Samuel S. Fels Fund

 

Funding Focus

At the Fels Fund, we believe that the most powerful change can come when we honor and support the brilliance and resilience of the people in Philadelphia communities. This means investing in organizations that ground their work in love, joy and solidarity. It also means investing time and resources into people’s leadership development and wellness to support their well-being and assist in sustaining their work.

Fels Fund’s grantmaking focus is on movement building. Our definition of movement building is adopted from the Movement Strategy Center: “the process of organizing and activating the will and capacity of people and organizations to work individually or collectively toward a shared vision.”

movement building

Fels Fund will provide general operating grants to organizations engaged in two or more of the following movement-building strategies:

  • Advocating for policies that lead to equitable treatment, economic stability, and opportunity.
  • Confronting and exposing harmful institutions and systems, and reimagining a world where policies, institutions and systems are designed with and by historically excluded communities.
  • Promoting collective healing, and joy within and among historically excluded communities.
  • Power-building activities.

key things to know

  • Fels Fund has one funding stream and one deadline to yield one grantee partner cohort for a three-year grant term.
  • The grant cycle is closed, no additional funding inquiries will be accepted until the next grant cycle opens in 2027.
  • In grantmaking years, applicants may apply for general operating grants in the range of $25,000-$30,000 per year, totaling $75,000-$90,000 for the three-year grant term.
  • Every grantee partner awarded a general operating grant will automatically receive an additional grant for Leadership Development and Wellness for $10,000 per year, totaling $30,000 for the three-year grant term. Fels Fund does not accept applications for Leadership Development and Wellness grants.

more questions?

See our FAQ page for more information

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