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Black Wildflowers Fund - School Start-Up Grant

The Wildflower Foundation

Funding Amount

Varies

Deadline

Rolling / Open

Grant Type

foundation

Overview

Black Wildflowers Fund - School Start-Up Grant

Overview: Exclusively for Wildflower Community—designed to bridge the wealth gap and minimize the financial strain often experienced by Black educators who embark on the School Start-up Journey.

Geographic Scope: National (US)

Focus Areas:

  • Supporting the creation of teacher-led microschools

  • Providing funding to obtain a Montessori credential

  • Purposefully designing a thriving Community of Practice
  • Eligibility:

  • Black Teacher Leaders exclusively

  • Must be affiliated with the Wildflower Schools Foundation

  • Participants in the School Start-up Journey
  • Parent Organization: Black Wildflowers Fund

  • Founded by Co-CEOs Maia Blankenship and Dr. Erika McDowell

  • Committed to combating systemic racism in education

  • Launched a groundbreaking $10 million initiative to invest in Black educators across the country and help close the leadership gap
  • What They Fund:

  • Start-up capital to assist Black educators in opening their own schools

  • Scholarships for Black educators seeking Montessori training

  • Support at every stage of the leadership journey
  • Mission Statement: "We want to make it crystal clear that Black educators have the experience and vision to transform the education system. They already know what works because they've seen it in the classroom and they've lived it. The more barriers that we can remove and get out of their way, the more it's possible to create thriving learning environments for our children." — Maia Blankenship, Co-CEO

    Contact: For more funding opportunities from Black Wildflowers Fund, visit their website.

    How to Apply

    Application Process

    No specific application details are provided on the Wildflower website. For application information:

    1. Visit the Black Wildflowers Fund website directly for detailed application procedures
    2. Contact Black Wildflowers Fund or Wildflower Foundation for eligibility verification and application materials
    3. Confirm affiliation with Wildflower Schools Foundation

    Note: The grant is exclusively for Black Teacher Leaders affiliated with Wildflower Schools Foundation.

    What The Wildflower Foundation actually gave

    Source: IRS Form 990-PF, 2025

    Grants in 2025
    37
    Total given
    $1.57M
    Median grant
    $15K
    Range
    $5,000–$683K
    • By dollars: Colorado 44%, PR 9%, Pennsylvania 9%. Top recipient cities: Philadelphia, PA; Minneapolis, MN; Columbus, OH.
    • 0% of grants with a stated purpose were for general or operating support.
    • 54% of recipients were new grantees, not repeat recipients.

    Example grants

    • Wildflower Montessori Public Schools of Colorado · Aurora, CO

      Start up grant

      $683K

    • Mountain Laurel Montessori (V) · Philadelphia, PA

      Start up grant

      $99K

    • Grove Montessori a Wildflower Public School (V) · Grand Rapids, MI

      Start up grant

      $86K

    • The Girasol School · Dorado, PR

      Start up grant

      $84K

    • Sadula Rose Montessori School · Buffalo, NY

      Start up grant

      $65K

    IRS Form 990-PF, 2025. Amounts as reported by the funder. Full 990 history →

    Focus Areas & Funding Uses

    Fields of Work

    black-womeneducationseed-grants

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