OVERVIEW: Saint Luke’s Foundation supports health, health equity, racial equity, poverty, economic opportunities, housing and other social determinants of health in Ohio.
IP TAKE: Saint Luke’s Foundation describes itself as an organization that “deeply understands the influence of race and racism on health disparities and embraces its role in supporting initiatives that address these issues.” This accessible funder values relationships with its grantee partners and requires a “get acquainted” meeting before applying to its Board Grants program. This health legacy funder is interested in how race affects health equity, so make sure to include this concept in proposals. Schedule a meeting with a program officer to get the ball rolling, or reach out via the online form with general questions.
PROFILE: Established in 1997, the Saint Luke’s Foundation (SLF) is a health legacy foundation based in Cleveland, Ohio. The foundation’s history dates back to the founding of Cleveland General Hospital, the predecessor of Saint Luke’s Medical Center, in 1894. Saint Luke’s Medical Center became part of a for-profit partnership and created this foundation to extend the hospital’s charitable mission. The foundation aims to “achieve health equity by addressing social determinants of health for people in neighborhoods surrounding Saint Luke’s and throughout Cuyahoga County.” Its funding strategies and goals include local support for health and health equity, as well as racial equity, poverty, economic opportunities, and housing as important factors in health disparities.
Grants for Public Health and Access and Racial Justice
The Saint Luke’s Foundation’s work primarily focuses on health equity and addressing race as the single largest predictor of health inequity. SLF identifies the following social determinants of health as part of its mission: educational attainment, household financial stability, housing stability and safety, social connections, healthy eating and active living, policy and advocacy, and neighborhood of choice, which refers to place as it relates to the neighborhood surrounding Saint Luke’s.
Each of the St. Luke Foundation’s funding opportunities address disparities in community health, particularly with regard to race. Grants invest in closing the health equity gap and advocating for more just policies to fix broken health delivery systems.
Board Grants support long term projects and programs. Grants are $25,000 or more and require up to six months of review after an application is submitted.
Staff Discretionary Grants provide responsive support up to $25,000 and requests can be approved in as little as a week. These are reviewed on a rolling basis.
Community Grants provide up to $6,000 in support for projects initiated by local residents.
SLF provides general operating support, program support, capital support and capacity-building support.
Learn more about this funder’s local giving on the Partners page of the funder’s website.
Important Grant Details
Grants range between about $5,000 and $500,000. The most common amount is $20,000. The foundation gave over $7 million in grants in a previous year and held more than $195 million in assets. Grantmaking focuses on the Cleveland area of Ohio and Cuyahoga County.
This foundation accepts grant applications from nonprofits by invitation only.
Applicants need to schedule a meeting with a program officer to get started.
Applicants with an accepted proposal will be issued an application access code.
SLF requires invited grantseekers to use its online application system.
Direct general questions to the staff at 216-431-8010 or via online form.
PEOPLE:
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