Finding and Sustaining Funding

Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency

The Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) serves as the justice planning and policymaking agency for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The PCCD offers the grant funding for violence intervention and prevention programs. Funding programs include the Violence Intervention and Prevention (VIP), Building Opportunities Through Out-of-School Time (BOOST), as well as the Byrne State Crisis Intervention Program (SCIP). See the PCCD database for state grants across Pennsylvania, active funding announcements and funding and grants process for up-to-date information on the types of grants, how to apply, and deadlines. The PPCD also has a grants dashboard that provides an interactive map with information on the grants awarded since 2012.

Philadelphia Foundation

The Philadelphia Foundation is a philanthropic organization that invests in the areas of Arts & Culture, Education, Health & Medical, LGBTQ, Human Services, and Our Community. The Philadelphia Foundation supports nonprofits with Special Initiative Grants, and initiated in 2026 their grant program focused on advancing economic mobility by enhancing workforce development. Subscribe to their newsletter at the bottom of their homepage to keep up to date on their funding program opportunities.

Strides for Peace

Strides for Peace is a nonprofit that raises unrestricted support and visibility for community-based organizations working to prevent gun violence. Through its Race Against Gun Violence platform, the organization brings together local partners, donors, and community members to support violence prevention work, and its national expansion includes a summertime Philadelphia race and fundraising effort to benefit local organizations.

William Penn Foundation

The William Penn Foundation offers grant funding in five program areas, Arts & Culture, Children & Families, Democracy & Civic Initiatives, Environment & Public Space, and Workforce Training and Services. Subscribe to their newsletters to keep up to date on their funding opportunities.

Workforce Training & Services

The Workforce Training & Services at the William Penn Foundation is grant program to support individuals in areas that typical workforce development programs cannot, including childcare, transportation, clearing justice system records, housing, and more. The workforce training services portfolio is particularly interested in supporting programs serving individuals ages 16 to 24 who are not in school and not working. See the Foundation’s framework for grant award decisions and their press releases and news for more information on the grant program.

Nonprofit Center

The Nonprofit Center at La Salle University helps nonprofit organizations build capacity through trainings, consulting, networking, and other support services. Subscribe to their newsletters to stay up to date on programs, resources, and opportunities relevant to nonprofit leaders and staff.

Black Feminist Fund

The Black Feminist Fund is a nonprofit that supports organizations led by Black women, girls, and gender-diverse people. The Black Feminist Fund offers grant opportunities for organizations and initiatives that work from a Black feminist perspective and who center community needs.

Borealis Philanthropy

Borealis Philanthropy is a nonprofit that is a social justice philanthropic intermediary focused on connecting funders to grassroots movements. Borealis funds five pillars: 1) race, gender, and disability justice; 2) media, journalism, and narrative change; 3) Movement infrastructure; 4) Economic justice and inclusion; 5) Community safety and justice.

Candid

Candid is a nonprofit that has searchable databases, tools, and research reports on nonprofits and foundations. You can search for funders by issue area and geography with a monthly membership cost, although free access is available through the Free Library of Philadelphia. Subscribe to their newsletter to keep up to date on their programs, services, and resources.

Grants.Gov

Grants.Gov is U.S. federal government hosted website with a searchable database on federally funded grants, grant policies, a list of grant making agencies, a support center and more. Grants.Gov hosts the “How to…” blog series and an X social media account that covers a range of topics related to federal funding and opportunities. Subscribe to their email updates on funding opportunities in general and for saved searchers.

GrantWatch

GrantWatch is a subscription-based service website that hosts a searchable database of grants from private and public foundations, corporations, charities, and governments at the local, state, and federal level. Basic grant information is free, however, detailed information requires a membership. GrantWatch also hosts a searchable foundation directory and their free Grant News blog series. Subscribe to the Grant News email newsletter at the bottom of the page.

Instrumentl

Instrumentl is a subscription-based service that uses AI-powered algorithms to analyze funder profiles to compare with and find potential matches to organizations seeking funding. Instrumental offers a free trial of their services. Instrumentl has searchable grant databases and a foundations directory. Subscribe to their email newsletter for up-to-date information on grant writing guides, workshops, free resources, and more.

Movement Voter Project

The Movement Voter Project is a nonprofit that funds local organizing and movement-building groups through mutual fund models. Movement Voter Project grantmaking supports projects that focus on community voice, civic engagement, or local policy advocacy connected to public safety. They are an option for organizations with advocacy components.

Office of Justice Programs

The Office of Justice Programs is the grantmaking, research, and statistics arm of the U.S. Department of Justice focused on criminal justice, juvenile justice, victim services, and public safety. OJP houses six main program offices: the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), National Institute of Justice (NIJ), Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), Office for Victims of Crime (OVC), and the SMART Office (Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking). OJP’s funding opportunities page lists current open opportunities and links to the full notice of funding opportunity.

For CVI program funding, the three OJP offices that are usually most relevant are BJA, OJJDP, and OVC. Grant solicitations from NIJ are focused on research (as opposed to practice) and are very relevant if you are working with an evaluator or plan to have your program evaluated.

OJP has a grants-specific website called JustGrants that hosts webinars and various resources about their grants with particular emphasis on preparing and managing DOJ-related proposals. Through this portal both award applicants and grant recipients can access training resources and user support options and find answers to frequently asked questions.