Weingart Foundation
/OVERVIEW: The Weingart Foundation makes unrestricted grants to established nonprofits in the areas of Housing and Homelessness, Immigrants and Refugees, and Strengthening Nonprofit Effectiveness. It funds throughout Los Angeles but prefers South Los Angeles and Southeast Los Angeles.
IP TAKE: Since 2016, the Weingart Foundation has conducted all of its grantmaking through the lens of racial equity and immigration. According to former president Miguel Santana, the foundation current strategy hopes to reconcile the foundation’s philanthropic mission with the fact that its founder’s wealth was built in large part off of planned communities where people of color were not permitted to purchase homes. Weingart's grantmaking strategy is to give a substantial — but not overwhelmingly large — grant to as many groups as it can each year. So while nonprofits should not rely on Weingart to be the primary funding source for an organization's program, grant seekers have a good chance at receiving some of the foundation's funding if they are in Los Angeles and can get on the foundation’s radar. But Weingart makes lots of small to midsize grants, so grant seekers should not expect major funding. It prefers to give grants in the form of unrestricted operating support.
PROFILE: The Weingart Foundation was created by Ben and Stella Weingart in 1951 after they made their fortune in the real estate business. Unlike many wealthy philanthropists in the city, Ben Weingart began life in poverty as an orphan with an entrepreneurial spirit. Weingart was best known as the man who created the first planned city in Southern California, Lakewood. In an area once filled with sugar-beet and bean fields, Weingart built a post-World War II era city with 18,000 new homes, one of the region's first shopping malls, and community service centers. Not only did Weingart's creation transform Los Angeles into one of the country's most prominent urban centers, but it also served as a model for suburban planning around the United States. The foundation’s mission is to “partner with communities across Southern California to advance racial, social, and economic justice for all.” Weingart’s Areas of Interest include Housing Justice, Immigrant/Refugee Rights and Integration, and what it calls Strengthening Nonprofit Effectiveness. It funds in the Southern California counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura, but prioritizes support for groups in South Los Angeles and Southeast Los Angeles.
Grants for Housing and Homelessness and Racial Justice
The Weingart Foundation’s Housing Justice grants support groups and organizations that advance “the vision where every Southern Californian has a safe and affordable home.” Its grants in this area seek to support projects that benefit “BIPOC tenants and people experiencing homelessness,” “building community-based affordable and supportive housing,” and “providing critical services.” It also works to promote systems change to address “systemic racism and anti-Black racism” at the heart of the housing and homelessness crisis.
Grants for Immigrants and Refugees
The foundation’s Immigrant/Refugee Rights and Integration grantmaking works to support organizations and projects “that work with these communities to protect and secure their own rights, as well as to build a region of full inclusion and belonging for all.” Its funding in this area seeks to support groups seeking to build “power and [provide] critical services (including safety net, legal, and language access services) in BIPOC immigrant communities.” It also supports “systemic efforts to repair damage from harmful immigration policies,” and advocates for the inclusion of immigrants “regardless of status.”
Other Grantmaking Opportunities
Weingart’s grants for Strengthening Nonprofit Effectiveness fund “direct nonprofit capacity building support through a number of targeted efforts,” such as training, consulting, workshops, and various capacity-building resources. Additionally, while not a stated priority, Weingart makes grants in the areas of health, education, and human services across Los Angeles. In the health area, Weingart has funded everything from nursing homes to substance abuse programs and rehabilitation facilities. In education, the foundation supports all levels of schooling, from preschool to master's program providers. And in human services, violence prevention programs, homeless shelters, and youth training organizations see the most support. However, Weingart never funds programs for research, environmental advocacy, religious programs, consumer interest groups, or political activities.
IMPORTANT GRANT DETAILS:
The Weingart Foundation’s grants generally range from $25,000 to $200,000, but may go into the millions for select grantees. Grantseekers may search the foundation’s grants database for more information on past grantees.
Weingart makes grants in the Southern California counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura, but prioritizes support for groups in South Los Angeles and Southeast Los Angeles.
Weingart gives unrestricted operating support wherever possible and prioritizes support for BIPOC-led grassroots organizations or “coalitions rooted in and committed to uplifting communities most impacted by systemic racism.”
Grantmaking is by invitation only and the foundation does not accept unsolicited requests for funding. However, interested parties may reach out to its program officers with questions.
Further inquiries may be directed to info@weingartfnd.org.
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