This grant program focuses on preparing local residents for family-supporting jobs through career-related training, post-secondary education and other educational initiatives.

Objective: Advance the economic wellness of residents of North Central Massachusetts by increasing their access to education and effective career development initiatives.

Priorities include:

• Scholarship programs that foster career pathways
• Career exploration
• Career navigation support systems
• Work-based learning programs
• Intermediaries that connect stakeholders to career advancement resources and services

Schedule

• This grant cycle is closed and will reopen in Spring 2025

North Central Massachusetts Literacy Fund

The Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts is pleased to partner with the North Central Massachusetts Literacy Fund to address the critical issue of summer learning loss for economically disadvantaged students in grades K-3.

Objective: foster literacy skills development during the summer break, ensuring that economically disadvantaged young learners maintain and enhance their reading abilities outside the traditional school year.

Priorities: 

• Literacy enrichment programs
• Addressing barriers to student participation in summer reading programs, especially for non-English speaking students
• Parent and caregiver engagement

Target Population:

• Services should be geared towards students who demonstrate significant need including students at risk of academic failure and newly arrived students who are learning the English language.
• Need should be demonstrated by prior academic performance, teacher/school recommendation and/or, DESE ELL status for level I or II.

Requirements: 

The Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts supports programs, projects, and initiatives within our 33-community region that address the Community Foundation's goals and action areas that are executed by non-profit organizations or municipal governments and align with the applicant's mission.

Proposals for competitive grants should address each of the following principles:

• Capacity for impact: Demonstrate capacity and potential for achieving and sustaining long-term impact.
• Plan of action: Include a plan of action with evidence that the plan is likely to achieve its intended outcomes.
• Monitoring progress: Include measurable objectives and outcomes with a plan to monitor progress.

This grant program is now closed.