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Boston Grants

Boston Grants

Our grantmaking in Greater Boston/Massachusetts focuses on organizations that help teens and young adults get re-connected to a supportive community and become independent adults. Typical grants range from $2,500 to $20,000, with occasional larger and multi-year commitments.

When we evaluate proposals, we look at fit with our focus and the impact you are working toward with your program participants.

Assessing Your Fit

Before applying, please consider how well your organization aligns with our priorities for Greater Boston/MA. The more of these factors that apply to your work, the stronger your potential fit:

Who you serve:

  • Adolescents and young adults primarily ages 14-25
  • One or more high-risk populations (see Target Population list below)
  • Located in and directly serving Greater Boston/MA communities

What you address:

  • Mental health, trauma, or crisis intervention
  • Significant barriers to becoming independent adults

How you help:

  • Therapeutic services, wraparound support, or concrete pathways to independence (workforce training, housing stability, education completion)
  • Measurable outcomes (see Metrics section below)

Your organization is:

  • Established nonprofit with demonstrated track record
  • Smaller, community-based organization

Organizations aligning with 5+ of these factors are typically strongest fits. We review all applications thoughtfully, but this self-assessment helps you determine whether this is the right time to apply.

As important as they are, we typically do not fund: Environmental programs, elder care, food security programs, sports-centered organizations, arts organizations without therapeutic components, or organizations primarily engaged in policy advocacy.

Target population

Within the spectrum of young adults, we tend to prioritize these segments:

  • youth with mental health conditions or severe emotional disturbance [SED]
  • youth experiencing homelessness
  • justice-involved youth
  • LGBTQ+ youth
  • youth aging out of foster care
  • immigrant or refugee youth
  • neurodivergent youth (eg. autism spectrum, ADHD)
  • youth needing workforce skills

Metrics

We like to see how you measure your impact on the population you serve. When you tell us about metrics, try to identify them as one of the following:

  • Impact metrics measure long-term, fundamental changes in the lives of beneficiaries or in broader society. They answer: "Did we change lives or solve the problem?" Examples: Reduced poverty rates, improved health status, increased lifetime earnings, decreased homelessness
  • Outcome metrics capture medium-term changes resulting from your programs. They answer: "What changed for participants because of our work?" Examples: Increased literacy skills, changed health behaviors, gained job skills, improved self-efficacy
  • Output metrics measure direct products of your activities—what you deliver. They answer: "What did we do and how much?" Examples: Number of meals served, workshops conducted, people trained, counseling sessions provided

Financials

We don't overanalyze financials, but we often use 990s and third-party sources such as GuideStar, Impala and the Propublica Explorer in our review.

To request a grant in Greater Boston, start with the Initial Grant Request form.