Community Grants Program (CGP)


Funded by our endowment to support our priority areas


The Denver Foundation is pleased to invite qualified organizations to apply for funding from the Community Grants Programs (CGP). Though The Denver Foundation prioritizes funding to support BIPOC-led organizations, we will take into account each organization’s experiences, learnings, and progress regarding constituent and BIPOC leadership on its staff and board.

We prioritize improving the lives of historically oppressed people living in Metro Denver, with a particular focus on people who live in low-income communities and BIPOC communities. We seek to reduce racial and ethnic disparities and economic disparities. We support organizations that share and demonstrate our core values of racial equity and community leadership.

Grant awards typically range from $20,000 to $50,000.

ELIGIBILITY

  • Your work must be aligned with The Denver Foundation’s values.
  • Your organization must be a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization or have a 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsor.
  • Your organization must be located in the seven-county Metro Denver region that addresses one or more of the goals described in this document (and this document in Spanish).

Grant awards given in previous years are no guarantee of future grant awards.

Not eligible for funding: 

  • Capital campaigns
  • Building endowments or reserve funds
  • Membership campaigns
  • Sponsorships
  • Retroactive funding, i.e., activities, projects, or programs that will be completed before funding becomes available
  • Debt retirement
  • Grants to individuals (please see the Strengthening Neighborhoods program for opportunities)
  • Grants for re-granting purposes
  • Grants for medical, scientific, or academic research
  • Grants that further political doctrine or religious activities
  • Grants to parochial or religious schools
  • Scholarships (for more information, please visit our website)
  • The Denver Foundation does not fund organizations or programs that discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), physical or mental disability, pregnancy status, body type, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, except to serve a historically disadvantaged group.

Additional information

The Community Grants Program has two grant cycles.

  • The spring cycle applications are open from January 15- March 1.
  • The fall cycle applications are open from June 14- August 1.

We do not fund proposals that fall outside of our priority areas. Please check all that apply when filling out the application form. For information on other funding opportunities with different priorities, search our funding opportunities webpage.