Federal Agency Announces
$51 Million Available in New Funding Competition for Social Innovation Fund
Evidenced-based programs
working in economic opportunity, healthy futures, and youth development
eligible to apply
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Corporation for National and Community
Service (CNCS) today released a Notice
of Funding Availability (NOFA) of up to $51 million
for the 2015 grant competition of the Social Innovation Fund (SIF).
The deadline for applications will be 5 p.m. ET on March, 17
2015. Successful applicants will receive grants of between $1 and $10 million
per year for five years.
The Social Innovation Fund (SIF) unites public and private
resources to evaluate and grow innovative community-based solutions that work.
These solutions must have at least preliminary evidence of results in
low-income communities in three priority areas: economic opportunity, healthy futures,
and youth development.
“The opening of the Social
Innovation Fund’s 2015 grant competition marks five years of growth in
providing evidence-based interventions for some of the most underserved
communities and populations,” said Lois Nembhard, deputy director of the Social
Innovation Fund. “This year the SIF will continue to invest in economic
opportunity, healthy futures and youth development projects in underserved
areas.”
In just five years, the SIF and its private-sector partners have
invested more than half a billion dollars in compelling community solutions. As
a result of $229 million in federal grants and more than $516 million in
non-federal match commitments, the SIF has made grants to 35 grantmaking
institutions and 189 nonprofits working in 37 states and the District of
Columbia. These recipients have strong track records of identifying and growing
high-performing nonprofit organizations and represent the diversity of the
social sector.
During the 2015 fiscal year, CNCS plans to award approximately $51
million in grants, with up to $11 million going towards the continuation of
existing SIF recipients. Each award will range from $1 to $10 million and will
be matched dollar for dollar by the grantmaker. Grantmakers will then host
their own open competitions to select innovative, effective nonprofits that
will also match their grants.
Social Innovation Fund recipients receive significant technical
assistance from CNCS to support implementation and evaluation of their
programs. To date, the SIF has worked with nonprofits and grantees to develop
73 strong, rigorous evaluation models. Participation in the Social Innovation
Fund gives grantmakers greater access to a national network of funders and
nonprofits that are committed to investing in results-oriented solutions that
improve lives in low-income communities.
The 2015 SIF NOFA, instructions on how to apply, and technical
assistance information can be found at nationalservice.gov/SIF. Questions about the grant and application process can be sent to SIFApplication@cns.gov.
| 
