Apply for a Grant

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). The average grant amount is $3,000-5,000 USD, and is determined at the end of our yearly grantmaking cycle.

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.

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.

All Spark grant applicants are expected to meet these criteria to be considered eligible for a grant.

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.

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.

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.

What is the average sized organization of a Spark grantee?
In most recent years, grants have gone to organizations with an average annual operating budget of $13,450 (for international organizations) and $38,200 (for US organizations).

What is the grantmaking process?
Spark’s Investment Committee is a group of young professionals who are Spark members, with two chapters in San Francisco and New York. Spark staff will screen all applicants and select 3-4 qualified applications for the Investment Committee to further review and vote on at one of the approximately 8 voting meetings throughout the year.

Applicants will be notified by Spark staff if their organization has been selected for Investment Committee consideration and a member advocate will reach out to the organization to request additional details to better represent the applicant during the committee review. Following the voting meeting, Spark staff will inform all applicants that were considered by the committee of the results, specifically if they were selected for a grant or not.

Spark’s democratic process allows all members to participate in the selection process and encourages best practices in responsible and effective grant-making.

When will I know if we were awarded a grant or not?
You will be notified of your application status within 3 months of your submission.

When will the grant funds be distributed?
Q1 (Jan-March) of the following year of award. Example: An organization applies for a grant in March 2015 and is selected by the committee for award anytime between March – October 2015. Spark will fundraise for the organizations grant throughout the year (2015) and all grantees selected in 2015 will receive funds no later than March 2016.

If we are selected for a grant, are there any reporting requirements?
Yes, one annual report is required in December of the year in which the grant funds are received. Example: Grant applicant is notified of selection in 2015, grant funds are received in February 2016, annual report is due in December 2016.

What sort of pro bono services does Spark offer its grantees?
We commit to providing pro bono professional services for our grantee partners. Grant applicants identify their service needs. Typical requests include accounting, legal, marketing and web development support. Additionally, we have provided consultancy on crowdsourcing, grassroots philanthropy, event-based or other types of fundraising, marketing, Board development, budget development, and volunteer management. We source these services from our network of young professional members.

If we are rejected for a grant, can we re-apply?
Applicants may re-apply once and should submit a revised application for consideration.