Mission
To rebuild and strengthen healthy and sustainable neighborhoods.
Priorities
- Geographies – Dorchester, Roxbury, and their contiguous neighborhoods in Boston, MA; the Hill and East End in Pittsburgh, PA. The Foundation occasionally considers grants in other neighborhoods in those cities and for city-wide projects.
- Strategies – Proposals with clear and measurable objectives to serve those geographies through one or more of these strategies:
- Economic Development – Expanding economic opportunity for low-income and disadvantaged people through workforce readiness and retention, entrepreneurship and business development, and wealth creation and asset development.
- Neighborhood Revitalization – Bringing hope, vitality, and economic benefits to disadvantaged areas through renovating or building new community centers, commercial areas, and public amenities.
- Partnerships – Working closely with other funders with deep connections to those geographies and/or finding opportunities to align work with the Foundation’s Youth Violence Prevention Initiative.
All proposals should closely connect with a neighborhood-approved vision or plan and/or regional economic development plan.
Types of Foundation Support
The Foundation considers proposals for programs, projects, facilities, and public amenities. The Foundation annually awards 3-6 grants. Grants for programs and projects range from $25,000 to $75,000. Grants for facilities and public amenities range from $50,000 to $250,000. The Foundation makes multi-year grants on a selective basis. The Foundation may act as early risk capital when the applicant shows a method for assessing risk, adapting along the way, and learning from any changes or failure.
2024 | 6 Grants | $300,000
How to Apply
Letter of Inquiry (LOI)
Special Initiatives – LOI Submission Dates
- May 2025 Meeting – submit between December 2, 2024 – January 17, 2025
To submit a letter of inquiry, use our online application system. This system allows you to easily add and update your organization’s profile and gives the Trustees and staff quick electronic access to your information. It also reduces paper use and postage costs for you and the Foundation.
Our New Applicant Help Guide should answer any questions you may have. If you are using assistive technologies to access our web site, or encounter other difficulties with the system, please don’t hesitate to contact us at 412-281-8734 or info@rahuntfdn.org from 8:00am-4:30pm eastern time during the work week.
You will receive an automatic acknowledgement that confirms your inquiry was submitted. We typically respond within 45 days from the submission date deadline to inform you if the Trustees will invite a full proposal.