Barr Awards $15.9 Million to 51 Organizations

At its third board meeting of 2017, Barr Foundation's Board of Trustees approved grants totaling $12.3 million, in addition to $3.6 million in grants approved earlier in the quarter. We invite you to explore these awards and past grants in our online grants database. We are pleased to highlight a few examples below.

In Education, Barr awarded 17 grants totaling nearly $7.8 million, including several grants to organizations across New England that are redesigning their high school models to develop learning opportunities outside of the traditional classroom to ensure all students achieve success. Learn more about our eight “Wider Learning Ecosystem” grantees, their schools, and visions for the future in this blog announcement. A $3 million grant to SRI International will enable the evaluation of our work from the Engage New England initiative, to create innovative education models for students who are off-track to graduate high school.

In Arts & Creativity, Barr awarded four grants totaling nearly $1.3 million. A $750,000 grant to the Hanover Theatre for Performing Arts will activate the Worcester Theatre District, including the renovation of an outdoor plaza. A $300,000 grant to National Arts Strategies supports the development and pilot of a nine-month Creative Community Fellows Program for New England to nurture leadership in creative placemaking in communities across the region.

In Climate, Barr awarded 13 grants totaling $4.6 million in clean energy and mobility. A $500,000 grant to State Smart Transportation Initiative, an affiliation of state departments of transportation, will assist in the creation of sustainable transportation options. In Clean Energy, Barr awarded a $270,000 grant to the City of Providence to engage community members and businesses in equitable economic development planning that provides clean energy benefits for all residents. Grants of $350,000 to the Environmental League of Massachusetts and $400,000 to Clean Water Fund will support grassroots and policy education efforts to maintain the region’s leadership on clean energy, and to test new approaches that increase community resilience.

In Cross-Program Initiatives, Barr awarded four grants totaling $450,000. A $75,000 grant to TSNE MissionWorks (formerly, Third Sector New England) will support the work and evaluation of its Emerging Consultants Training program. This nine-month program will help a community of diverse leaders hone their organizational development skills and understand how to build consultant practices to strengthen social-change organizations and movements.

Finally, as part of a time-limited Special Initiative to strengthen civil liberties and democracy, Barr awarded a $200,000 grant to the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation to support the Greater Boston Immigrant Defense Fund, and a $300,000 grant to WGBH Educational Foundation to support the expansion of WGBH’s investigative reporting capacity.

View our grants database