Visions in Leadership

For more than 35 years, The Community Foundation and our donors have demonstrated a deep commitment to our diverse communities.

Going forward, working together we can bring positive change to the most difficult issues facing our region today.

Competitive Grant Opportunities


The following competitive funding opportunities are available to nonprofit organizations serving residents of the Washington, DC region from selected donor-advised funds, Community Foundation initiatives, and local grantmaking partners. Please carefully review the eligibility guidelines and deadlines – unsolicited or out-of-area proposals will not be accepted.

Arts

Individual and Organizational Capacity-Building

Children and Families

Education and Youth Development

Employment and Workforce Development

Environment

Emergency Services

Family Literacy and Libraries

Violence Prevention



The Collaborative for Education Organizing

The Collaborative for Education Organizing (CEO), a project of The Community Foundation for the National Capital Region, is a coalition of nearly one dozen local and national philanthropic institutions that share a common vision: to create a public will for the improvement of educational opportunities for all District of Columbia public school students.

How to Apply: There are currently no funding opportunities. Read about previous CEO grants HERE.

Back to top.

Environment and Preservation Funds

Spring Creek Foundation and several other donors seek to support environmental efforts which preserve, protect, or encourage sustainable use of exceptional natural or built environments in the National Capital region, particularly those environments affecting low-income populations and providing educational opportunities and advocacy pertaining to environmental issues.

How to Apply: There are currently no application opportunities.

Back to top.

Human Services and Poverty Funds

The Neighbors in Need Fund
The Neighbors in Need Fund is a response fund designed to support:

  • Nonprofit safety-net organizations that provide direct services such as food, clothing, shelter, emergency financial assistance, prescriptions and/or foreclosure prevention to meet the increased demand for services;
  • Efforts to strengthen the safety-net infrastructure and system through which safety-net services are provided;
  • And the overall sustainability of the nonprofit sector that provides quality services to our neighborhoods.

For more information click HERE.

The William G. McGowan Charitable Fund

Honoring the legacy of philanthropist William McGowan, The William G. McGowan Charitable Fund provides support to exceptional Pre-K through 12 programs that creatively address the current challenges in our educational system for the purposes of promoting retention and graduation rates in underserved or underachieving populations.  The Fund gives priority to those organizations which have demonstrated, measurable success.

Please visit the McGowan Fund’s webpage to learn more www.mcgowanfund.org

How to Apply: For information regarding eligibility please contact Diana Spencer, Executive Director, William G. McGowan Fund at diana.spencer@mcgowanfund.org

Back to top.

MARPAT Foundation

The MARPAT Foundation is a Washington, DC-area private foundation that envisions the Greater Washington region as one in which the highest quality of life, culture, and habitat is enjoyed by all of its residents. The MARPAT Foundation makes grants to organizations based in or benefiting the Washington metropolitan area for projects related to education, healthcare, cultural affairs, and science.

The MARPAT Foundation partners with The Community Foundation for the National Capital Region to identify and support grantees of its Wards 7 & 8 Initiative.

Please visit The MARPAT Foundation’s webpage to learn more www.foundationcenter.org/grantmaker/marpat

How to Apply:  There are currently no application opportunities.

Back to top.

Microsoft Unlimited Potential Fund

The Community Foundation for the National Capital Region partners with Microsoft to administer Microsoft Unlimited Potential grants. Microsoft Unlimited Potential is a global initiative designed to help narrow the technology-skills gap and aid global workforce development. Grants support technology-training programs ranging from basic computer skills to using advanced business productivity applications. Microsoft Unlimited Potential supports donations in the form of cash, software, curriculum, and technical expertise that enable individuals to learn about technology and gain the information technology skills needed for employment in the IT field or other industry sectors.

For information on Microsoft Community Affairs Unlimited Potential Program Recipients worldwide, go to: www.microsoft.com/mscorp/citizenship/giving/overview/UPrecipients.asp

How to Apply: To inquire about funding opportunities for organizations in the Mid-Atlantic region, contact Donna Woodall, Microsoft Community Outreach Director at dwoodall@microsoft.com or (202) 895-2000.

Back to top.

Nonprofit Advancement Fund

The Community Foundation for Montgomery County plays a leadership role in supporting the development of a healthy, coordinated nonprofit sector in the county through the Nonprofit Advancement Fund for Montgomery County. Its objectives are to:

 

  • Strengthen nonprofits through board development, leadership training, and other innovative capacity building activities, thereby enhancing nonprofits’ ability to address county needs and opportunities; and
  • Create and sustain new partnerships and more effective dialogue among nonprofits, local government and the private sector/private philanthropy focused on linking the efforts of all the sectors to achieve a better quality of life for the county’s residents.

Back to top.

The Partnership for Prince George’s County

The Partnership is an innovative, collaborative philanthropic effort made up of local, regional and national foundations, individual donors, nonprofit organizations and county public officials. Together, we share a vision and commitment of strengthening the nonprofit sector in Prince George’s County, as well as enhancing the impact and efficiency of regional philanthropic investment in the county.

Our unique collaborative effort was officially launched in January 2008 after a series of five county-wide forums held in 2006/2007. These forums were co-sponsored by the Washington Grantmaker’s Sustainable Communities Working Group and the Prince George’s Community Foundation, a regional affiliate of the Community Foundation for the National Capital Region.
More information is available at www.partnershippgc.org.

Back to top.

Starbucks Memorial Fund

Starbucks Memorial Fund was established as a living memorial to three young Starbucks employees who were killed in a robbery at the Georgetown Starbucks store in 1997. The Starbucks Memorial Fund supports local nonprofit organizations in the metropolitan Washington, DC region working to prevent of violence, serving as advocates against violence and providing assistance to victims of violence.

How to Apply: Applications are accepted by invitation only.

Back to top.

Greater Washington Workforce Collaborative

An initiative of the Community Foundation for the National Capital Region, the Greater Washington Workforce Development Collaborative is a coalition of fourteen local funders that makes grants to help low-income, low-skilled adults throughout the Greater Washington region obtain and retain jobs that provide good wages, benefits, and opportunities for advancement. The collaborative makes grants in three areas:

  • Modeling effective approaches to workforce development, including support for “industry partnerships” - workforce initiatives focused on key industry sectors;
  • Promoting public policy and systems change efforts that expand resources, enhance the profile of workforce development issues, promote seamless linkages between public, private, and nonprofit programs, and remove barriers to institutionalizing best practices; and
  • Sponsoring capacity building activities that grow service-provider knowledge and help to implement best practices across the workforce system.

How to Apply: GWWDC does not accept unsolicited proposals. All funding opportunities are published on the CFNCR website.

Back to top.