.

In most cases, the application process begins with an email to a program director or administrator as indicated on individual program pages. Grantmaking is mainly limited to the 20-town region surrounding the city of New Haven in Connecticut. A single exception are the foundation’s Responsive Program Grants , which support organizations running programs for communities in the 20-town area, but may be located elsewhere.

For information about past grantmaking, see the foundation’s individual grantmaking program pages , its stories of local impact or its past financial statements . Submit general inquiries to this community foundation via email at contactus@cfgnh. org or telephone at 203-777-2386.

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