Next Stage Grants

What are Next Stage Grants?

Next Stage Grants are capacity building grants, designed to support a dynamic and thriving Los Angeles Jewish community by strengthening the internal and operational capacity of local Jewish nonprofits.

The Foundation encourages applicants to develop a strategy team of invested stakeholders, including senior leadership, staff, and board, who would participate in executing proposed capacity building plans.


How does The Foundation define capacity building?

Capacity building refers to investments in infrastructure, systems, and resources that promote the internal stability, health, resilience, and effectiveness of an organization.

How much funding is available?

Grants range from $150,000 - $300,000 total, distributed over a three-year period. The maximum grant amount will be based on nonprofit size as follows:

  • $150,000 - $200,000 – Organizations with an annual operating budget between $500,000 and $1 million will be able to request a grant of up to $200,000
  • $150,000 - $250,000 – Organizations with an annual operating budget between $1 million and $5 million will be able to request a grant of up to $250,000
  • $150,000 - $300,000 – Organizations with an annual operating budget between $5 million and $20 million will be able to request a grant of up to $300,000

In addition to funding, grant recipients will receive a suite of support that includes funding toward an outside consultant, peer cohort learning opportunities, and more.

How do I apply?
Attend our virtual Grantseekers’ Workshop on Thursday, December 1, 2022. Pre-registration is required and applications will be provided to registrants during the week of the workshop.

Steps to attend the workshop:

  1. Review Focus Areas and Criteria below to determine if your organization is eligible to apply.
  2. Click here to register for the mandatory workshop.

For questions, please contact Program Officer Marissa Nachman (mnachman@jewishfoundationla.org).

Focus Areas:
While grants will not be limited to these areas, we would like to bring to the forefront core and emergent capacity needs emphasized in recent conversations with nonprofits and capacity building experts, including but not limited to:

Communications and marketing Improving team culture including a focus on staff wellness, diversity, equity, and inclusion
Developing staff leadership pipelines Modernizing program service models, internal operations, and technology systems
Executive succession planning Navigating staff transitions and restructuring staff responsibilities
Financial management Program Evaluation
Fund development Strategic planning

Applicant Eligibility Criteria:

Organizations must be able to check one of the following criteria in order to be eligible to apply:

  • Applicant is an LA-based Jewish nonprofit that has 501c3 status and an annual operating budget of $500,000 – $15 million.
  • Applicant is a national nonprofit organization with an established regional presence in LA including local board leadership, multiple staff members serving LA, a minimum annual regional budget of $500,000 and a maximum national operating budget of up to $20 million. The proposed project must demonstrate a primary focus on improving capacity to work in LA.

Eligibility Restrictions:

Grants not made to:

  • Synagogues or day schools
  • Organizations that received a 2019 Next Stage Grant
  • Organizations based in LA with operating budgets below $500,000 or above $15 million
  • National organizations with regional operating budgets below $500,000 or overall operating budgets above $20 million

Proposal will be evaluated on: 

  • Organizational Readiness: The organization has a successful track record of serving the community, and has the infrastructure in place to use a grant to address important capacity building needs.
  • Strength of Request: The request clearly and realistically demonstrates how the organization will leverage the grant to improve its operations, sustainability and impact in the community.
  • Impact: The organization serves an important and relevant need in the community that requires the organization to build its capacity.
  • Leadership & Management Capacity: Leadership team has a proven track record demonstrating the ability to lead significant projects to strengthen the organization.
  • Learning Orientation and Organizational Culture: The organization has a cross-departmental team of dedicated staff and board leadership who are invested in the proposal’s capacity building priorities, demonstrating an openness to evaluation and change. Applicant demonstrates a strong organizational culture or commitment to strengthening organizational culture, including staff wellness and advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion.
  • Financial Stability: The organization is in good financial standing with mechanisms in place to ensure continued and future organizational stability.

General Timeline:

December 1, 2022: Grantseekers’ Workshop
January 25, 2023: Applications Due
April 2023: First level screening complete; organizations notified whether they advance to the next stage
May 2023: Finalist grant presentations
July 2023: Final approval and notification of awards

 

See our Next Stage Grants Brochure for a list of previous Next Stage grant recipients. To learn insights about our 2017 Next Stage Grants Pilot, check out the Next Stage Grants Learning Report, developed in partnership with Engage R+D.