Best Buy Foundation

OVERVIEW: The Best Buy Foundation funds both national and community organizations that teach technology skills to teens. While the foundation recognizes many ways to provide these skills, including arts-related and multi-disciplinary approaches, it prioritizes STEM education. 

IP TAKE: Some past grantees advise that the application process may be laborious and lacking in transparency, and that applicants based in the Twin Cities area may be shown preferential treatment. This is not the most accessible funder in the STEM education space, despite its corporate sister’s investment in technology.

PROFILE: The Best Buy Foundation is the philanthropic branch of the consumer electronics big box store, Best Buy Co., Inc. It seeks to “open the door to opportunity with technology training and tools that transform underserved teens from consumers to creators – a new generation of engineers, entrepreneurs, teachers, designers and dreamers.” The foundation funds national and community grants and a grant exclusive to Minneapolis.

Grants for STEM Education, College Readiness, Work and Opportunity

Best Buy’s National Grants provide awards for its Career Pathways program, which aims to provide teenagers with a “bridge to success through mentoring, career readiness preparation and internships.” Eligible organizations are 501(c)(3)s with established out-of-school time programming, or programming with a “proven track record” serving teenagers. Best Buy will only fund program-specific support rather than general operating support. The Geek Squad signature programs consist of camps for teens that teach coding, film production, photography, 3D design and digital music. New grantseekers should consult Best Buy’s Eligibility Quiz to determine whether they qualify. Past national grantees include Operation Hope and the Clubhouse Network, both of which provide outside-of-school learning opportunities for teenagers. 

Community Grants support nonprofits working locally and regionally for K-12 STEM education. Amounts average between $5,000 and $10,000. Eligible organizations must be a public or nonprofit community-based organization. (The foundation cites community centers, schools and libraries as examples.) Applicants must first take an Eligibility Quiz here.

Through its Twin Cities Fund, the foundation provides a community grant exclusively for Minneapolis, the location of Best Buy’s corporate headquarters.

Grants for Music

The Best Buy Foundation seeks to provide underserved student populations with “hands-on access” to technology education and tools that set them up for future success. The foundation envisions inspiring and preparing “a new generation of engineers, entrepreneurs, teachers, designers, and dreamers” and looks for programs that “transform underserved teens from consumers to creators.” Music/audio production is explicitly on the list, though the foundation states that the list is also just a starting point for ideas.

One past National Grant recipient with a music focus is the Grammy Foundation, which was awarded $200,000. Past Community Grant recipients who engage deeply in music programming include Grace in Action (Detroit, MI, Carolina Studios (Charleston, SC, Joy of Music Youth Music School (Knoxville, TN), Vocalessence (Minneapolis, MN), CHORDS Enrichment Youth Program (San Bernardino, CA); and Intercultural L.A. Samba Kids (Long Beach, CA).

Grants for Journalism

The foundation looks for programs that “transform underserved teens from consumers to creators.” While journalism isn’t explicitly on that list, digital photography is, as is audio production, videography, website design, and mobile app development. The foundation stresses that its list is just a starting point for ideas. Past Best Buy grantees engaged in journalism include Common Sense Media and Youth Radio ($125,000). Past Community Grant recipients include the Children’s Media Project and Street Level Youth Media, among others.

Important Grant Details:

National grants may range from $100,000 to $200,000, while Community grants typically range from $5,000 to $10,000. The foundation “prefers” those cities to include Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, Jersey City, New York, Miami, Minneapolis/St. Paul, San Antonio, San Francisco/Bay area, Seattle, Washington D.C. and others within 50 miles of a Best Buy location.

Best Buy grant opportunities are open to all who wish to apply. Application deadlines occur throughout the year, and new grantseekers should consult the FAQs and Guidelines pages before applying.

PEOPLE:

Search for staff contact info and bios in PeopleFinder (paid subscribers only).

LINKS: