Women's Endowment Fund accepting 2027 grant proposals

Beginning Oct. 1, the Women's Endowment Fund of Akron Community Foundation will accept grant proposals for Summit County programs that enrich the lives of women and girls in the following areas:

Economic Empowerment, including entrepreneurship, asset-building and financial literacyprograms; programs that create better jobs, better access to jobs, and quality affordable childcare for women; and programs that enable women with children to work more productively.
Safety from Violence, including programs that raise awareness about violence through education; programs that prevent the occurrence and reoccurrence of violence against women and girls; and programs that develop a consistent and coordinated response to violence against women and girls.
Health and Wellness, including programs that raise awareness about healthy lifestyles through education and prevention; programs that support reproductive health and prevent teen pregnancies; and programs that help women and girls address depression and other mental health issues.

Qualified 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations can apply for a grant online by Nov. 1. A link to the grant application is available at akroncf.org/applyWEF.

A committee composed of Women's Endowment Fund advisory board members, donors and community leaders will review the grant proposals. The committee may request an in-person or virtual site visit or interview during the grantmaking process.

During its latest grant cycle, the fund awarded 39 grants totaling $199,000, bringing the fund's cumulative grantmaking total to nearly $2.7 million. Recent grants from the Women's Endowment Fund have provided shelter for women and children experiencing homelessness or domestic violence, supported social-emotional learning opportunities for girls, and more. A complete list of 2026 grant recipients is available at akroncf.org/WEFgrants.

The next round of grants will be announced in spring 2027. Preference will be given to programs that involve collaboration with other agencies, and efforts to obtain matching funds are encouraged.

For more information about the application process, contact Brian Reitz, Akron Community Foundation's vice president of community investment, at 330-436-5628 or [email protected].  

About the Women's Endowment Fund

The Women's Endowment Fund of Akron Community Foundation was established in 1993 as a permanent endowment committed to encouraging the advancement of women and girls in Summit County. To date, it has grown to more than $6 million and awarded nearly $2.7 million in grants. Contributions of any amount are welcome and can be made online at akroncf.org/give/WEF or mailed to Women's Endowment Fund of Akron Community Foundation, 345 W. Cedar St., Akron, OH 44307. For more information, call 330-376-8522 or visit womensendowmentfund.org.

About Akron Community Foundation

For 71 years, Akron Community Foundation has been our community's champion and generator of enduring philanthropy. In 1955, a $1 million bequest from the estate of Edwin Shaw established the community foundation. It is a philanthropic endowment of $367 million with a growing family of more than 930 funds established by charitable people and organizations from all walks of life. The community foundation and its funds welcome gifts of all kinds, including cash, bequests, stock, real estate, life insurance and retirement assets, just to name a few. To date, the community foundation's funds have awarded $280 million in grants to qualified nonprofit organizations. For more information about Akron Community Foundation or to learn more about creating your own charitable fund, call 330-376-8522 or visit akroncf.org.