OVERVIEW: The Philadelphia Foundation supports education, arts and culture, health, LGBTQ, human services, and community development in the Greater Philadelphia region.
IP TAKE: The Philadelphia Foundation is an accessible funder with “initiatives [that are] responsive to community needs, include community voice, [and are] driven by measurable outcomes that demonstrate real impact,” according to its chief impact officer. Like many community foundations, navigating its vast array of offerings can be daunting. It manages close to a thousand different funds, not all of them well-publicized or accepting applications. Moreover, application procedures and deadlines vary, so new applicants will want to play close attention to the guidelines for the fund to which they’re interested in applying. Contact this funder prior to creating an application so that they can better guide you towards the right grant option, since there are so many.
PROFILE: Established in 1918, the Philadelphia Foundation is one of the oldest community foundations in the world and one of the largest in the United States. It seeks to improve “the quality of life” in Greater Philadelphia by “distributing grants and resources to [the] region’s most effective nonprofits; establishing and distributing scholarships; pairing skilled volunteers with important community initiatives through our partnerships; and serving as a civic voice and leader in Greater Philadelphia.” It was created as a community trust by Fidelity Trust Company, which later became Fidelity Bank before its merger with Wells Fargo. Today, the foundation manages over 900 charitable funds, including designated, donor advised and field of interest funds, as well as endowment and unrestricted funds. It names Education, Arts & Culture, Health & Medical, LGBTQ, Human Services, and Community as its focus areas.
The Philadelphia Foundation supports local nonprofits through two separate grant programs:
- Competitive Grants support nonprofits that serve the most vulnerable residents within Greater Philadelphia across the foundation’s focus areas. Grantees should demonstrate a commitment to equity and a deep community connection, with a responsive service design. Grants often take the form of operational support.
- Special Initiative Grants support nonprofits “serving a particular purpose, a defined demographic group or a limited geographic area.” The types of funding offered, and applicant eligibility and criteria can vary from one year to another.
Grants for Arts and Culture
The Philadelphia Foundation names several “Keys” to its operational strategy, one of which is creativity and investing in the arts. Additionally, Arts & Culture is listed as one of the six focus areas funded through the Competitive Grants program, which seeks to “captivate” and “inspire” the community by promoting “exposure to cultural influence and artistic expression.” The foundation has two special initiatives focused on supporting arts organizations:
- Art Works is a program operated in partnership with Forman Arts Initiative that works to increase access to the arts in BIPOC and other underserved communities. Each year, it awards up to four individual artists grants of $50,000 over two years and four community organizations with “two-year, unrestricted grants ranging from $75,000-$150,000.” Artist collectives are eligible for between $50,000 and $150,000 over two years.
- Edna W. Andrade Grants awards grants of between $5,000 and $25,000 to “local or national museums or nonprofit art organizations to benefit visual fine artists from Greater Philadelphia.”
Grants for K-12 and Arts Education
The foundation’s competitive grants for Education invest in improving and supporting school systems and vocational training, as well as “helping students overcome adversity” and “addressing adult literacy.”
- Currently, grantseekers can also apply for education support through Forman Family Fund Grants, which awards grants of up to $40,000 to up to 10 local nonprofits with programs providing secondary school students with access to in- or out-of-school opportunities to engage with photography, architecture, or writing
- The foundation also awards scholarships to local students.
Grants for Public Health and Human Services
The foundation names support for community health nonprofits and organizations conducting medical research among its community causes. This funder also makes grants to local human services groups that provide basic needs to underserved residents.
Competitive grants for the Health & Medical initiative focus on medical research and helping members of disadvantaged communities receive treatment for health issues. Grants support “solving medical challenges; curing diseases; helping people with disabilities; and addressing mental health.” The foundation also supports community health through the GSK IMPACT Awards, which is a fund that makes unrestricted grants of $50,000 to up to 10 local nonprofits whose work has helped to improve health in Greater Philadelphia. Organizations whose approach recognizes the connection between health and other social factors such as access to healthy food will receive priority.
Human Services competitive grants invest in “ensuring everyone in [the] community has access to the essential services and support they need to thrive,” including supporting the city’s immigrant and disabled populations, affording essential services, and addressing poverty. The foundation offers additional funding opportunities for human services organizations through two special initiatives.
- Henrietta Tower Wurts awards grants of up to $5,000 for programmatic or general operating support to nonprofits serving “disadvantaged children and youth and/or the elderly in the City of Philadelphia.”
- Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office Forfeiture Fund supports nonprofits with anti-crime/anti-drug/anti-violence initiatives that aim to engage at-risk youth and young adults with grants of up to $50,000. It will also fund addiction recovery and rehabilitation programs, and those addressing life after imprisonment.
Grants for LGBTQ
The Philadelphia Foundation names support for Greater Philadelphia’s LGBTQ residents as one of its six community causes. The LGBTQ focus area supports the community by advancing civil rights and AIDS research and investing in “LGBTQ-friendly affordable housing,” to which the foundation committed $100,000 in partnership with Project HOME.
Grants for Community Development, BIPOC, and Women
Support for community improvement and enrichment projects is primarily conducted through the foundation’s competitive grants for the Community focus area. Some of this community cause’s priorities include “building safer neighborhoods, rebuilding after natural disasters; protecting the First Amendment; and growing hyperlocal communities.” The foundation also invests in community development and population support through two of its special initiatives grants:
- Black Community Leaders grants support Black-led organizations with a “demonstrated commitment to Black inclusion and leadership and that serve predominantly Black communities.” Grants range between $5,000 and $100,000 and provide general operating support.
- Giving Circle Women’s Connection Philadelphia awards grants to area nonprofits “working to improve the lives of women and children in the City of Philadelphia.” Grants are for up to $20,000 in general operating support for up to three recipients annually. Grants focus on a different issue area each cycle.
Grants for Democracy and Civic Engagement
While civic engagement is not named as a primary focus area, the Philadelphia Foundation does support public policy initiatives. The Civic Leadership Fund utilizes the foundation’s status as a “civic leader” to address critical needs when they arise. The foundation created the Civic Coalition to Save Lives, which connects local companies and community organizations to help reduce gun violence in the city, and PHLCares, which brings together hospitality, retail, and commercial property business leaders to work toward a solution to the issue of chronic homelessness in Philadelphia.
Important Grant Details:
Grants typically range anywhere from $100 to $500,000, with a majority of grants, however, falling into the $5,000 to $100,000 range. The foundation awarded over $44 million in grants in a recent year with a $630 million endowment. It makes grants to organizations located in the Greater Philadelphia area, which consists of Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, Philadelphia, Camden, and Burlington counties.
- The foundation accepts unsolicited applications and requests for funding for its competitive and special initiative grants.
- It typically accepts applications for competitive grants in the spring and the fall of each year.
- Eligibility requirements and deadlines for special initiative grants vary by fund, as does the application process.
- Information about select past grantees is available on the community causes pages.
General inquiries may be submitted to the foundation via its contact page.
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