McCune Foundation
/OVERVIEW: The McCune Foundation supports projects community and grassroots efforts for social and economic justice in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties in California.
IP TAKE: The McCune Foundation supports “groups which are ‘doing with others’ rather than ‘doing for others’ – grassroots, bottom-up organizations in which ‘clients’ are the initiators and involved in decision making.” This is an accessible, supportive and flexible funder for grassroots and community groups in Santa Barabara and Ventura counties. It accepts letters of inquiry at any time but suggests grantseekers reach out directly to its program officer, Araceli Centeno, to discuss opportunities prior to submitting materials.
PROFILE: Established in 1990, the McCune Foundation was created by Sara Miller McCune and her late husband, George McCune, the founders of SAGE Publications, Inc., a leading academic publisher. This funder “shifted” its mission in 2001 to support “projects that address critical issues in Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties by empowering and mobilizing excluded populations.” Grantmaking targets grassroots organizations working to “create social and economic justice” and projects that are “initiated and led by economically and politically disenfranchised groups including low-income, working poor, and marginalized individuals.” Grants provide both project and general operating support.
Grants for Racial Justice, Civic Engagement, Democracy, Work and Opportunity
The McCune Foundation makes grants from a single stream of giving; it does not organize into separate thematic area. In addition to articulating broad interest in grassroots work for social and economic justice, the foundation’s grantmaking pursues three principles.
Grantmaking works toward social change, “address[ing] the causes of a problem, rather than treating symptoms.” McCune’s grantees are typically organizations that “see their work in the context of whole systems and causes, and exhibit solution-oriented approaches to addressing critical issues and creating social justice.”
Grants prioritize inclusive leadership, supporting “the empowerment of the excluded populations and inclusion of such people in an organization’s leadership structure.”
Social capital and community capacity are also central to McCune’s work. The foundation targets “organizations with a strong community base” and “community capacity building rather than personal growth or development of leadership skills in individuals.”
Past grantees include UCLA’s Chicano Studies Research Center, Girls Inc. of Carpinteria, the Westminster Free Clinic and Encampment for Citizenship, which received funding for its “Pesticide-Free Soil Project, to mobilize on policy issues that support the health and wellbeing of the community.”
Important Grant Details:
The McCune Foundation’s grants range from $500 to about $50,000.
Grantmaking is limited to Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties in California and targets grassroots organizations working towards social and economic justice.
This funder awards grants for both operating and project support. Project grants are generally awarded in amounts of up to 50% of a project’s budget, and first-time grants are awarded in amounts of $20,000 and under.
The McCune Foundation accepts letters of inquiry of up to two pages on an ongoing basis through its application portal, but advises grantseekers to reach out to program officer Araceli Centeno via email at araceli@mccunefoundation.org prior to submitting a letter.
Guidelines for letters of inquiry are provided on the grantseekers page. The foundation will respond to letters within four weeks to “advise the applicant of its interest in receiving a full proposal.”
Current grantees are also eligible to apply for the Training Mini Grant Program, which awards grants ranging from $500 to $4,000 to help grantees “access community organizing and social justice-oriented trainings and coaching opportunities.”
For information about past grantmaking see the foundation’s past grants page or its annual reports.
General inquiries may be submitted to the foundation’s administrative assistant, Jovita Valdez, via email at jovita@mccunefoundation.org or by telephone at (805) 667-8054.
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