United Way of East TN Highlands presents a $10,000 Social Innovation grant to officials with the My Ride program in Johnson County in 2021. United Way has now opened the application process for its Social Innovation grants for the current calendar year.
Leslie Salling, president and CEO of the United Way of East TN Highlands, presents a ceremonial check for $10,000 to an official with A Step Ahead Foundation.
United Way of East TN Highlands presents a $10,000 Social Innovation grant to officials with the My Ride program in Johnson County in 2021. United Way has now opened the application process for its Social Innovation grants for the current calendar year.
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Leslie Salling, president and CEO of the United Way of East TN Highlands, presents a ceremonial check for $10,000 to an official with A Step Ahead Foundation.
Applications are now being taken for innovation grants from the United Way chapter serving Carter, Johnson, Washington and southern Sullivan counties.
United Way of East TN Highlands is looking to award up to $40,000 worth of grants and prizes to local nonprofit organizations who are working on innovative solutions to social issues in its service community. The grants will come from the Social Innovation Fund, which was created in 2020 through a private donation that was designated specifically to drive social innovation in the region.
The fund is used to support new programs aimed to meet social needs by filling gaps in our community related to health, education or financial stability.
Applications are available online at www.unitedwayetnh.org/innovation and are due April 5. Local nonprofits are encouraged to apply and share why their socially innovative program is worthy to benefit from a $10,000 grant.
Finalists will be chosen by the United Way of East TN Highlands’ Community Impact Team and are invited to participate in the annual Social Innovation Pitch Night event on May 11, which will be held at East Tennessee State University’s Martin Center.
“Social innovation is an exhilarating vision that seeks to leverage more efficient, effective and sustainable solutions while aiding new programs that address community gaps in critical areas such as health, education and financial stability,” said Abraham McIntyre, who serves as community impact coordinator for United Way of East TN Highlands. “Adopting a bold approach that integrates innovative thinking, collaborative strategy and creative problem-solving allows us to make a substantial impact in our community.”
This year’s Pitch Night event will feature live pitches from local nonprofit organizations who are looking to solve problems in our community. The organizations will be pitching to a panel of judges and a live voting audience. The three pitches with the highest number of votes will each be awarded a $10,000 grant.
Three additional grants focused on education will be given out to support our Tennessee After-school Network (TAN) organizations. To be eligible to apply, you must be a local nonprofit or community organization serving Washington, Carter, and/or Johnson County, with an innovative program less than two years old.
