RAPID RESPONSE FUNDS
FPLG COVID-19 RESPONSE
RAPID-RESPONSE FUNDS
[UPDATE: November 16, 2020]
The trend of more specialized, non-geographically based, rapid-response funds has continued over the summer and into the fall.
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[UPDATE: May 25, 2020]
The rapid-response funds springing up at the outset of the COVID-19 crisis have attracted significant public attention and support. While the first set of such funds were geographically based and often hosted by a region’s community foundation, other – more specialized – funds have been established in recent weeks.
For instance, the Native American Community Response Fund has been set up to “deploy trust-based funding to urban and tribal Native -led organizations impacted by the pandemic.” Similarly, seven Jewish foundations have banded together to launch the Jewish Community Response and Impact Fund (JCRIF) to provide “more than $80 million in interest-free loans and grants to help maintain the infrastructure of Jewish life that advances Jewish education, engagement and leadership.” And TechSoup, which is a nonprofit network that helps organizations with technology solutions has launched a COVID-19 Response Fund “to help grassroots nonprofits make critical technology investments while continuing to serve the most vulnerable communities through the crisis and into the future.”
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[April 3, 2020]
Community leaders around the nation have quickly shepherded coalitions to provide emergency funding for nonprofit organizations as well as individuals impacted by the coronavirus outbreak and the government restrictions on movement and activities.
This trend began first in Seattle, where the virus first struck in force in the United States, and then moved to Northern California and nationwide. Generally, these funds are hosted by a region’s community foundation.
For example, The Seattle Foundation gathered “philanthropy, government, and business partners to create a fund that will provide one-time operating grants for ‘organizations in our region working with communities who are disproportionately impacted by coronavirus and the economic consequences of this outbreak.’”
The National Center for Family Philanthropy has compiled a map and listing of these rapid-response funds around the nation.
Cultural organizations like … small and midsized art museums are essential to the the vibrancy of their communities and they are experiencing unprecedented financial vulnerability as a result of the pandemic. We are determined to safeguard these institutions at this time of national crisis, and we believe firmly in their mission to protect and preserve the visionary voices and transformative histories of their communities.
— Elizabeth Allen, Mellon Fdn. (9/21/20)
… [A]s our [news] partners around the world scrambled to report on the coronavirus, they grappled with a bitter irony: demand for information soared, but their already-strained business models were further collapsing…. [M]ost sought funding so they could provide content for marginalized communities who faced language barriers, stigma, or other obstacles to receiving information.
— Internews (9/10/20)
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a huge impact on grantmaking. In a matter of months (and just weeks for some), funders began to pivot and employ rapid-response grantmaking tactics in order to quickly support their grantees’ urgent and growing needs.
— Casey Pechan (6/26/20)
In these times, Native American families turn to trusted community organizations for support and resources. In turn, we want to generously support Native American nonprofits on the ground who are caring for our most vulnerable – relatives facing food insecurity, access to housing, and our low-income sacred elderly.
— Edgar Villanueva (4/20)
REFERENCES & RESOURCES
- Mellon Foundation launches COVID-19 relief fund for museums (September 21, 2020) Elizabeth Alexander, Philanthropy News Digest
- Rapid Response Fund Boosts COVID-19 Information to Local Communities (September 10, 2020)
- Just Tech Covid-19 Rapid-Response Grants (August 2020) Social Science Research Council
- Rapid Response Grants (Summer 2000) NEA Foundation
- Foundations Establish $5 Million Covid-19 Response Fund to Focus on the Global Economy (June 29, 2020) Alex Daniels The Chronicle of Philanthropy
- 7 Steps to Rapid-Response Grantmaking (June 26, 2020) Casey Pechan, Peak Grantmaking Blog
- A COVID-19 Rapid Response Support for Native American Communities (April 2020) Edgar Villanueva, Decolonizing Wealth
- $80 Million Fund Set For Jewish Organizations (April 21, 2020) The NonProfit Times
- TechSoup Launches COVID-19 Response Fund (April 21, 2020) The NonProfit Times
- Coronavirus ‘Rapid Response’ Funds Proliferate as Threat Grows (March 12, 2020) Dan Parks, The Chronicle of Philanthropy
- Map: Rapid Response Funds in the United States
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