Apply for a Grant
The mission of the Northern Virginia Health Foundation is to improve the health of residents of Northern Virginia, with an emphasis on the health and health care of low-income, uninsured, or underinsured persons. To further this mission, as part of its 2024 grantmaking the Board of Directors of the Northern Virginia Health Foundation has decided to issue a new request for proposals to build and strengthen communities through capacity building or social connectedness (organizations may only apply for one grant).
Strengthening the Sector – Capacity Building Grants
The Foundation seeks to strengthen communities by advancing organizations, especially those that are community-based and/or resident-led, that catalyze change and work to reduce health disparities. Recognizing that often these organizations are small and under-resourced, capacity building grants will focus on developing internal resources, strengthening infrastructure, supporting organizational campaigns, and establishing a strong foundation for the future. Grants will be awarded for activities such as (but not limited to):
staff development, onboarding or leadership training
strengthening infrastructure or IT
future programming and growth planning
communications campaigns or training
Strengthening the Community – Social Connectedness Grants
Creating connected and engaged spaces leads to healthy communities. Greater social connectedness leads to better physical and mental health, safer communities, greater civic engagement, more resilience, and even better economic opportunities. Social isolation and loneliness (SIL) have been declared an epidemic by the Surgeon General and can lead to a number of poor health outcomes, including premature death. The effects of SIL can be even greater among lower-resourced and marginalized communities. This grant will support community efforts to increase social connectedness, such as (but not limited to):
hyperlocal activities to enhance the social fabric of a neighborhood (i.e. creating neighborhood organizations, community networks, etc.)
projects that focus on the built environment (i.e. creating gathering spaces within a neighborhood or apartment complex such as firepits, lounges, etc.)
efforts that increase civic engagement
The Foundation is seeking to support efforts that will create healthy spaces and lasting community engagement, rather than one-time events.
Grantees must be 501(c)(3) organizations, working to improve health or the conditions that impact health. The Foundation is particularly interested in efforts that incorporate community voice, advance equity and are based in communities identified as islands of disadvantage, as identified in the report “Getting Ahead: The Uneven Opportunity Landscape in Northern Virginia.” Grants may range from $5,000 - $25,000.
Grants will not be awarded to individuals, capital campaigns, building renovations, endowments, or bio-medical research. The Foundation’s Articles of Incorporation also provide that grants will not be awarded for the provision of the types of medical services or procedures that are excluded by the Virginia Medicaid program, except for those medical services or procedures that are required to be provided by a community health center under Section 310 of the Public Health Service Act or by a federally qualified health center under Section 1905 of the Social Security Act.
You must complete your application online. The online application can be accessed by pasting this URL in your browser: https://www.grantinterface.com/nvhf/Common/LogOn.aspx. You will be asked to provide an access code after you click on “apply”; the code for capacity building grants is CB2024 and the code for social connectedness grants is SC2024.
The deadline for submitting the application is close of business Friday, October 25th . Please direct any questions you have about this request for proposals to Rachel Ermann Lynch at 703-486-5693 or rlynch@novahealthfdn.org. For technical questions related to Foundant, please contact Sonia Segarra Law at 703-486-5691 or slaw@novahealthfdn.org.
Other questions? Download our Grant FAQs.
Watch a recording of our info session on the new funding opportunity here. You can access the accompanying slides here.