9 Princeton Nonprofits Get Grants To Address Community Needs

PRINCETON, NJ — The Princeton Area Community Foundation has awarded $2.4 million in Community Impact Grants to more than 50 local nonprofits working to address community needs, including education and workforce development, food security homelessness, and mental health.

Nine among them are nonprofit organizations from Princeton.

“We are grateful to our nonprofit partners for their tireless commitment to the region’s neighbors and communities,” Nelida Valentin, Community Foundation Vice President of Grants and Programs said in a statement. “As we work to deepen our focus on strengthening the philanthropic impact we can make, we hope these grants provide meaningful support and encourage greater collaboration and partnerships so that everyone can thrive.”

The Burke Foundation and J&J have partnered with the Community Foundation to provide Community Impact Grants, which support local nonprofits to improve the lives of people living in poverty in the Greater Mercer County region. The grants are also funded by generous contributions from local donors who want to make an impact in our region.

The Community Foundation helps connect people to the causes they care about most.

This round of funding marks the first time two-year grants have been awarded through the Community Impact Grants program. Multi-year grants help organizations anticipate financial needs and plan future budgets.

In addition to these grants, earlier this year the Community Foundation awarded $500,000 to more than two dozen nonprofits for summer initiatives through the Community Impact Grants Fund.

Here are the organizations that received the grants:

1. Center for Modern Aging in Princeton got $38,200 for its Expansion of Diversity/Equity/Inclusion/Belonging & Combatting Ageism work; the project aims to grow its organizational knowledge and capacity in diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) and to programmatically expand its reach among non-English speaking older adults and older adults from the LGBTQIA+ community. This initiative will also combat ageism through innovative intergenerational programs.
2. YWCA of Princeton received $35,000 in operating support that the Y plans to use to support technology upgrades, including new computers and databases.
3. Princeton Nursery School, got a 2-year $85,000 grant to help the school implement its 3-year strategic plan that calls for an expansion of its educational programming for low- to moderate-income adults, staff, and the local community, fundraising for sustainability, and communications to stakeholders. The operating support will allow the school to fund teacher salaries and its meal and enrichment programs, while implementing the strategic plan without dramatic impacts on its operating budget.
4. Princeton-Blairstown Center, got $15,000, for its Venture Out environmental education initiative. The high-quality, 30-hour residential program, offered at no charge to Trenton middle school students, includes inquiry-based, hands-on environmental education and social-emotional learning sessions to help students engage more deeply with science.
5. Stretto Youth Chamber Orchestra, based in Trenton and Princeton, received $25,000, for its Trinity Strings’ Commitment to Equity; its immersive musical experiences are focused on removing barriers to inclusion, particularly for low-income families. Funding will support scholarships, instruments, and staff training for high school/college-age students.
6. Young Audiences Arts for Learning NJ & Eastern Pa., Princeton, got a two-year $100,000 grant to deliver the Arts Impact Initiative at five Trenton schools; At each partner school, program development is community-driven and utilizes a collaborative planning process with educators, artists, and YA staff to design a suite of programs that meet school, classroom, and student learning needs.
7. Jewish Family & Children’s Service of Greater Mercer County, Princeton, received $50,000, for its Brick and Mortar and Mobile Food Pantries; during a 12-month period, the organization distributed 16,135 bags of healthy groceries – 2,362 onsite and 13,773 from the mobile pantry via 392 distribution stops.
8. Send Hunger Packing Princeton, got $40,000, for its Produce Distribution Program, which provides three to six pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables to food insecure families each week. The nonprofit provides 170 to 200 packages a week, year-round from the Philadelphia Farm Market.
9. HiTOPS, Princeton, received a 2-year $33,830 grant for its ABCs-Trenton program that is run in partnership with Trenton public schools; the program is designed to create and support affirming school communities, ensuring that students, staff and families are knowledgeable, skilled, and comfortable with the essential tenets of positive sexual health education, cultures, and identities.

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