Grants

Grantee Reporting Requirements

Interim Reports

Multi-year grantees must submit interim reports for every year of the grant life-cycle, and a final report at the end of the grant cycle. Interim reports are due three months prior to the yearly anniversary. Reporting dates will be included in the grant contract. In addition to the narrative report, please submit an update on accomplishments to date on the current year’s accountability plan and a revised accountability plan for the upcoming grant year.

Single-year grantees who are considering applying for renewal funding should contact program staff three to six months before the end of the current grant term. If invited to reapply, a report on progress toward the goals, objectives, accountability plan, and spending for the current grant year should be submitted with the new proposal application.

Final Reports

All grantees are required to submit final reports two months after the end of the grant period, unless otherwise specified. For multi-year grants, the final report is a cumulative, comprehensive examination of the entire grant term.  Please note that the Foundation typically provides no more than two or three years of consecutive funding.  Since our reports were recently revised, grantees should contact Mackenzie LaBrie, Grants Manager, for the current forms and instructions. [email protected].

How do I apply for a Grant?

Step 1) Determine your eligibility

We support organizations whose work qualifies as charitable under the IRS definition. This includes organizations with 501(c) (3) tax status, public agencies, and projects sponsored by public charities. Only organizations serving the WSJF’s targeted regions of Northern California and Nevada are generally eligible for grants. We do not make grants to individuals, towards arts or film projects, or contribute to capital campaigns or endowments. We do not make grants to international organizations. For county chapters of state organizations, proposal invitations are generally only offered to the state organization.

Step 2) Determine your project’s fit

Review our funding priorities and list of previous grants to determine whether your efforts advance one or more of the Foundation’s goals and objectives. If you determine that your project/program aligns well with our strategy, please proceed to Step 3. Please review our Funding Priorities.  If you are unsure about your program’s “fit” with our priorities, you can contact us via email (not by phone).

Step 3) Contact Us

If you have determined that your project is eligible and it is a fit for the WSJF funding priorities, please contact our Program Director, Yali Lincroft ([email protected]), to see whether your organization is a good candidate for a proposal invitation. Often, a Letter of Inquiry is requested prior to submitting a full proposal. WSJF does not accept unsolicited proposals.

Step 4) Submit a proposal (by invitation only)

If you have been invited to submit a proposal, a Walter S. Johnson Foundation representative will send a proposal packet electronically. Please submit your application by the deadline that you have been given.  This is typically several months before the board meeting at which your proposal will be considered. When completed, submit the proposal and attachments electronically to our Program Director: Yali Lincroft ([email protected]).  Please send the documents in WORD or EXCEL format (not PDF).

Depending on the grant’s size, it can take 2-6 months for program staff to conduct the necessary due diligence (which may include a site visit, reference checks, and program/financial assessment) to present funding recommendations to our Board of Trustees. During the review process, staff will keep you informed about your proposal’s status.

Step 5) Proposal review and funding determination

Program staff will notify you if and when your proposal will be presented to the Board of Directors and when to expect a decision. The Board meets four times each year to make funding decisions (February, May, July/August, and November). Proposals are generally due 3 months prior to the board meeting.  Please note that the Foundation typically provides no more than two or three years of consecutive funding to its grantees.

Who are our Grantees?

2026 Grantees

LARGE GRANTS

• JAG Nevada, $200,000 for 2 years (GR26-01Y) – Support for strategic planning for job training program for disconnected high school youth in Nevada.
• National Center for Youth Law Center, $150,000 for 2 years (GR26-02Y) – Support for the Northern California Adolescent Health Project focused on improving sexual and reproductive health outcomes for foster youth.
• Olive Crest, $150,000 for 2 years (GR26-03Y) – Support for its Community Mental and Behavioral Health Program in Clark County, Nevada.
• California Youth Connections, $200,000 for 2 years (GR26-05Y) – Support for its California Central Valley Chapter.
• Children’s Advocacy Alliance, $100,000 (GR26-10R) – Support for a youth-centered policy engagement initiative in Nevada.
• Covenant House, $150,000 (GR26-11R) – Support for case management and employment services for transitional-aged youth at their facility in Oakland and Hayward.
• FosterClub, $100,000 (GR26-12R) – Support for Nevada Connect, a peer-to-peer outreach and resource support program.
• Journey to Success (fiscal agent Partnership for America’s children), $200,000 (GR26-13R) – Support to strengthen the educational stability and success of children in foster care.
• Legal Aid Association of California, $150,000 (GR26-14R) – Support for its “Bridge Fellowship,” which supports a cohort of post-law school graduate legal fellows who will work at civil legal aid organizations throughout California.
• Life Learning Academy, $200,000 for 2 years (GR26-15Y) – Support to expand the impact of our residential educational and vocational training model.
• New Door Ventures, $200,000 for 2 years (GR26-16Y) – Support for its San Jose Pilot, a career-connected transitional model serving young adults immediately offered after high school graduation.
• On the Move/VOICES, $400,000 for 2 years (GR26-17Y) – Support for its programs located in the Vallejo schools in Solano County, CA.

SMALL GRANTS

• National Council for Adoption, $20,000 (GR25-65D)
• St. Jude’s Ranch for Children, $3,000 (GR25-07D)
• Reaching At Promise Students Association, $40,000 (GR25-57D)
• Rennervation Foundation, $20,000 (GR25-68D)
• Raise the Future, $40,000 (GR25-64D)
• City of Hope, $500 (GR25-73D)
• Make It Happen, Yolo County, $20,000 (GR25-48D)
• Alternative Family Services, $15,000 (GR26-05D)
• University of San Diego/Children’s Advocacy Institute, $40,000 (GR25-69D)
• Foster Care Alumni of America, $20,000 (GR26-29D)
• John Burton Advocates for Youth, $40,000 (GR26-21D)
• Aging Up, $20,000 (GR26-22D)
• School of Public Health/UC Berkeley, $40,000 (GR26-24D)
• SchoolHouse Connections, $16,000 (GR26-25D)
• Foster Youth Education Fund, $7,500 (GR26-26D)
• Child and Family Policy Institute of California, $7,500 (GR26-27D)
• Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute, $30,000 (GR26-28D)
• iFoster, $20,000 (GR26-30D)
• Alliance for Community Advocacy, $20,000 (GR26-31D)

BOARD AND LEGACY GRANTS

• List coming soon…