Our Approach
Elevating Community Brilliance + Expertise
Strategic Goals
This strategy focuses on elevating and supporting the vision, work, and voices of leaders, community members, and smaller early-stage nonprofits that are most aware of and immersed in the current and future needs of students and their families.
Elevate
Voices
Build
Capacity
Strengthen Impact
Diversify Our Approach
Photos courtesy of our friends at Early Learning Neighborhood Collaborative
Supportive Funds + Initiatives
Photo courtesy of our friends at Boys + Girls Club of North Alabama
Early-Stage Operations + Planning Fund
The Early-Stage Operations and Planning Fund provides multi-year investments and technical support for new and emerging nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations that are vision and mission aligned with the Steelcase Foundation and are focused on driving social change through place-based programming or services. Through a competitive application process, applicants are invited to request grants of up to $150,000 over three years to support strategic and operational planning and to build the infrastructure of their organization. Organizations commit to providing the deliverables identified by the Foundation by the end of the three-year grant period.
Photo courtesy of our friends at Boys + Girls Club of North Alabama
Early-Stage Operations + Planning Fund
The Early-Stage Operations and Planning Fund provides multi-year investments and technical support for new and emerging nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations that are vision and mission aligned with the Steelcase Foundation and are focused on driving social change through place-based programming or services. Through a competitive application process, applicants are invited to request grants of up to $150,000 over three years to support strategic and operational planning and to build the infrastructure of their organization. Organizations commit to providing the deliverables identified by the Foundation by the end of the three-year grant period.
Brilliant Leaders
Brilliant Leaders invests in the professional development and social and emotional growth of local community nonprofit leaders to elevate their voices, power, and impact, and to support the mutual goals of navigating and transforming systems. This initiative addresses the need for emerging nonprofit leaders to have time and structured opportunities to learn outside of their day-to-day work environments, build supportive relationships with systems and community leaders, reflect on their work and purpose, and re-energize from the emotionally heavy work they do. Recruitment for Brilliant Leaders will begin in spring of 2023.
Photo courtesy of our friends at the Early Learning Neighborhood Collaborative
Featured Partner Stories + Learnings
Belonging to Thrive
Through the revision of our grantmaking strategy, we looked to highlight our belief that a sense of belonging
Empowering Latina Women Through Puertas Abiertas
In April of 2022, the Steelcase Foundation approved a three-year $90,000 grant ($30,000 annually) to Puertas Abiertas, a
Supporting Future Now! at the African Resource Center
At their July 2021 board meeting, the Steelcase Foundation board of trustees approved a two-year $50,000 grant to
