Keller Foundation Grant

The Keller Foundation Grant, established in 1980, aims to support innovative programs for children and families, particularly in the Grand Rapids area. With nearly $7 million awarded to over 150 nonprofits, the foundation focuses on five key areas: Cultural, Education, Environment, Health, and Human Services. Grants, ranging from $2,500 to $50,000, prioritize long-term impact and community involvement, fostering educational and cultural opportunities for underserved youth.

The Keller Foundation has a key interest in supporting programs and services for children and families living in the community around the Martin Luther King Jr. Leadership Academy. However, the Keller Foundation is not limited to donations in this geographical area.
Since its inception in 1980, the Keller Foundation has awarded almost $7 million in grants to over 150 different nonprofit organizations, mainly in the Grand Rapids area. The primary focus of the Keller Foundation is to encourage innovative programs for core city youth of Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Focus Areas
Since its inception in 1980, the Keller Foundation has awarded almost $7 million in grants to over 150 different nonprofit organizations, mainly in the Grand Rapids area. The primary focus of the Keller Foundation is to encourage innovative programs for core city youth of Grand Rapids, Michigan.
The Keller Foundation provides grants in primarily five focus areas:

• Cultural Education
• Environment
• Health
• Human Services
• Grant giving in these focus areas support such programs as:
• Exposure to visual and performing arts Opportunities for access to cultural and environmental centers/programs
• School readiness programs
• Programs that provide safe, nurturing environments for children
• Tutoring for children
• Literacy programs for children and adults
• In-school enrichment programs
• After-school programs
• Teacher enrichment programs
• Effective parenting programs
• Key Geographic Focus

The Keller Foundation has a key interest in supporting programs and services for children and families living in the community around the Martin Luther King (MLK) Jr. Leadership Academy. MLK is a K-8 school in the Grand Rapids Public Schools system and is located on Logan Street in southeast Grand Rapids.
The Foundation currently supports several programs serving children attending MLK and their parents/families:
Tutoring Center and Other Enrichment Activities:The Keller Foundation supports the First United Methodist Church (FUMC) Tutoring Center at MLK. It offers a Tutoring program and provides a variety of enrichment activities for the kids attending the school. Enrichment activities are varied and diverse and provide opportunities for the children to experience extracurricular activities that are often available to their peers in more affluent communities. These include opportunities for the kids to experience the Grand Rapids Ballet, the Meijer Gardens, JohnBall Zoo, Blandford Nature Center, the Grand Rapids Children’s Museum, and the Grand Rapids Art Museum. In addition, the Tutoring Center organizes opportunities for the kids to earn Merit prizes, which inspire and celebrate kids’ educational achievements; and family events, which help foster deeper parental involvement in their children’s learning and school activities.
Other Programs at MLK:The Foundation also supports several organizations providing various in-school and after-school programs or services for kids attending MLK.
Funding
The Keller Foundation awards an average of 30 grants each year. Grants range in size from $2,500 up to $50,000. Awards are relative to the size and scope of the project as well as its potential to impact our focus community.

Eligibility

An organization must be a nonprofit group, as classified by the Internal Revenue Service under section 501c3 of the tax code..