Grant funders

See what grants are available on the BlackBoston.com Platform. Use these quick access links to requirements and application forms.

Boston is a particularly strong place to pursue grant funding because the city sits inside a much larger Massachusetts funding ecosystem: municipal programs, state economic-development programs, quasi-public agencies, and sector-specific funds.

Importantly, grants are not limited to charities. Massachusetts has programs in which for-profit companies, nonprofits, or collaborations between the two can qualify, depending on the project. The opportunity is substantial: Massachusetts’ Community One Stop for Growth alone has distributed more than $744 million through 1,500+ awards since 2021. (Massachusetts Government)

Why use grants?

Grant funding can give a business or community organization the resources to test an idea, purchase equipment, improve property, hire or train people, conduct research, or expand a successful program without taking on conventional debt or immediately giving up ownership. For a community-centered business, grants can be especially useful when a project produces both an economic return and a measurable public benefit—jobs, neighborhood improvement, workforce development, environmental improvement, health, education, or increased opportunity for underserved residents.

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Boston grant-giving opportunity

The scale of business grant activity in Boston is already demonstrated by Massachusetts Growth Capital Corporation data. Boston ranked first among Massachusetts cities in its published grant results, with 2,093 grants totaling approximately $101.3 million. Across Massachusetts, businesses owned by people of color received 4,648 grants totaling about $188.8 million, while women-owned businesses received 6,480 grants totaling about $270.1 million. Most of the grants in that dataset were between $5,000 and $75,000. (Massachusetts Government)

Links
Boston Women’s Fund – link
$100K City of Boston grants to women owned organizations

Four grant sources worth watching

1. Massachusetts Community One Stop for Growth — This should be near the top of a Boston grant watch list. The Commonwealth currently coordinates 14 economic-development programs through the One Stop system. Both nonprofits and for-profit entities can qualify for certain programs; for example, the Underutilized Properties and TDI Equity Investment programs accept both, although for-profit projects must demonstrate a public benefit. (Massachusetts Government)

2. Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) — MassCEC continually operates funding opportunities around climatetech, workforce development, commercialization and clean-energy projects. Its programs can reach companies/startups as well as nonprofits and academic institutions, although eligibility differs by program. Its Catalyst program, for example, explicitly addresses startups/companies and Massachusetts nonprofit research institutions. (Massachusetts Government)

3. Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC) — Particularly valuable for businesses, researchers, workforce organizations and nonprofits connected to biotechnology, health, medical technology and life sciences. MLSC maintains a continuing portfolio rather than a single grant. Current programs include company-oriented Business Builds, research collaboration, infrastructure, workforce programs and other initiatives. State documentation describes MLSC programs providing grants and other incentives to both industrial organizations and nonprofit entities. (Massachusetts Government)

4. MassDevelopment Grant Programs — Worth monitoring because MassDevelopment administers multiple grant programs rather than one narrow competition. Its programs include business-oriented funding such as Biz-M-Power, which has offered matching grants of up to $50,000 to qualifying small and microbusinesses, as well as programs serving nonprofit/community-development projects. MassDevelopment also administers the TDI Equity Investment Program through One Stop, which is open to multiple organization types. (MassDevelopment)

One distinction is important: “ongoing source” does not mean applications are open every day of the year. These four organizations/program systems repeatedly offer funding, but individual grant rounds open and close on specific schedules.

For BlackBoston.com, I think there is enough here to justify creating a permanent “Boston Grants & Funding Opportunities” page rather than treating grants as occasional news. It could separate opportunities into For-Profit Business | Nonprofit/Community | Either/Partnership, with amount, deadline, eligibility and an Apply/Source button. That would fit well with your existing business-resource direction.

Massachusetts grant activity — selected categories

Published MGCC grant awards. Dollar totals shown in millions.

There is grant money available here for sharing your American Revolutionary War era experiences.

The Boston Foundation is offering a $2 million special round of Safety Net Grants (SNG) to be awarded this spring to social service organizations for the people they serve. Apply here.