Youth-Led Social Justice Mini-Grant
In April 2021, the Seattle City Council passed Ordinance 126237 to invest $1M in supportive programs and initiatives that address hate crimes and bias aimed at the Asian American and Pacific Islander Community in Seattle. This ordinance allocated $100K toward Seattle youth as grants to fund projects that focus on issues of racism, discrimination, and bias. The Department of Education and Early Learning (DEEL) is thrilled to open this opportunity and accept applications for the Youth-Led Social Justice Mini-Grant. This grant will support youth to develop and implement their own social justice initiatives related to Asian-American Pacific Islander (AAPI), Black, Indigenous People of Color (BIPoC), and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex and Asexual (LGBTQIA+) issues.
Who can apply, and for how much money?:
All youth ages 12-24 who live in Seattle are eligible to apply. Individuals and youth-led groups, such as school clubs, a student group, a community-based organization where a group of youth will lead the project, or a youth advisory council, are eligible to apply.
Applicants can request grants ranging from $500-$8,000.
Types of Eligible Projects:
This mini-grant will fund social justice projects that address hate, bias, and violence related to race, ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation. Specifically, this grant is intended to benefit Seattle's Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC), Asian-American Pacific Islander communities, and LGBTQIA+ communities. The target audience for funded projects can be Seattleites of any age, race, ethnicity, gender, or sexual orientation.
How will applicants be selected?
This grant is non-competitive, which means all applications that meet the eligibility requirements, are submitted on-time, and include all required materials will be funded unless there are more funds requested than available. If more funds are requested than available, DEEL will prioritize applications based on a combination of factors including:
Council districts served by the project
Social justice topic area
Whether a fiscal sponsor is identified
Who the target audience for the project is
Number of people served
How To Apply:
Eligible youth can choose to submit a mini-grant application in either a written or video format no later than October 25 at 5:00p.m. DEEL will notify successful applicants by Tuesday, November 16, 2021.
Mini-Grant Timeline:
Application Opens: September 14, 2021 Technical Assistance Session 1: October 5, 2021 5:00 pm Technical Assistance Session 2: October 8, 2021 5:00 pm Last Day to Submit Questions: October 15, 2021 by 5:00 p.m. Application Deadline: October 25, 2021 at 5:00 p.m. Application Review Period: October 29 - November 4, 2021 Notice Provided to Selected Applicants: Tuesday November 16, 2021
Full Mini-Grant Application For Individual Applicants - WORD - PDF
Full Mini-Grant Application For Organizations - WORD - PDF
For questions, please contact: DEELFunding@seattle.gov with "Youth-Led Social Justice Mini-Grant" in the subject line.
