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Grants: Daly City to Mountain View
Silicon Valley Community Foundation supports nonprofit organizations doing
innovative work serving residents in the region from Daly City to northern Mountain View, including
Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos and Los Altos Hills.
If you have any questions about the application process, please contact us
at grants@siliconvalleycf.org.
Community Grants
The community foundation's discretionary grants for Daly City to Mountain View
are focused in the following eight issue areas:
For more information, please review our grantmaking guidelines in the appropriate
area or contact us at grants@siliconvalleycf.org.
A letter of inquiry must be received by 5 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 15, 2008.
Applications should be submitted to the community foundation’s Mountain View headquarters.
Arts and Culture
Arts and Culture grants provide opportunities to artists and communities whose work we
might not otherwise see or hear. We seek to increase artistic expression through support of individual artists,
arts organizations and arts programs for children and youth. Strategies supported by arts and culture grants
include: increasing the creation and performance of art forms reflecting the diversity of our community;
supporting programs offering children and youth experiences in the arts, both as participants and as audience
members; and assisting organizations seeking to increase the venues for art exhibition and performances.
Click here for grant guidelines.
Community Building
Community Building grants focus on strengthening communities by engaging residents and
stakeholders in a process that builds leadership and capacity from within, while respecting and valuing the
rich diversity represented in our geographic region. We support efforts to build social capital; a resource
defined as the web of relationships and civic participation that improves our ability to address the challenges
and opportunities we face as a community. We also recognize that building a community's capacity and leadership
is a critical precursor to community involvement for those, who, because of language, culture or educational
levels - have been excluded from participation. Click here for grant guidelines.
Environment
Peninsula and Silicon Valley residents are fortunate to live among abundant natural resources.
Our work aims to preserve the Bay Area's biological treasures and increase environmental awareness in our communities.
San Mateo and Santa Clara counties have developed amid rich, diverse ecosystems - including marine coast, bay wetlands,
fertile agricultural lands and Pacific temperate rain forests. Our environment grants seek to foster greater awareness
of, access to, and stewardship of the natural treasures gracing the Peninsula. By supporting opportunities in
environmental education and conservation for both children and adults, we seek to promote greater access to the
variety of parks, open space and wild areas stretching from the ocean to the bay, an overall appreciation for the
natural environment and a sense of responsible stewardship for these natural treasures. Click here for
grant guidelines.
First Five Years
Research has shown that the first five years are the most crucial and intense developmental
period in a child's life. The community foundation focuses on supporting and nurturing children during this most
vulnerable stage. We fund early childhood programs that promote positive child development by: maximizing the healthy
physical and emotional development of infants and young children; nurturing a young child's love of reading and
learning; and investing in quality child care, including professional development for child-care workers and increasing
the supply of child care for low-income families. Specific efforts to combat the prohibitive cost and shortage of
high-quality child care are among this portfolio's primary interests. Successful initiatives in their area include
the Center for Venture Philanthropy's Raising A Reader® early literacy program
for preschoolers and the Peninsula Partnership's Kickoff to Kindergarten program,
a summer transitional program for San Mateo County children who are English language learners or who have not
participated in a preschool program. Click here for grant guidelines.
Health and Wellness
By collaborating with county agencies and local nonprofit providers, the community foundation
is improving health care access and affordability for individuals, families and children. Our health and wellness
grants promote a healthy community and strengthen the health care safety net for uninsured and underserved persons.
The community foundation works in partnership with community-based organizations targeting the health needs of
diverse populations and geographic areas as well as public agencies protecting public health and ensuring the
availability of care for all. We support strategies that: prevent illness and promote health; enhance access to
health services; initiate or strengthen services for recovery from illness and substance abuse; and involve
community members in addressing local health needs. Click here for grant
guidelines.
In School and Out-of-School
Many Bay Area youth face academic, cultural and linguistic barriers to academic and personal
development. Our "in school and out-of-school" grants invest in programs that promote educational achievement and
positive personal development in school-age children and youth, particularly those in low-income families. We support
a broad range of "in school" strategies aimed at increasing schools' capacities to foster students' academic success.
These strategies include interventions that provide extra support and targeted instruction for students who need it,
teacher professional development and programs that encourage family participation in school. The foundation also
supports "out-of- school" strategies that provide homework assistance and academic support, enrichment activities
that promote learning and positive development and programs that address working parents' need for safe, supervised
activities outside of school. Click here for grant guidelines.
Strengthening Nonprofits
When healthy organizations have the support they need, new ideas and imaginative community s
olutions flourish. The community foundation makes selected grants to strengthen nonprofits and promote a vibrant
nonprofit community. Grants in this area support the mission and infrastructure of the nonprofit sector as a whole.
We make selected grants to management support organizations that provide services to other nonprofits and build
capacity within the field as a whole. Our goal is to help exemplary organizations continue to thrive within a healthy
and stimulating nonprofit sector. Click here for grant guidelines.
Supporting Families
Strong families are the cornerstones of a strong community. The community foundation is committed
to helping families and individuals achieve self-sufficiency and the skills they need to prosper. Our funding is aimed
at strengthening the human services safety net for low-income families and helping families of all kinds exercise their
rights, fulfill their responsibilities and realize their full economic and social potential. We support nonprofit
organizations that help low-income and disadvantaged children and adults meet basic needs for food, clothing and emergency
and permanent housing. The community foundation also targets organizations addressing family violence, promoting expanded
opportunities for persons with disabilities, and serving adults seeking to improve their economic prospects through
literacy and employment development. Click here for grant guidelines.
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