OVERVIEW: The Richard King Mellon Foundation supports conservation, education, human services, nonprofit capacity building and economic development in Southwestern, Pennsylvania.
IP TAKE: The Richard King Mellon Foundation is a powerful environmental funder in Pennsylvania and one with a sizable amount of money to spend on keeping local nonprofits afloat. It has an accessible application process and is transparent about where its money goes. This is a good funder for local groups in Southwestern Pennsylvania to know.
PROFILE: Established in 1947, the Richard King Mellon Foundation is a private foundation based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. A Pittsburgh native, Mellon was the president and chairman of Mellon Bank, as well as a conservationist and civic leader in Pennsylvania. He served in both World Wars, was involved in many local ventures and passed away in 1970. The Richard King Mellon Foundation is one of the largest in its region, with about $3.4 billion in assets.
The Mellon Foundation seeks to “advance prosperity in Southwestern Pennsylvania, and environmental conservation across the United States.” It funds local efforts for Conservation, Economic Development, Economic Mobility, Health & Well-Being and Organizational Effectiveness. In addition to grantmaking, this foundation makes Social-Impact Investments in mission-driver for-profit enterprises. Giving is national in scope, with a strong emphasis on the Pittsburgh region of Pennsylvania.
Grants for Environment, Marine, Freshwater and Wildlife Conservation
According to its website, the foundation’s Conservation program has committed more than $1 billion toward conservation efforts in its home state and throughout the country. Giving stems from four subprograms.
- Grants for Habitat Conservation support land purchases, easements and “other structures that ensure durable conservation outcomes” for the purpose of protecting biodiversity and ecosystems. Grants and investments focus on large landscapes of at least 1,000. Recently, the foundation has begun organizing a “$150 million revolving fund of PRIs to support the acquisition” of vulnerable lands.
- The foundation also support Stewardship of “aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems in high priority landscapes.” Geographic priorities for this giving include the Northern Forests of New England and New York, Appalachia, the Upper Midwest and the Southeast. Thematic interests include water quality, habitat restoration and “addressing invasive species and wildlife diseases.”
- A subprogram for Activation supports economic development and community involvement in rural areas where the foundation has made conservation investments.
- And grants for Sustainable Communities support clean energy initiatives, sustainability and outdoor spaces in areas of geographic priority and investment.
- Conservation grantees include the Allegheny Land Trust, the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, the United States Endowment for Forestry and Communities and Texas A&M University Kingsville, which received funding for a wildlife health reporting program “for better informed management strategies.”
Grants for Economic Development and Higher Education
The Economic Development initiative envisions a Western Pennsylvania region that is “an engine for economic growth and vitality” and invests in programs and initiatives working to expand economic opportunity. Grantmaking from this program mainly stays in Pennsylvania.
- A focus area for Talent Development supports vocational education and training programs for adults, focusing on technology and jobs of the future.
- Grants also support efforts to expand Employment Opportunities target efforts to attract employers to the region, develop new businesses and support workers in the gig economy.
- A third focus area supports economic development via Community Building initiatives that “improve the quality of life in Allegheny and Westmoreland counties.” Infrastructure, transportation, arts and culture, and “innovation districts” where “entrepreneurs and businesses can grow and thrive.”
- Grantees of this program include the University of Pittsburgh, the Pittsburgh Urban Magnet Project, the Washington Greene County Job Training Agency and LaunchBio Inc.
Grants for Early Childhood and K-12 Education
Working in tandem with the Economic Development program, the Economic Mobility program focuses on opportunities for the youngest residents of Allegheny and Westmoreland Counties and supports “pathways to opportunity for vulnerable children and youth to overcome the obstacles to achieving economic mobility.”
- Grants for Educational Attainment focus on specific markers of academic success at every grade level, including kindergarten readiness, K-12 achievement and career- or college-ready students graduating from high school.
- The Future of Work subprogram aims to bring programs that foster career readiness kills and work experiences to K-12 students.
- Grants also support Supporting Living Environments for the regions children through programs that involve parents and caregivers in the educational process and improve family functioning.
- And Places of Opportunity grants invest in efforts to improve neighborhood-level variables that increase children’s likelihood of success. Priorities here include safety, community involvement, youth programs and initiatives to prevent children’s involvement with the criminal justice system.
- Grantees of the Economic Mobility focus area include the Mountour School District, Schools That Can, the Manchester Youth Development Center and A+ Schools: Pittsburgh’s Community Alliance for Public Education.
Grants for Public Health, Mental Health, Community Development and Housing
The foundation’s Health & Well-Being grantmaking program also focuses exclusively on Allegheny and Westmoreland Counties in Pennsylvania. Grants stemming from this program aim to help residents, “particularly the most vulnerable” live healthy lives.
- The subprogram for Healthy People supports the accessibility of health and mental health services as well as maternal and child health.
- Healthy Communities grants support community-level “conditions that allow for individuals to achieve health and well-being, and have supports in place to address the root causes of inequities.” Areas of interest include nutrition, public green spaces, safe and stable housing and pollution reduction.
- A third area of focus, Advancing Science, supports basic and applied research on health, the dissemination of findings and information, and timely response to emerging public health issues in the region.
- Recipients of this grantmaking program include the Saint Clair Health Corporation, the Greater Pittsburgh Community Foodbank, the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Achieva, which helps “children with complex medical needs transition to home-based settings.” Note that this program also supports faith-based organizations including Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Pittsburgh, Latrobe Presbyterian Church and the Bible Center Church, which received funding for a winter clothing drive for needy families.
Other Grant Opportunities
In addition to its four core program areas, the foundation also provides two other specialized sources of funding.
- The Organizational Effectiveness program supports current or recent foundation grantees in the areas of leadership and governance, human capital management, strategy and learning, and communications.
- The Social Impact Investments program works through the foundation’s four programs (Conservation, Economic Development, Economic Mobility and Health & Well-Being) to “pursue promising opportunities for charitable purposes” with businesses and capital markets.
Important Grant Details
Richard King Mellon Foundation makes hundreds of grants and program-related investments each year. Grants can range anywhere from $10,000 to over $16 million. The majority of grants fall in the $50,000 to $500,000 range.
- Learn more about this funder’s local giving on the grantees page on the funder’s website, as well as the annual report archive.
- Grantmaking focuses on Southwestern Pennsylvania. And while grants do sometimes support organizations from other parts of the country, the foundation discourages grant requests from organizations outside of Pennsylvania.
- This foundation accepts unsolicited grant applications from nonprofits throughout the year via its application portal. Guidelines and FAQs are provided here, as well as any current RFPs.
- Submit general questions to the founation’s staff at rkmf@rkmf.org or (412) 392-2800.
- Sign up for email updates at the bottom of the site.
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