The Scherman Foundation Awards $5.5 M in Spring 2026 Grantmaking
Today, the Scherman Foundation is pleased to announce a total of $5.5 million in 2026 spring grants. Funding supports organizations in our core program areas—Arts, Democracy, Environmental and Climate Justice, Reproductive Justice, and Strengthening New York Communities. Organizations are also receiving support through the Response Fund and Future Fund, which were both launched in August 2025.
In total, Scherman made 33 core grants totaling $4,115,000 this cycle. Thirty organizations are receiving multi-year funding, including four-year grants, while three organizations are receiving final, one-year grants. More than 80% of the grants are for general operating support. The entire portfolio reflects Scherman’s ongoing commitment to funding partners focused on movement building and organizing while working at the intersection of racial justice and systemic change.
The Foundation is also supporting organizations through the two new funds created last year in response to growing attacks on and staggering suppression of civil society. The Response Fund recognizes the urgency of the current moment and provides special, one-time grants to organizations confronting these challenges and those facing intense scrutiny and attacks because of rising polarization and unfounded accusations of bias. The Future Fund supports organizations invested in movement-building that are seeding the innovation and adaptation required to create lasting, sustainable change. Seventeen organizations are receiving Response Fund support, totaling $1.09 million. The Future Fund is dispensing $300,000 to four organizations. This additional grantmaking is funded by an increase in annual payout—from 6% to 10%—that has been committed through 2026. With the current awards, Scherman has allocated $6.09 million of a $10 million, two-year pledge.
This is the last full grantmaking round for our current president Mike Pratt. “Over the past three decades, I have been emboldened by and in awe of the organizations Scherman supports,” Pratt said. “These grassroots groups and community-based organizations are creating stronger communities that build power for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. And they are shaping movements and addressing pressing issues while staying focused on fostering a future that is inclusive, equitable, and transformative.”
The full list of spring 2026 grantees is as follows:
Core Grants
Abrons Arts Center
Advocacy Institute
African Communities Together
ALIGN
Alliance for Quality Education
BAX/Brooklyn Arts Exchange
Brandworkers
Brooklyn Academy of Music, Inc.
Brooklyn Arts Council
California Latinas For Reproductive Justice
Community Action for Safe Apartments
Demos
GoVoteNYC
Hi-ARTS
Housing Justice for All
In Our Own Voice
Kentuckians for the Commonwealth
LatinoJustice PRLDEF
Make the Road NY
Medical Students for Choice
Museum Hue
National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum
National Partnership for New Americans
Neighborhoods First Fund
New York Civic Engagement Table
New York Live Arts
New York Renews
New York State Tenants & Neighbors
NYC Change Capital Fund
POWER
Pratt Center for Community Development
Pregones/Puerto Rican Travelling Theater
West Virginia FREE
Response Fund Grants
Advocacy Institute
African Communities Together
ALIGN
Alliance for Quality Education
Borough Councils Coop
Bronx River Alliance
California Latinas For Reproductive Justice
Engage New York
Museum Hue
LatinoJustice PRLDEF
New York Childcare Affordability Fund
New York Civic Engagement Table
New York Live Arts
New Yorkers for Culture and Arts
NYC Change Capital Fund
URGE
West Virginia FREE
Future Fund Grants
100% Democracy
Arts and Culture Initiative
Democracy & Power Innovation Fund
In Our Own Voice
###
The Scherman Foundation invests in the economic, political, and cultural transformation necessary for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color to reclaim and build power. Learn more about our vision and current grantmaking priorities.
While our Response and Future Fund grants are by invitation only, the LOI process for our Core Grantmaking will next open in February 2027. More information will be posted to our website. We invite funding partners and press to contact us with questions at info@scherman.org.