Spark provides seed, early-stage grants to grassroots women’s organizations and initiatives working to advance gender equality and the rights of women and girls in their communities (globally and in our US chapter regions: New York Metro and San Francisco Bay Area).
Eligibility
You are eligible to apply, if your organization:
Addresses root causes: We support organizations engaged in addressing the root causes of challenges that women and girls face, which can include but are not limited to gender norms, poverty, education, economic opportunities, and access to health resources.
Meets an unmet need: We look for organizations that provide a service that is not currently available to women in that geographical area.
Employs norm shifting and innovative solutions: We prioritize organizations that use creativity to improve lives while challenging traditional norms and approaches.
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Has leadership comprised primarily of local women: We specifically select organizations with leadership comprised of at least 50% of women from the community served.
Has a budget under $150K: We want to make a difference with our $3-5K grant, therefore, we support only organizations with an annual operating budget under $150,000 USD.
Priorities
In addition to meeting the criteria above, organizations with the following characteristics may be given priority.
Belief in the Leader: As with most startup endeavors, Spark shows favorable consideration to strong, passionate, persevering leaders with qualities that make us believe they will make their initiative a reality.
Entrepreneurial Spirit: Spark believes in funding organizations that are “taking a chance” to improve their local communities.
First/Early Funder: Spark takes pride in being an early funder and being the “spark” for an organization to achieve long term success.
Beyond the Dollar: We want to give more that just money, but have organizations tap into our pool of diverse talent.
Amount
The average grant amount is $3,000-5,000 USD, and is determined at the end of our yearly grantmaking cycle.
Application
Applications are accepted within 3 cycles: Spring Cycle deadline – March 1, Summer Cycle deadline – June 1, Fall cycle deadline – September 1. In addition to grant funding, we support grantees with pro bono professional services. Typical requests from grantees include accounting, legal, marketing and web development support. We source these services from our network of young professional members.
Selection criteria
Grantees are pre-selected at Vetting Committee meetings by our staff, Committee Chair and Committee Members. Successful applications proceed to Investment Committee meetings held in San Francisco and New York. Each Investment Committee meeting involves young professionals who deliberate and make decisions via a democratic voting process.
For more information,please visit https://www.sparksf.org/apply-for-a-grant/