The Friday, May 5 registration deadline is drawing near for those interested in competing for one of 250 unrestricted grants of $1 million to be awarded by philanthropist MacKenzie Scott.
Prospective applicants must serve notice of the intent to apply by registering no later than 4 p.m. U.S. Central Time on that day. A formal application will then need to be completed and submitted by 4 p.m. U.S. Central Time, Monday, June 12.
Community-led, community-focused nonprofits from across the United States and U.S. Territories with budgets of at least $1 million and no more than $5 million for at least two of the past four fiscal years are eligible to apply. Registration instructions and other details, including an “organizational readiness tool” to help decide whether it makes sense for your organization to do so, can be found at https://bit.ly/3K1zJPg.
Scott’s team announced this process this past March as part of an “Open Call” initiative for a program called “Yield Giving.” The initiative is part of a plan to peel back the curtain on Scott’s giving and is being managed by Lever for Change, a nonprofit that influences its networks to find and fund solutions to the world’s greatest challenges including racial and gender inequity, lack of economic development, and climate change.
This initiative specifically seeks organizations explicitly committed to advancing the voices and opportunities of individuals and families of meager or modest means and of groups that have met with discrimination and other systemic obstacles, according to information on the registration page. The initiative is focused on elevating organizations working with people and in places “experiencing the greatest need in the United States: communities, individuals, and families with access to the fewest foundational resources and opportunities.”
Those most likely to receive a grant include organizations providing access to health care, stable and affordable housing, education and job training, support for sustained employment, asset ownership, civic engagement, and other pathways. They might also be engaged in data collection and communication to amplify the voices of people and communities struggling against inequities. “Organizations best suited to this initiative will enable individuals and families to achieve substantive improvement in their well-being through foundational resources,” according to the announcement.
Completed applications received by the June 12 submission deadline will undergo an administrative review followed by a Participatory Review by five fellow applicants. Up to 1,000 applicants top-rated by their peers will then be invited to advance this fall to the Evaluation Panel Review portion of the process, where they will be scored by five members of an external panel recruited for experience relevant to this initiative. Scoring will be further adjusted as necessary to ensure fairness, according to the announcement.
Final selections of the 250 grantees will be jointly announced by the donor team and Lever for Change in early 2024.
