The Economic Mobility funding program serves children and young adults from birth to age 24 who reside in low-income households in Allegheny or Westmoreland counties.
Donor Name: Richard King Mellon Foundation
State: Pennsylvania
County: Allegheny County (PA) and Westmoreland County (PA)
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 04/17/2023
Size of the Grant: $150,000-$300,000
Grant Duration: 18 months
Details:
The program addresses the problem that in Allegheny and Westmoreland counties, children in lower-income households have less access to opportunities that contribute to economic mobility in adulthood. Also, community-level factors create obstacles that impede some children’s pathway to economic mobility.
The Foundation organizes its Economic Mobility program into four investment areas: Educational Attainment; Future of Work; Supportive Living Environments; and Places of Opportunity. Collectively, these four investment areas describe the Foundation’s approach to addressing the problem of limited economic mobility for children who reside in low-income households.
Examples
Examples of ideas that may be considered include, but are not limited to, the items noted below. These are solely illustrative and not proscriptive. Applications may include a variety of services, products, or technologies. The Foundation welcomes a range of ideas and encourages thoughtful experimentation.
Planning & Innovation
- Use network mapping tools to visualize and analyze the relationships – and disconnects – between populations with low, medium, and high SES
- Conduct a needs analysis to better understand local barriers to the formation of cross-class friendships and conduct a literature review to identify evidence to guide the development of interventions
- Develop a logic model, staffing model, and financial sustainability analysis for an intervention designed to build cross-class friendships
- Pilot an initiative and evaluate its impacts
Funding Information
The Foundation expects to fund projects in the range of $150,000-$300,000, depending on the complexity of the proposed project and the number of collaborators. If an application is truly exceptional, the Foundation may consider providing more funding than this range. Successful grants may be invited to apply for follow-on funding or additional capacity-building funding opportunities at the conclusion of the grant.
Types of Support
- The Foundation expects to provide Planning and Innovation grants through this RFP. The funded activities must be conducted within 6-18 months.
- Planning and Innovation grants focus on experimentation and the development of new ideas. Recipients might describe activities such as piloting services or completing a feasibility study. Any evaluation activities should focus on understanding successes, challenges, and future possibilities resulting from the initial project. Grant funds awarded through this RFP may be used for a variety of expenses such as program and service delivery, consultant fees, or evaluation.
Collaborations Led by Public Sector or Nonprofit Organizations
For the purposes of this RFP, the Foundation offers additional guidance about collaborative proposals from public sector or nonprofit organizations.
- Public sector organizations
- may serve as the lead agency submitting a proposal for Planning and Innovation grants
- may participate as collaborating partners on all types of grants submitted by nonprofit organizations serving as the lead agency
- include entities such as school districts, courts, or departments of health or human services
- Nonprofit organizations
- may serve as the lead agency for all types of grants
- may participate as collaborating partners for all types of grants.
For more information, visit Richard King Mellon Foundation.
