The Urban Institute and the Microsoft Justice Reform Initiative are collaborating on the Catalyst Grant Program to help organizations use data and technology to advance racial equity and fairness in the criminal justice system.
Donor Name: Urban Institute
Country: United States
States: All States
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline (mm/dd/yyyy): 02/14/2022
Size of the Grant: $40,000
Grant Duration: 6 months
Details:
Purpose
The purpose of the grant is to support local activities related to advancing criminal justice reform and decreasing racial and ethnic disparities in the adult criminal legal system through data and technology in the focus areas of prevention, policing, and prosecution.
Goals of the Catalyst Grant Program include:
- Create a space for locally embedded nonprofit organizations to implement data and technology-focused projects to advance criminal justice reform and decrease racial and ethnic disparities in prevention, policing, and prosecution;
- Enhance the technological and data capacity of nonprofit organizations focused on promoting justice and racial equity; and
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Disseminate innovative practices and lessons learned during implementation to other places.
Funding Information
Those selected to participate in the Catalyst Grant Program will benefit from:
- Funding award of $40,000 for a six-month performance period;
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Light touch expert technical assistance on data, policy, and community engagement from Urban as needed to support your project;
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Access to Microsoft technology for nonprofits and related support as needed;
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Virtual peer learning opportunities with Urban, Microsoft, and other awardees; and
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Elevation of your work through public-facing communications such as blogs, webinars, or conference panels.
Project Requirements
Projects must:
- Aim to advance reform in prevention, policing, and/or prosecution;
- Contribute to decreasing racial and ethnic disparities in the criminal justice system;
- Incorporate data and technology; and
- Be locally focused.
For this program, the three areas of focus listed above are:
- Prevention: Preventing law enforcement contact, diverting people from incarceration, or interrupting violence in communities
- Policing: Working to improve policing policies, programs, and practices, including facilitating connections between law enforcement agencies and communities
- Prosecution: Advancing data-driven transparency and accountability that empowers both communities and prosecutors to decrease racial and ethnic disparities within the prosecution process
Eligibility Criteria
Lead Applicant Organization
They are seeking lead organizations that are locally embedded with demonstrated relationships and connections to the community in which the project activities will take place. Understanding that inequities in the justice system disproportionately affect people of color, particularly Black communities, They also have a focus on organizations that reflect these communities by having people of color in staff leadership positions and trusted relationships with communities of color. also encourage small community-based organizations to apply. Organizations may submit only one application.
- Lead applicants must be a 501(c)(3) organization based in the United States, excluding colleges and universities.
- Individuals are not eligible to apply as a lead organization.
- Organizations that received a 2021 Catalyst Grant or are a current recipient of another Microsoft Justice Reform Initiative grant are not eligible to be lead applicants but maybe a partnering organization with another lead .
Partnering Groups or Individuals
- A partner is any group or individual outside of the lead applicant organization that is providing personnel or expertise necessary to key project tasks or deliverables, whether paid or unpaid.
- All partner groups or individuals playing key roles in the activities must be identified at the time of the application.
- As part of the application, you must provide a letter of support from partner groups, whether organizations or individuals, that confirms their participation consistent with their role in the proposal. If there are multiple partners, they can provide one letter together with multiple signatures if more convenient, as long as the letter outlines the roles for each group or person.
- Local or state governments can be partners in proposed projects but cannot receive funds. They still must provide a letter of support if playing key roles in the activities proposed.
- Organizations eligible to be a partner and receive funds include:
- Local nonprofits, with or without 501(c)(3) status (including current Microsoft grantees)
- National or global nonprofit organizations
- Colleges or universities (public or nonprofit)
- For-profit organizations
For more information, visit Catalyst Grant Program.
