Women’s Fellowship Program Offers Win-Win Approach to Grantmaking

3/6/2017

The New York Women's Foundation partnered with the YWCA of the City of New York to enlist a diverse group of young women to award grants to various nonprofits. Girls IGNITE Grantmaking Fellowship, a youth-oriented grantmaking program, intends to tap into the minds of these young women to find out which programs stand to have the biggest impact on their communities. Fifteen girls, ages 12 to 17, were selected from a variety of sources, including public and private schools, foster-care agencies, religious institutions, health centers, and LGBTQ organizations, to properly reflect the widely diverse New York City demographic.

The program requires fellows to meet every two weeks for nine months to learn about community leadership and the basics of philanthropy. They are also responsible for requesting proposals, conducting site visits, and selecting the grant recipients. Additionally, each girl will personally receive a $1,000 stipend, of which they are required to donate 10 percent back to charity. Jennifer Agmi, director of programs at The New York Women's Foundation, says that by taking this unique approach to grantmaking they are trying to "shift the face of philanthropy." Not only are they hoping to improve use of funds, they are also equipping these young women with leadership tools to take with them back to their communities. LEARN MORE

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