On Wednesday, The Endowment released its ‘inaugural’ round of capacity and community grants.
Unlike the rolling application for larger grants, these smaller grants had a limited application window earlier in the spring. According to Sophie Dagenais, vice president of programs and grants, there were 313 applications for roughly $1.5 million in funding. Grant applications focused on one or more of The Endowment’s ‘pillars’: Education, Social and Health Equity, Community Safety, and Community Development.
“These grants are more than just financial support, they are partnerships with the people and organizations working every day to improve lives in our community,” Dagenais said in a press release.
According to The Endowment, “Community Grants enable grassroots groups and organizations of all sizes to expand opportunities, services and programs for residents of all ages, help address basic needs and improve community or recreational spaces in communities throughout New Hanover County. Funded initiatives include summer enrichment activities and scholarships, youth development initiatives, health and wellness programs, the arts and cultural experiences, and neighborhood revitalization projects.
Meanwhile, “Capacity Grants assist with organizational and financial stability, improved governance, and growth. They help build or augment organization-level infrastructure and governance, including strategic planning, professional development, leadership development, board development, fundraising, and data organization efforts,” according to The Endowment.
The Endowment said it applied a “structured review and scoring process.” Grant funding must be used by the end of the calendar year, with a final impact report due in early 2026.
The Endowment has not confirmed what future capacity and community grant cycles might look like – including whether they’ll become part of rolling applications and whether the $5,000 limit will be modified. CEO and President Dan Winslow acknowledged earlier this year this first round is a bit of an experiment.
“Well, we picked these amounts so that we could walk before we ran we are going to do this first round of grants. We are gonna learn from this first round of grants. We'll step back, we'll reflect, we'll hopefully improve," Winslow said in March.
Disclosure notice: WHQR has applied for and received grants from The Endowment, including the latest round of community and capacity grants.
2025 Community and Capacity Grants List by Ben Schachtman on Scribd