The New York Community Trust - Grant Information & Application Details

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Quick Stats

Annual Giving: $200 million
Success Rate: Not publicly disclosed
Decision Time: 6 months
Grant Range: $5,000 - $200,000 (average $90,000)
Geographic Focus: New York City (five boroughs), Long Island, and Westchester County; some national and international programs

Contact Details

Website: www.nyct-cfi.org | https://thenytrust.org

Phone: 212-686-0010

Email: info@nyct-cfi.org

Regional Contacts:

NYC: Sheila R. Dinkins, sdinkins@thenytrust.org, (212) 686-0010 x554
Long Island: Marie C. Smith, msmith@thenytrust.org, (631) 450-4052
Westchester: Laura Rossi, lrossi@thenytrust.org, (914) 257-3521

Application Portal: proposals.nycommunitytrust.org

Overview

The New York Community Trust was established in 1924 as one of America's first community foundations, formed by 11 banks with an initial $1,000 gift from Rosebel G. Schiff. In 2024, the Trust celebrated its centennial year, marking 100 years of philanthropic impact. The organization manages approximately $3.5 billion in assets across more than 2,200 charitable funds and has awarded more than $5.8 billion to nonprofits since its founding. In 1931, the Trust established the nation's first donor-advised fund, fundamentally changing philanthropic giving. In 2024, the Trust made $203.9 million in grants to 10,546 organizations. President Amy Freitag, who joined in July 2022, leads the organization with a focus on collaboration and addressing complex urban challenges. The Trust's competitive grants program distributes approximately $50 million annually to nonprofits across three broad areas: Healthy Lives, Promising Futures, and Thriving Communities, with strong emphasis on K-12 education, housing and homelessness, civic engagement, environment, and work and economic opportunity.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

New York City Competitive Grants Program (Rolling)

Grant Range: $5,000 - $200,000 (average $90,000)
Annual Distribution: Approximately $50 million
Application Method: Rolling submissions through online Grantseeker Portal
Board Meetings: Five times annually (February, April, June, October, December)

Long Island Grants Program (Specified timeframes)

Grant Range: $15,000 - $25,000
Application Method: Apply through Grantseeker Portal during specified time frames

Westchester Grants Program (Specified timeframes)

Application Method: Apply through Grantseeker Portal during specified time frames

National and International Environment Program

Application Method: Letter of Interest (LOI) submitted during three-week windows in late February and late September
Note: The Trust accepts LOIs twice yearly through its portal

Heisman Trophy Youth Development Fund

Focus: Sports-based programs integrating physical activity with academic support and life skills
Geographic Scope: NYC, Long Island, Westchester, and Newark, NJ
Application Method: Annual Request for Proposals, typically in early spring
Recent Impact: Over $1.4 million awarded in 2023 to programs serving nearly 5,000 student-athletes

Priority Areas

The Trust organizes grantmaking across three themes:

Healthy Lives

Efficient, patient-focused, equitable health and behavioral health services
Services for elderly, blind or visually impaired, children and youth with disabilities, and people with developmental disabilities
Biomedical research
Animal welfare

Promising Futures

Youth development programs
Job training and placement
Educational equity and justice system reform
Hunger and homelessness alleviation
Family and child welfare services
Social work practice advancement

Thriving Communities

Accessibility
Arts, culture, and historic preservation
Civic affairs and civic engagement
Community development
Environment and climate resilience
Gender equity
Human justice (criminal justice reform, immigrant services)
Technical assistance for nonprofits

Areas of Strong Interest: K-12 education, housing and homelessness, civic engagement, environment, and work and economic opportunity

What They Don't Fund

Universal Exclusions:

Capital and building campaigns
Endowments
Equipment purchases
Individual applicants
Religious purposes
General operating support or routine operational expenses
Deficit financing
Conferences and meetings (generally)
Events, exhibitions, performances (generally)

Long Island Additional Exclusions:

Camps
Performances
Pre-school programs
Private schools
Sponsorships
Summer programs

Other Restrictions:

The Trust rarely supports projects for more than three years
Does not support ongoing projects
Administrative expenses capped at 5% for universities and affiliated fiscal sponsors
For nonprofits under $4 million budget, up to 25% administrative expenses may be permitted case-by-case

Governance and Leadership

President

Amy Freitag joined The New York Community Trust as its fourth president in July 2022. Before joining the Trust, she served as executive director of the J.M. Kaplan Fund, where she initiated the J.M.K. Innovation Prize and led grantmaking in criminal justice reform, climate change, democracy, and historical conservation.

Freitag has emphasized collaboration and addressing complex challenges: "It is only through the power of collaboration and community that we can act at the scale demanded by the awesome challenges ahead." She describes her role as connecting "some of the most generous people, our donors, to people who are solving some of our most complex challenges."

Distribution Committee (Board)

The Trust operates with a unique governance structure designed to represent diverse community interests. Six members are nominated by civic authorities representing the public:

One by the Mayor of New York City
One by the Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
One by the Chairman of the Partnership for New York City
One by the Chairman of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts
One by the President of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York
One by the Chairman of the New York Academy of Medicine

The Distribution Committee selects six additional members to serve.

Recent Board Members include:

Michael A. Marquez (incoming president of Bessemer Trust, April 2025)
Mariana Campero (senior associate at Center for Strategic and International Studies)
Jamie Drake
Judith O. Rubin
Jane E. Salmon, M.D.
Stephen C. Robinson
Obaid (Obi) Z. Khan
Ann Unterberg
Bruce M. Holley

Application Process & Timeline

How to Apply

NYC Competitive Grants Program:

Read guidelines to ensure fit with Trust's programs
Complete Proposal Cover Sheet on the Grantseeker Portal (proposals.nycommunitytrust.org)
Submit full proposal in hard copy, postmarked within one business day of online submission
Include brief cover letter on organization letterhead signed by paid staff head

Required Materials:

Cover letter confirming organizational commitment
Narrative proposal (maximum 5 numbered pages) including:
- Organization background (mission, major activities, credentials)
- Brief statement of public policy or systemic service delivery problem
- Clear, realistic activities and outcomes
- Project budget detailing full costs (salaries, benefits, materials, travel, overhead)
- Evidence of organizational expertise and relevant experience
- Input from historically underserved populations served
- Demonstration of stable governance and finances

Application Portal: No specific connection or relationship required. As the Trust states: "Every proposal they receive goes through the same review process." Trust staff meet weekly to review all new proposals.

Special Programs:

Environment Program: Submit Letter of Interest during designated windows
Heisman Trophy Fund: Apply through annual RFP (typically early spring)
Long Island and Westchester: Apply during specified timeframes on portal

Decision Timeline

Review Process:

Trust staff meet weekly to review all new proposals
Five board meetings annually: February, April, June, October, December
Program staff cannot promise that any proposal will be considered at a particular board meeting

Notification: Applicants are notified of decisions via email within a six-month timeframe

Success Rates

The Trust does not publicly disclose application success rates or total number of applications received. In 2023, the Trust made 2,408 grant awards totaling $193,074,024.

Reapplication Policy

Organizations that have been turned down can apply again. Each proposal is considered on its own merits. However, the Trust explicitly discourages organizations from resubmitting the same proposal that was previously declined. Applicants should develop new proposals addressing different aspects of their work or revised approaches.

Application Success Factors

What the Trust Values

Systemic Impact: Program officers prioritize projects demonstrating "systemic or sector-wide improvement" and "projects that promote change across a system or sector." The Trust favors initiatives that go beyond serving individual beneficiaries to addressing root causes.

Advocacy and Policy Change: The Trust supports "advocacy efforts that articulate a set of specific goals and strategies to achieve them." Strong advocacy components with measurable policy objectives strengthen applications.

Project Grants Over Operating Support: The Trust tends to support project grants rather than general operating support, focusing on specific initiatives with clear objectives and timelines.

Data and Evaluation: The Trust values "data gathering to prove program value." Applications should include clear metrics and evaluation plans.

Community Input: Program officers look for "input from historically underserved populations served." Demonstrate meaningful engagement with the communities you serve.

Organizational Capacity: The Trust assesses "stable governance and finances" as well as "organizational expertise and relevant experience." Strong boards (minimum 4 members, maximum 1 paid) and financial health matter.

Examples of Funded Projects

Immigration and Legal Aid (2024): The Pro Se Plus Project—a coalition including African Communities Together, Catholic Migration Services, Central American Legal Assistance, Masa, New York Legal Assistance Group, and Venezuelans and Immigrants Aid—trained people to represent themselves in immigration court, holding 90 community presentations reaching over 6,000 people and training more than 1,800 advocates.

Disability Employment (2024): AHRC's Partnership for Inclusive Internships placed New Yorkers with disabilities in paid internships at city and state agencies in fields such as data entry, architecture, and public policy. The city allocated funding to expand and incorporate the project into workforce development programming.

Housing Advocacy (2024): LiveOn NY's advocacy led the city to allocate $2 billion towards affordable housing, including for older New Yorkers, in its 2024 budget.

Worker Rights (December 2024, $180,000 each):

Adhikaar for Human Rights and Social Justice: Improving conditions for Nepali women in nanny and nail salon industries
New Immigrant Community Empowerment: Creating legal team to help Latine immigrant workers understand their rights in construction, restaurant, and cleaning industries

Workforce Development (December 2024):

Emma's Torch ($100,000): Helping immigrants build careers in the food industry
Grace Institute of New York ($100,000): Expanding workforce program for low-income women

Arts Accessibility (December 2024):

Museum of the Moving Image ($100,000): Making the Queens museum accessible for patrons who are blind or have low vision
Summertime Gallery ($150,000): Expanding residency program for artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities

Education (October 2024):

Fund for Public Schools ($600,000): Training elementary school teachers in evidence-based reading instruction
Internationals Network for Public Schools ($150,000): Preparing high schools to meet needs of newly arrived immigrant students

Environmental Justice (2024): Urban Justice Center's Street Vendor Project helping street food vendors adopt environmentally responsible practices, including connecting vendors to electric grid and expanding battery use as alternatives to fossil fuel generators.

Language and Terminology

The Trust uses specific language that applicants should mirror:

"Systemic change" and "systems change"
"Sector-wide improvement"
"Policy change" and "advocacy"
"Healthy Lives, Promising Futures, and Thriving Communities"
"Under-resourced and underrepresented communities"
"Historically underserved populations"
"Equity" and "equitable access"

Common Pitfalls to Avoid

Resubmitting rejected proposals: The Trust explicitly discourages this
Focusing solely on direct services: Without demonstrating systemic impact or scalability
Requesting general operating support: The Trust prefers project-specific funding
Lacking community input: Proposals should demonstrate engagement with served populations
Insufficient evaluation plans: Include clear metrics and data collection strategies
Administrative expense concerns: For organizations under $4 million, be prepared to justify expenses above 25%; for universities, stay within 5% cap

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

Emphasize systemic impact: Frame your project in terms of systems change, policy influence, or sector-wide improvement rather than solely individual beneficiaries. The Trust prioritizes work that addresses root causes and can scale.
Lead with advocacy and policy: If your project includes advocacy components with specific goals and strategies, feature these prominently. The Trust actively seeks to support policy change efforts.
No connections required: Every proposal goes through the same review process regardless of relationships. Focus on the strength of your proposal, not networking.
Project-specific proposals work best: Frame requests as specific projects with clear objectives, timelines, and budgets rather than general operating support. Show how the project advances your mission distinctively.
Build evaluation into your budget: Allocate resources for data collection and demonstrate how you'll measure systemic impact. "Data gathering to prove program value" strengthens applications.
Demonstrate community engagement: Show meaningful input from the populations you serve, particularly if they are under-resourced or historically underserved. Community voice matters.
Time your submission strategically: With five board meetings annually and a six-month decision window, submit early in the year for consideration in multiple board cycles. Rolling applications allow flexibility.
If rejected, develop new approaches: Don't resubmit the same proposal. Each reapplication should present a different project or substantially revised approach demonstrating you've learned from the initial decision.
Long Island applicants: Note the smaller grant range ($15,000-$25,000) and different exclusions (camps, performances, pre-schools, private schools, sponsorships, summer programs).

References

The New York Community Trust Official Website. "For Nonprofits." https://thenytrust.org/nonprofits/ (Accessed January 2025)
The New York Community Trust. "What We Do (& Don't) Fund." https://thenytrust.org/nonprofits/what-we-fund-apply-for-grant/ (Accessed January 2025)
The New York Community Trust. "Nonprofit FAQs." https://thenytrust.org/nonprofits/nonprofit-faqs/ (Accessed January 2025)
The New York Community Trust. "Mission, Vision & Values." https://thenytrust.org/about/ (Accessed January 2025)
The New York Community Trust. "Annual Reports & Financials." https://thenytrust.org/about/financials-annual-reports/ (Accessed January 2025)
The New York Community Trust. "Governance." https://thenytrust.org/about/governance/ (Accessed January 2025)
The New York Community Trust. "History." https://thenytrust.org/about/history/ (Accessed January 2025)
The New York Community Trust. "Amy Freitag - President." https://thenytrust.org/staff/amy-freitag/ (Accessed January 2025)
The New York Community Trust. "Community wins: Our 2024 Impact Report." https://thenytrust.org/news/community-wins-our-2024-impact-report/ (Accessed January 2025)
The New York Community Trust. "The New York Community Trust Announces $8M in Grants to Meet Critical Community Needs." https://thenytrust.org/news/the-new-york-community-trust-announces-8m-in-grants-to-meet-critical-community-needs/ (Accessed January 2025)
The New York Community Trust. "The New York Community Trust announces $11.5M in grants to meet critical community needs." https://thenytrust.org/news/the-new-york-community-trust-announces-11-5m-in-grants-to-meet-critical-community-needs/ (Accessed January 2025)
The New York Community Trust. "The Trust Names Three New Board Members." https://thenytrust.org/news/the-new-york-community-trust-names-three-new-board-members/ (Accessed January 2025)
Inside Philanthropy. "Seven Questions for Amy Freitag, the New York Community Trust's New President." https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2022/9/27/seven-questions-for-amy-freitag-the-new-york-community-trusts-new-president (Accessed January 2025)
The New York Community Trust. "The Heisman Trophy Trust." https://thenytrust.org/the-heisman-trophy-trust/ (Accessed January 2025)
The New York Community Trust. "Environment - National and International." https://thenytrust.org/grant-funding/national-and-international-environment/ (Accessed January 2025)
Instrumentl. "The New York Community Trust | 990 Report." https://www.instrumentl.com/990-report/new-york-community-trust-5520c93d-916b-4b66-819e-703e32e677b5 (Accessed January 2025)
Inside Philanthropy. "New York Community Trust." https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/find-a-grant/grants-n/new-york-community-trust (Accessed January 2025)
Wikipedia. "The New York Community Trust." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_New_York_Community_Trust (Accessed January 2025)

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