Qualities of Youth Experience Grants

February 10, 2021

Qualities of Youth Experience Grants

What We Look For: Child & Youth Experiences

“Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.” – Proverbs 22:6

The Rees-Jones Foundation is working to support Christian discipleship, cultivate character, develop healthy life practices, and expand the scope of opportunities for youth. The Foundation supports access to formative, youth experiences, such as out-of-school-time (after-school and summer) programs, camp, and mentorships.

The Foundation supports organizations that provide youth with a range of activities that offer academic assistance, enrichment opportunities, and healthy lifestyle outcomes.

We seek to invest in partners who empower local youth to lead healthy, productive lives with a commitment to integrity, service, and godliness. The Foundation operates under the guiding belief that all children, particularly those living in low-income areas of North Texas, should have the opportunity to flourish and fulfill their God-given potential.

The Foundation believes in a whole-child approach that recognizes that mind, body, heart, and spirit need to be nurtured and developed to truly make an impact in a child’s life.

The most meaningful and impactful interventions for youth place relationships at the heart of their programming – we believe that people change people more than programs do. We desire that children and youth will find fulfilling opportunities in the neighborhood where they live, learn and play, and most importantly, find hope for the future!

As such, through its grant making, the Foundation works to support:

• Christian discipleship
• Character cultivation
• Healthy life practices
• Expansion of opportunities available to youth

The Foundation supports a variety of program types that include qualities such as:

• CAMP: Activities that are structured and teach lessons in character, integrity, honesty; opportunities that encourage campers to overcome challenges, try something new, and encourage others; and concentrated time with camp counselors and cabin mates that teach campers how to build friendships, take responsibility for themselves, and get along with others.
• OUT-OF-SCHOOL-TIME: Programs that emphasize character development and integrate concepts such as social-emotional learning; and offer educational support, creative arts, or sports as a means for delivering program content.
• MENTORING: Programs that teach children the skills and social awareness required to thrive as productive members of society, and emphasize building appropriate relationships.

The Foundation also considers the qualities of the organization itself. Important characteristics include:

• Have robust safety systems and policies in place
• Utilize current proven best-practices
• Make a demonstrated impact in the lives of the children and communities it serves
• Have character-based programming
• Offer innovative or unduplicated services to address issues of concern within its particular geographic area

Hopefully this information is helpful as you begin to consider submitting a grant request to the Foundation. Please keep the Foundation’s eligibility requirements in mind. Organizations applying for funding must have a 501(c)3 nonprofit designation from the IRS. The Foundation’s focus is on organizations that serve the North Texas community. Organizations that operate internationally are asked to apply by invitation only. The Foundation only considers grants that fall into our areas of interest, which can be found here: https://www.rees-jonesfoundation.org/what-we-fund

For more information about the grant making process, the online portal, or to preview the different types of applications and their questions, please visit our online Grantee Portal Help Guide, which is updated regularly.