Grants Guidelines

You are here: Home / Grants Guidelines

We value:

Hoohanohano – the human right of dignity of person, spirit, and choice for every woman  and girl
Working in partnership in the spirit of lokahi (unity and harmony) and kokua (reciprocity)
The cultures of each woman and girl; their stories, truth, experience, and gifts
The right of every woman and girl to be self-determining Hawaii nei, the nest we share

We believe:

That when one woman is not financially secure, safe, and empowered, it hurts all of us
In working with the most vulnerable women and girls
In supporting the strength and leadership of girls, thereby enabling them to avoid or surmount many problems that they might face as adult women
In working intergenerationally, and in the interconnectedness of us all
In living with pono (justice)

Women’s Fund of Hawaii supports programs serving women and girls in Hawaii that embody the above values and beliefs.

We give to a wide range of programs, particularly those that promote women’s financial security and dignity, and girls’ strengths and leadership.
We fund programs that build on the gifts, strengths, and assets of women and girls and promote their well-being.
We fund organizations that address factors that can stand in the way of women and girls’ success, including:
- Abused/Neglected Girls
- Adolescent Pregnancy
- Culture/Arts
- Disabilities
- Economic Self-sufficiency
- Education/Technology
- Health (physical)
- Homelessness
- Homophobia
- Immigration Status
- Incarceration/Criminal Justice
- Lack of Affordable Childcare
- Lack of Affordable Housing
- Mental Health
- Poverty
- Racism
- Reproductive Rights/Health
- Self Esteem
- Sexual Exploitation of Women and Girls
- Sports Inequities
- Substance Abuse
- Trafficking/Prostitution
- Violence (sexual, physical)

We have a special interest in (but our funding is not limited to):

We prefer that a majority (51% or more) of Board members and program leadership are women, and that Board and staff reflect the population being served.
While we have a preference for funding smaller organizations, we will not exclude any organization from consideration because of size.
We fund nonprofit organizations, as well as programs that are sponsored projects of nonprofit organizations serving as fiscal agents. (We do not require those fiscal agents to have female Board leadership, but the program itself should have majority female leadership; also, we prefer that the fee for serving as fiscal agent be not more than 10% of the project budget.)
We fund startup and existing organizations/projects.
We fund general operating costs, special projects, and small capital projects.
We fund organizations or programs designed exclusively for women or girls. We do not fund general operating funds if it is unclear if those funds will specifically support women and girls’ programs.
If funded, the grantee is expected to submit a final report.
If you have the resources to send a press release to publicize this grant, we request that you share your draft with us before publication and provide a copy when it’s published.
Any organization that receives funding from Women’s Fund is welcome to apply for repeat funding. In order to be eligible to apply again, an organization must first use all of the original grant funds and submit a final report.
Our grants are up to $10,000.