Woods Fund of Chicago
/OVERVIEW: The Woods Fund of Chicago is the Chicago-exclusive branch of the Woods Charitable Fund, which focuses on the donor's hometown of Lincoln, Nebraska. Woods grants are awarded for public policy, anti-racism and community development organizations in the Chicago metropolitan area.
IP TAKE: The bulk of this funder’s grants go toward community organizing and policy development. Woods grants are fairly small yet accessible to nonprofits in the city of Chicago that work in its areas of interest.
PROFILE: Established in 1941, the Woods Fund of Chicago is a family foundation based in Chicago. Frank H. Woods, its original founder, was an attorney and telecommunications executive. The Woods Family was originally from Lincoln, Nebraska, and later moved to Chicago, and the fund was established to serve both locations, with a focus on children, families and civil rights. The foundation aims to promote “social, economic, and racial justice through the support of community organizing and public policy advocacy that engages people that are most impacted.”
The Woods Fund divides its grantmaking into core grants and special grantmaking opportunities. Core grants generally support community organizing, public policy advocacy and projects that represent and integrated approach to community organizing and policy development. Its special grantmaking program supports capacity building at organizations, social justice, arts programs and rapid response to pressing situations in Chicago’s communities. Within these parameters, the fund has supported organizations working in the areas of poverty alleviation, affordable housing, criminal justice reform, early childhood education, government accountability, immigration reform, income supports, juvenile justice, neighborhood safety, public school reform, workers' rights and workforce development.
Past grantees include the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, Southsiders Organized for Unity and Liberation and Communities United. View lists of past grantees by program area on the funder’s grantmaking page. Proposals that benefit Chicago's South Side and that advocate for public education reform tend to fare well with Woods.
Important Grant Details
Woods grants in Chicago often range from $10,000 to $60,000, and the fund gives out about 100 of them each year. The foundation accepts unsolicited letters of inquiry, and the board awards grants two times per year. Grantseekers must submit forms via the online grants application system. Direct general questions to the staff at 312-782-2698 or via online form.
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