Bush Foundation
The Foundation seeks to support creative problem solving to make its region better, focusing on spreading four ideas: student-centered education, Native self-determination, growing social businesses, and art central to problem solving.
Average award: $10,000–$200,000
Total awarded: $30,191,144
Deadline: Rolling
Award Project Period: Annual
Saint Paul, MN 55101
The Bush Foundation’s purpose statement is to inspire and support creative problem solving—within and across sectors—to make the target region better for everyone. The Foundation has a student-centered education initiative that seeks to promote individual education to meet the needs and ambitions of all students. It is working toward a transformation in how schools support the development and success of every individual student. This means a transformation in how schools are structured and run. The Foundation will support the spread of new models that combine three elements of relevance in significant enough ways that students have an experience that is customized for who they are, how they learn, and what they hope to achieve in life.
Organizations interested in applying to the Foundation’s education initiative can apply through the Foundation’s open grant opportunities, including Community Innovation grants. Community Innovation grants fund problem-solving projects that make the region better for everyone. Grantees work inclusively with their communities, make the most of existing resources, and collaborate with other organizations as part of their problem-solving process.
Tax-exempt, nonprofit organizations or government entities, including schools.
- $300,000 to NACA-Inspired Schools Network (Albuquerque, NM) to provide additional support for the start-up of new schools by NISN Fellows.
- $100,000 to Yellow Medicine East School District (Granite Falls, MN) to construct a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) greenhouse renewable classroom.
- $10,000 to Metropolitan State University Foundation (Saint Paul, MN) to provide technical assistance to support the unexpected increase in construction cost for the GROW-IT Center, an innovative
response to maximize an unused capital resource for university and community groups.
The Foundation strongly suggests that potential applicants schedule a call before putting together an application (an online scheduling tool is available). Complete the online application, which consists of the following questions: proposed idea and the problem it solves; how the idea is transformative; plan to implement the idea; description of key people; request amount; size of community served (list selection); organization contact and basic information; and indicate if the organization is led by black people, Indigenous people, other people of color, and/or people from rural communities.