The Scherman Foundation is now accepting Letters of Intent to support initiatives that drive the economic, political, and cultural transformation necessary for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color to reclaim and build power.
Donor Name: The Scherman Foundation
State: All States
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 02/28/2025
Size of the Grant: Not Available
Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned
Details:
While foundation prioritizes BIPOC leadership, the main focus is on organizations where BIPOC communities have clear influence and decision-making power over the organization’s strategy, direction, programmatic work, and finances.
Program Priorities
- Arts
- In Central & South Brooklyn, the South Bronx, East and Central Harlem, and on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, they support organizations that
- Focus on arts, cultural, and narrative work through a racial justice lens
- Build BIPOC-led arts infrastructure and provide unconditional, holistic support for BIPOC artists, ensuring their artistic freedom and creativity are respected, resourced, and amplified
- Enhance economic opportunities and access for communities through arts and culture, including partnerships with local vendors, events, and engagement
- Support the use of art and “artivism” as means of political leverage and advocacy both within the arts field and across areas to build community power
- Ensure BIPOC art and culture workers have a seat at the table where resource allocation and decision-making occur
- Support the power and presence of long-standing BIPOC communities in the area, preserve and promote local cultural heritage, and address gentrification’s impact on local communities while fostering continued artistic generation
- Engage with and benefit diverse audiences
- Bolster BIPOC-led and serving arts and cultural networks and underfunded cultural organizations
- In Central & South Brooklyn, the South Bronx, East and Central Harlem, and on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, they support organizations that
- Democracy
- The Foundation will support grantees working in the following states:
- New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania
- Expanded support for work in Ohio and Michigan
- The Foundation will support grantees working in the following states:
- Environmental & Climate Justice
- The Foundation will focus its support on New York City and State in order to seek synergies with grantees in its other programs, facilitate deep staff engagement and support of the field, and take advantage of the moment. The state and city are at dramatic climate policy tipping points, positioned to demonstrate that a transition to climate sustainability is inextricably interwoven with the fight for racial justice. Having won historic legal commitments to a Just Transition—the CLCPA, Local Law 97, etc.—the grantees are working to defend those wins and fight for aggressive implementation.
- In order to leverage regional synergies (and confront regional challenges), the Foundation will continue to fund a limited number of grassroots groups in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
- Reproductive Justice
- The Foundation will prioritize support to state-based and national organizations that use the RJ framework to
- Dismantle local, state, and federal policies that harm those most marginalized because of race, age, class, or gender identity and advocate for the adoption of proactive and protective RJ policies
- Create access points and a leadership pathway in the RJ movement, particularly for young people, BIPOC communities, and/or medical professionals
- Use cultural and narrative strategies to advance their work
- Organize and mobilize broad support for RJ policies at the state and/or federal levels
- Build political power by engaging voters using an RJ framework
- In addition, a limited number of grants will support national organizations that provide critical and effective capacity-building for the RJ movement, particularly those providing support in terms of
- More diversified funding and long-term fiscal strength
- Cultural and narrative shift
- Voter engagement
- The Foundation will prioritize support to state-based and national organizations that use the RJ framework to
- Strengthening New York Communities
- Although much of the grantmaking to date has focused on New York City, they will be slowly expanding the grantmaking to other regions of New York State. For 2025-2026, they will continue to fund organizations working in New York City, as well as selected organizations, coalitions, and networks with statewide reach. They will also make a limited number of grants in Long Island.
Strategic Framework
- Economic Transformation
- The focus on economic transformation acknowledges that the root causes of economic inequity are linked to white supremacy and racial injustice and that the economic well-being of BIPOC individuals and communities is critical for liberation. They support organizations that focus on
- Strategies and models that provide BIPOC communities with greater access to capital, assets, and opportunities
- Economic stability and security for BIPOC individuals and families
- Advocating for more equitable economic systems through policy reform, institutional changes, and increased transparency
- The focus on economic transformation acknowledges that the root causes of economic inequity are linked to white supremacy and racial injustice and that the economic well-being of BIPOC individuals and communities is critical for liberation. They support organizations that focus on
- Political Transformation
- Foundation believe shat those who have been excluded must lead the way in dismantling current political structures and creating new, inclusive, and reflective democratic processes. They support organizations that focus on
- Work and priorities that are driven by BIPOC communities
- Forging multi-racial coalitions working toward racial justice
- Reforming political structures and processes to make the political system more accessible and accountable to BIPOC communities
- Increasing the participation of BIPOC communities in democratic processes and decision-making at all levels
- Foundation believe shat those who have been excluded must lead the way in dismantling current political structures and creating new, inclusive, and reflective democratic processes. They support organizations that focus on
- Cultural Transformation
- Recognizing the crucial role of culture in advancing justice, they support organizations that harness storytelling, expression, and artistic activism to drive systemic change. The focus is on collaborative narrative change strategies, innovative storytelling frameworks, and equitable media accessibility. They support organizations that focus on
- Public Narrative Change: Combating misinformation and harmful stereotypes through investments in journalism, local news outlets, and nonfiction narratives
- Artistic Expression: Supporting the creativity and work of BIPOC artists and communities without imposing agendas or conditions and transforming the field to do the same
- Artivism: Using art as a tool for organizing grassroots movements and collective action, including funding on-the-ground storytelling and public art projects.
- Recognizing the crucial role of culture in advancing justice, they support organizations that harness storytelling, expression, and artistic activism to drive systemic change. The focus is on collaborative narrative change strategies, innovative storytelling frameworks, and equitable media accessibility. They support organizations that focus on
Eligibility Criteria
- Organizations must have 501(c)(3) charitable status or a fiscal sponsor with 501(c)(3) status.
- Foundation does not consider:
- Grants to support specific events or productions
- Direct service work unless embedded in a larger organizing and movement building strategy
- Organizations primarily working outside of the U.S.
For more information, visit The Scherman Foundation.
