For small, community-based nonprofits, applying for foundation grants can seem insurmountably difficult, when there are few people on staff who have expertise in writing grants. The Pittsburgh Foundation's Small and Mighty Grants Program makes grants to organizations that meet basic needs and reach the two populations identified through the Foundation’s new 100 Percent Pittsburgh organizing principle as significantly held back by poverty from full participation in a revitalized economy. The two priority groups are youth ages 12 to 24 and single women raising children. The program has awarded $235,000 to 18 nonprofits with budgets less than $600,000.
Small and Mighty, which has a 60-day funding decision turnaround, specifically targets small, community-based nonprofits and provides significant coaching and support throughout the application process. Small and Mighty grants are among the first new initiatives of the Foundation’s 100 Percent Pittsburgh organizing principle, which seeks to ensure that the 30 percent of Pittsburgh’s people who live at or near the federal poverty line are provided opportunities to improve their life prospects by working in the region’s improved economy.