Union Pacific Foundation
/OVERVIEW: Union Pacific Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Union Pacific Corporation and Union Pacific Railroad. It focuses on improving and enriching health, human services, and the overall quality of life for the 50-plus regions on the Union Pacific railway line. It supports safety, workforce development and community spaces, including arts and culture, in areas where its parent company operates. K-12 populations are served to varying degrees through all three funding areas.
IP TAKE: This is a somewhat accessible funder that accepts community grant applications from organizations first deemed eligible through a brief on-line survey. It remains proactive in finding partnerships, which suggests there’s some hope for collaboration here. Grantseekers will want to verify that they operate in one of the geographic areas served by the railroad. The foundation is reasonably responsive, but it may take time to hear back.
PROFILE: Originally established in 1959, Union Pacific Foundation is the philanthropic offspring of Union Pacific Corporation and Union Pacific Railroad. Based in Omaha, Nebraska, its Community Ties giving program seeks to “build safe, prosperous, and vibrant communities by investing in high-quality nonprofits and programs in the cities and towns in which we operate and our employees live and work.” The foundation accepts applications and makes local grants in the areas of safety, workforce development, and community spaces through its Union Pacific Foundation Local Grants program. Union Pacific also makes grants at the national level through the National and Regional Key Partnerships program; however, the national program does not accept unsolicited applications and consistently funds the same organizations annually.
Geographically, Union Pacific serves many communities in more than 50 cities/regions across the U.S. Grantseekers located in or west of the vertical geographic line of Milwaukee-Little Rock-New Orleans are likely to be on Union Pacific’s radar. Its system map is useful here.
Grants for Housing, Community Development, and Violence Prevention
Union Pacific supports community Development through its Community Spaces focus area, which is dedicated to “supporting the local economy by building and enhancing community spaces that contribute to the distinct identity of a city or town.” It prioritizes local programs that work to “create, sustain or expand upon artistic and cultural experiences,” “preserve and share the unique history of the local community,” “provide clean, safe, and positive outdoor recreational and/or educational opportunities,” “beautify neighborhoods and main street areas,” and “plan for, create or enhance unique spaces.” It also makes grants to national and regional partners whose programs “seek to ensure all citizens within [Union Pacific’s] operating communities have access to special places in the community that celebrate cultural diversity, artistic expression, [the] natural environment, and the social interactions that enrich our lives.”
The foundation’s Safety focus area also supports community development and seeks to help “communities prevent and prepare for accidents and emergencies, so residents get home safe at the end of each day.” It prioritizes funding for organizations and programs that “eliminate risks and improve safe access to community spaces through infrastructure improvements” and “provide homeless and at-risk populations access to safe shelter and services that ameliorate and prevent homelessness.” The Safety program also supports initiatives that “encourage safe behaviors and prevent accidents through education and awareness” and “prevent crime and incidents of violence through efforts that address the root causes of these issues and seek to mitigate their occurrence.” Finally, Union Pacific grants fund efforts to help residents and emergency responders better prepare and respond to incidents and emergencies.
Grants for Work and Economic Development
Union Pacific’s workforce development focus area works to ensure “citizens in [its] communities are able to achieve family-supporting careers like those offered by Union Pacific.” It prioritizes local programs that “put youth on the right track” by “building foundational skills, especially in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM),” “raise awareness of, educate and prepare young adults for middle skills jobs,” “up-skill the existing workforce by providing training and resources,” and “provide training and mentorship for nonprofit professionals.”
Grants for K-12 Education
The Union Pacific Foundation has funded K-12 projects under each of its funding initiatives. Through the safety initiative, the foundation has provided emergency and disaster preparedness training to teens. The workforce development initiative works to “raise awareness of, educate and prepare young adults for middle skill jobs.” The foundation’s community spaces program includes projects that “create, sustain or expand upon artistic and cultural experiences.” Past grantees include Junior Achievement of Utah and the Westside Community Schools Foundation in Omaha, Nebraska.
Grants for General Arts and Culture, Performing Arts, and Visual Arts
The Union Pacific Foundation has supported arts and culture across several genres and categories through its Community Spaces funding area, which is “committed to supporting the local economy by building and enhancing community spaces that contribute to the distinct identity of a city or town, creating destinations where families, businesses, and visitors want to be.” In addition to this, the foundation supports arts and culture groups with programs that “create, sustain or expand upon artistic and cultural experiences offered to a broad and diverse audience (e.g., museums, theaters, libraries, concerts, lectures, etc.),” “provide clean, safe, and positive outdoor recreational and/or educational opportunities that foster an appreciation for our natural environment,” and “beautify neighborhoods and main street areas in order to improve livability, promote commerce, and ultimately attract more residents, businesses, and visitors to town.” It also works to preserve and share a local community’s unique history, especially “projects related to train and/or Union Pacific history.”
Important Grant Details:
Grants range from $2,500 to $25,000. A sampling of recent grantees can be reviewed in its Community News Releases and Annual Reports, though these releases provide little information about grantmaking strategies beyond the names and locations of its grantees. Funding is restricted to organizations working in areas that are served by the foundation’s parent company. Schools cannot be funded directly. The Union Pacific Foundation does not accept applications for its partnership grants, but provides guidelines and eligibility information for its community grants on its website.
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