Transformation through a Year of Grantmaking

Pictured above: Syracuse City Ballet, a Black Equity & Excellence Fund grant recipient, performs Our Voices. | Photo by: SweetBay Images Photography

Exceeding expectations between April 1, 2025 and March 31, 2026, we received $40.1 million in gifts and bequests and distributed more than $31.9 million in grant support to nonprofit organizations in Central New York and surrounding areas.

Black Equity & Excellence Funding

Our Black Equity & Excellence Fund is designed to fund community-based projects that center, uplift and serve Black communities in Central New York by addressing economic and social disparities caused by historic marginalization. The fund is dedicated to fostering self-sufficiency, economic development and community empowerment. This year we distributed 24 grants totaling $346,100.

Community Grantmaking

We offer a wide variety of funding opportunities, the largest of which is our Community Grants program. We provide grant funding to nonprofit organizations in Cortland, Onondaga and Madison counties for projects in the areas of arts and culture, civic affairs, education, health, human services and the environment. This year we distributed 65 grants totaling $2,204,819.

Rural Poverty Support

The Madison County Rural Poverty Fund is our effort to support poverty-related issues and organizations in Madison County. This year we distributed four grants totaling $50,500.

Additional Grantmaking

We also distributed 29 small grants totaling $204,727; 20 literacy grants totaling $219,935, including operational support for Imagination Library; one IDEA grant totaling $50,000; seven Anti-Poverty Initiative grants totaling $54,000; and four Strategic Sustainability Fund grants to support nonprofit mergers and affiliations totaling $44,952.

View a full list of our grants by clicking here.