First Quarter Grants 2019

The Northwest Area Foundation approved 23 grants worth $1,230,150 and issued three Program Related Investments (PRIs) worth $2,500,000 in the first quarter of 2019.

Funding touched on work being done in two of our four interlocking portfolios, as well as sponsorships and work related to general projects that are not designated to a specific portfolio.

Our grants support organizations anchored in the culture of the people they serve across our region of eight states and 75 Native nations. Our grantees are dedicated to expanding economic opportunity in under-resourced communities by advancing good jobs and financial capability. They build on the untapped potential within our priority communities: Native Americans, communities of color, immigrants, refugees, and people in rural areas.

Our PRIs provide social and economic returns by investing in organizations that provide capital and support for new and growing businesses in underserved areas.

We include grants of $10,000 or more below. For information on grants of less than $10,000, please visit our grants database.

Grants to Support Enterprise Development

First Peoples Fund of Rapid City, SD, received $450,000 to support its strategic plans to grow and strengthen its indigenous arts ecology work, building supportive environments in Native communities that provide access to the six resources that artist entrepreneurs need to be successful: training/knowledge, supplies, creative spaces, credit and capital, markets, and networks.
Grant term: Jan. 1, 2019 – Dec. 31, 2020

Grants to Promote Financial Inclusion

Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization of Portland, OR, will receive $250,000 over two years to support its inclusion work, including providing students with financial inclusion classes, offering financial inclusion services for the first time to clients in rural Oregon, and creating a “Lessons Learned Toolkit” for dissemination.
Grant term: April 1, 2019 – March 31, 2021

Warm Springs Community Action Team of Warm Springs, OR, will receive $260,000 over two years so it can deepen its financial skill-building programs and products on the Warm Springs Reservation, including financial education classes, individualized financial coaching, and savings tools.
Grant term (start of grant renewal term): June 1, 2019 – May 31, 2021

General Grants

When we fund projects that help organizations and communities in ways that aren’t specifically associated with one of our four interlocking portfolios, we include those grants in the “General” category. General grants of $10,000 or more are listed below. For information on general grants of less than $10,000, please visit our grants database.

Interfaith Action of Greater Saint Paul of St. Paul, MN, received $35,000 to help re-establish and expand Community Power-Up (CPU), a program that brings together congregation members each month to discuss and address poverty in the community.
Grant term: March 1, 2019 – Feb. 28, 2020

OneAmerica of Seattle will receive $100,000 over two years to support its efforts to shape a regional workforce development system that effectively meets the needs of under-represented communities in King County.
Grant term: April 1, 2019 – March 31, 2021

Ventures of Seattle received $100,000 to build its microlending program capacity by increasing its in-house loan fund, which will help create jobs, decrease poverty, and transform lives through small-business ownership.
Grant term: April 1, 2019 – March 31, 2020

Program Related Investments (PRIs)

Metropolitan Economic Development Association of Minneapolis received $1 million to be used over a five-year period to increase the number of loans available to new and expanding businesses that create quality jobs for low-income people of color in Minnesota.
Grant term: April 1, 2019 – May 31, 2024

Neighborhood Development Center of St. Paul, MN, received $1 million to be used over a five-year period to support the expansion of its business development services for low-income entrepreneurs and to support the costs of a new business incubator, training space, and retail and coworking spaces.
Grant term: March 1, 2019 – Feb. 29, 2024

White Earth Investment Initiative of Ogema, MN, received $500,000 to be used over a five-year period to support Native community development financial institutions’ lending efforts, which provide consumer and microenterprise loans that expand opportunities so Native Americans can improve their financial capability, start and expand small businesses, and build assets.
Grant term: Feb. 1, 2019 – Jan. 31, 2024

Sponsorships

Sponsorships support opportunities for grantees to participate in activities that advance their learning, build relationships, exchange ideas and resources, and collaborate in unexpected ways. Sponsorships of $10,000 or more are listed below. For information on sponsorships of less than $10,000, please visit our grants database.

The Montana Racial Equity Project of Bozeman, MT, received $10,000 for their 2019 Race and Equity in Montana conference.
Grant term: April 1, 2019 – Nov. 30, 2019