The mission of the Iowa Women’s Foundation is to improve the lives of Iowa’s women and girls.
We need to do whatever we can to support and empower women seeking to make real change in our world.
Robyn Hepker, Donor
The Iowa Women’s Foundation presented grant funds to 23 recipients from across the state at a check presentation event on Wednesday, January 11, 2023 at the Kirkwood Regional Center in Coralville. Grantmaking serves the Foundation’s longstanding mission to shatter barriers to economic self-sufficiency faced by Iowa’s women and girls every day, and this round of grantmaking was the largest to date.
Grantees, donors, sponsors, and Foundation affiliates listened as each recipient had the opportunity to share their mission and discuss the programs receiving funding.
2023 grantees range from established organizations to startups and all stages of planning and development in between. In recognition of 25 years of grantmaking, six organizations received $25,000 Core Grants, with each organization addressing one of the six primary barriers to economic self-sufficiency for women and girls.
To date, the Iowa Women’s Foundation has awarded $1,681,677 to 172 organizations across the state—furthering 307 projects that serve Iowa’s women and girls.
IWF annually makes grants available to organizations whose work aligns with this goal. IWF has three grant opportunities: Core Grants, the Community Child Care Solutions Fund (CCSF), and Emergency Grants.
With a focus on economic self-sufficiency for Iowa’s women and girls, Core Grants center on applications from organizations in Iowa and must address one of the six barriers to economic self-sufficiency of women and girls:
- Employment
- Child Care
- Housing
- Education/Training
- Transportation
- Mentorship
The Community Child Care Solutions Fund (CCSF) focuses specifically on increasing the number of child care slots available for children throughout the state of Iowa.
Core grants are announced in September, and the Community Child Care Solutions Fund recipients are announced in November. Checks are awarded in January for projects in that calendar year.
Applications are welcome from organizations with 501(c)(3) status and other grassroots organizations serving Iowa’s women and girls.
Emergency Grants are small, one-time-only cash awards given to non-profits and other community organizations, including organizations that may not be eligible for traditional grant funding, for immediate emergency needs. To be considered, organizations must provide programming to address one of the six barriers to women’s economic self-sufficiency. Grants are awarded throughout the calendar year. Once funds have been expended for the year, applications will close and re-open in January of the next year.
To begin the process and learn more about how we fund, click these links: previous grant partners, Core Grants materials, CCSF instructions or Emergency Grants.