Anti-poverty nonprofit the Stand Together Foundation unveiled a nationwide push to invest more than $7 million to support as many as 500 nonprofit organizations and leaders in its Catalyst Program by 2025. The foundation has since 2016 committed $100 million to fuel innovation to build stronger, safer communities where all people can learn, contribute, and realize their full potential, according to information in the announcement.
“We look for community leaders who are committed to finding solutions that empower individuals to transform their lives,” Evan Feinberg, executive director of Stand Together Foundation in Arlington, Va., said via a statement. “As part of our program, Catalysts are given new tools to scale their impact, taught new strategies for effective management, and provided with opportunities to learn from fellow innovators.”
The Catalyst Program partners with nonprofit “disruptors” who are changing the way people think about, talks about, and tackles poverty in America. The Catalyst Program accepts applications from, evaluates, and then invests in top-performing nonprofits across the U.S. There is then a six-month experience designed to help each organization refine and improve its strategies with the goal of further increasing its impact in their communities.
Before inviting potential partners to join the Catalyst Program, Stand Together Foundation analyzes each organization’s operations and impact, comparing their models with prevailing approaches. Stand Together Foundation staff look to ensure Catalysts are disrupting the status quo, demonstrating “outside-the-box” thinking, and embracing a community-driven, people-centered approach. The partnership exploration process lasts two to three months on average, and each quarter Stand Together Foundation welcomes a new Catalyst Cohort consisting of roughly a dozen nonprofit leaders.
Once accepted into the program, Catalysts participate in individualized leadership and management coaching, connect to a peer network where leaders get advice and partnership from those who have walked in their shoes, and access to a suite of business tools, including free legal services and software to help them run their nonprofit more effectively. Additionally, each Catalyst partner receives a $25,000 grant to support their program.
To apply for the Catalyst Program, nonprofit leaders are encouraged to visit standtogetherfoundation.org/the-program/criteria/ to read more about selection criteria and submit their contact information.
