The S.H. Cowell Foundation believes that the conditions which create poverty for children, families and communities are exceedingly complex and multi-layered. There is no single cause. There is no single solution.
We also understand that the alleviation of poverty is a slow and iterative process, one that demands community commitment, systemic reforms and much more than money alone.
Our understanding of these processes ensures that we employ a multi-faceted and comprehensive approach to grantmaking.
| We consider a number of factors simultaneously when deciding where and how to direct our resources. We fund solutions rather than problems. We rely on a sense of place rather than maps or urban boundaries to define the communities where we work. We invest in communities beset by acute poverty where families are struggling to raise children. We select communities where we can support children and where we can collaborate with those who are raising them, educating them, and mentoring them. |
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Our grantmaking process demands that we exercise a great deal of due diligence with all funding requests. Applicants should be aware that this process can take anywhere from 6 to 24 months from the time we receive an initial inquiry until a grant is approved.
We strive to understand the unique combination of needs and the potential for positive change in each community we are asked to support. From there we must assess each request’s alignment with our place-based and program area criteria.
In giving direction to the grants program, Cowell's board of directors seeks balance among our vision and grantmaking strategy, the limits of available dollars and staff resources, and our desire to respond to new opportunities. Striking that balance is challenging, and each year we learn about more projects and more communities than we have the resources to support.
We want our dollars to go as far as possible and that is why we have chosen a complementary, place-based strategy. Our program areas are designed to complement one another within each community we serve, providing support on a number of levels for low-income children and families.
We ask that potential applicants carefully review the details of where we fund and what we fund and then seriously consider whether the aims and demands of Cowell's approach match your community, your organization and your project.
