Johns Hopkins faculty and staff can help the communities near their workplaces by designating part or all of their United Way pledge to the Johns Hopkins Neighborhood Fund. Since its inception, the fund has awarded 79 grants totaling more than $816,500. In the 2011 United Way campaign, $270,000 was earmarked for the Neighborhood Fund, and 21 grants were awarded in 2012 from the 66 applications that organizations submitted. The maximum grant award was $15,000, with the average around $12,500.
The Johns Hopkins Neighborhood Fund was created to support nonprofit organizations that serve the communities in close proximity to Johns Hopkins campuses and are associated with Johns Hopkins through employee or institutional involvement. One eligibility requirement for receiving a grant is that the organization help build stronger neighborhoods by addressing needs in community revitalization, education, employment, health, or public safety. In addition to serving these needs, organizations that receive funding must provide services within predesignated geographic boundaries, agree to use or return funds by the end of the fiscal year, and comply with other disbursement and reporting requirements.
Faculty and staff who work with a nonprofit serving people within the program's geographic boundaries can help write a grant application for funds to support its work in the community, in addition to sponsoring the organization's application.
To learn more about grant recipients, eligibility guidelines, and the application process, go to hopkinsworklife.org/neighborhoodfund.
The 2013 grant application will be available mid-December, and in early January the Neighborhood Fund Allocation Committee will host a pre-application workshop where participants will learn what the committee is looking for and hear some tips for completing the application.
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