Catalyst Awards

Each year, our staff and board nominate several organizations to receive Catalyst Awards: one-time contributions made as part of our year-end giving. These organizations typically work on issues beyond our primary program areas. What unites them is their distinct and promising approaches to chronic social problems.

Catalyst Awards

Each year, our staff and board nominate several organizations to receive Catalyst Awards: one-time contributions made as part of our year-end giving. These organizations typically work on issues beyond our primary program areas. What unites them is their distinct and promising approaches to chronic social problems.

Year Funded:
Category:
Environment
|

350.org

View Website
Youth Development
|

826CHI

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

A Better Chicago

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

A Safe Haven

View Website
Education
|

Accelerate U

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Access Living

View Website
Youth Development
|

After School Matters

View Website
Immigration
|

Alianza Americas

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Almost Home Kids

View Website
Education
|

Alternatives

View Website
Immigration
|

Apna Ghar

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

Artreach at Lillstreet

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Ashoka

View Website
Youth Development
|

Ashoka’s Empathy Initiative

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Aspen Community Foundation

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

Barat Foundation – Animodules Project

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Beauty 2 The Streetz

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Benefits Data Trust

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Between Friends Chicago

View Website
Education
|

Beyond 12

View Website
Youth Development
|

Beyond the Ball

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Black Mamas Matter Alliance

View Website
Environment
|

Blue Forest

View Website
Youth Development
|

Blue Sky Bakery

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

Bodies of Work

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

BOUNCE: The Basketball Opera

View Website
Education
|

Braven

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Breakthrough Christmas Store

View Website
Education
|

BUILD

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Bunker Labs

View Website
Environment
|

California Fires Foundation

View Website
Environment
|

California Wildfire Relief Fund

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Canine Therapy Corps

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

CareMessage

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

CASA

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Cathedral Shelter (now ReVive Center)

View Website
Education
|

Center for Investigating Healthy Minds

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Center on Halsted

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Chicago Coalition for the Homeless

View Website
Environment
|

Chicago Frontlines Funding Initiative

View Website
Education
|

Chicago Literacenter

View Website
Education
|

Chicago Quest

View Website
Immigration
|

Chicago Refugee Coalition

View Website
Education
|

Chicago Scholars

View Website
Youth Development
|

Chicago Voyagers

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Chicago Westside Sports

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

City Farm Chicago

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Cleanslate by Cara

View Website
Education
|

Communities in Schools of Chicago

View Website
Education
|

Community Guilds

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

CreatiVets

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Crisis Text Line

View Website
Youth Development
|

Crushers Club

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Curt’s Cafe

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

D-Rev: Design Revolution

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Deborah’s Place

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

DivInc

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

DreamSpring

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Edesia

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

Ellis Marsalis Center

View Website
Education
|

Embarc

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Emergency Fund for Needy People

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Empowerment Plan + Night Ministry Coat Distribution Project

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Experimental Station

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Family Visitors Program

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Feeding America

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

Firebird Community Arts

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Folded Map Project

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

For the Frontlines

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Free Root Operation

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

Free Write Arts & Literacy

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Future Founders

View Website
Youth Development
|

Games for Change

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Gary Sinise Foundation

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

GatherFor

View Website
Education
|

Genesys Works

View Website
Education
|

Get Schooled

View Website
Immigration
|

GirlForward

View Website
Youth Development
|

Girls4Science

View Website
Education
|

Global Citizen Year

View Website
Education
|

Global Nomads

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Greater Chicago Food Depository

View Website
Education
|

GripTape

View Website
Environment
|

Grist

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

Growing Home

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

Guitars Over Guns

View Website
Education
|

Harvard Law School Dean’s Fund

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Healing to Action

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Health Wagon

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

HEART

View Website
Youth Development
|

Heph Foundation

View Website
Education
|

Higher Achievement

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Himalayan Cataract Project

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Honor Flight

View Website
Education
|

Humanity Rising

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Humble Design

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

I Grow Chicago

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

iFoster

View Website
Immigration
|

Illinois Business Immigration Coalition

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Impact Justice

View Website
Youth Development
|

Innovation Center

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Jewish Child and Family Services

View Website
Environment
|

Justice Outside

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Kusanya Cafe

View Website
Education
|

LaundryCares Foundation

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

LavaMaeX

View Website
Education
|

Liberation Library

View Website
Education
|

Library for All

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Little Heroes League

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

Marwen

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Metropolitan Family Services

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Midwest Access Coalition

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

mRelief

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

Musicians On Call

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

My Block, My Hood, My City

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

National Museum of Mexican Art: Yollocalli Arts Reach

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline

View Website
Environment
|

Natural Resources Defense Council

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

New Moms

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

New Story

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

North Lawndale Employment Network

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Northwestern Memorial Foundation

View Website
Education
|

Once Upon Our Time Capsule

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

One Acre Fund

View Website
Environment
|

One Earth Collective

View Website
Education
|

One Million Degrees

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

One Simple Wish

View Website
Education
|

OneGoal

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

OneTable

View Website
Education
|

Open Future Institute

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Operation Gratitude

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Operation Warm

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

PCs for People

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Peer Health Exchange

View Website
Environment
|

Plant Chicago

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

Playing for Change

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

Poetry in America

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

PopShift

View Website
Education
|

Posse Foundation

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Project Blue

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Project C.U.R.E.

View Website
Environment
|

Project Drawdown

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Project Fierce

View Website
Youth Development
|

Project Fire

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Project Return

View Website
Immigration
|

RAICES Texas

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

READI Chicago

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Recipe for Change

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

Red Door Project

View Website
Immigration
|

RefugeeOne

View Website
Immigration
|

Refugees International

View Website
Immigration
|

Refunite

View Website
Education
|

Reimagining Migration

View Website
Education
|

Rowe-Clark Science and Math Academy

View Website
Education
|

Ryan Banks Academy

View Website
Youth Development
|

Save Streetball Initiative at My Block, My Hood, My City

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

SkyART

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Southern Smoke Foundation: Chicago Relief Fund

View Website
Youth Development
|

Sports Shed

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

StoryCorps

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Strides for Peace

View Website
Environment
|

SustainUS

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Sweet Water Foundation

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

Symphony for a Broken Orchestra

View Website
Education
|

TalkingPoints

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

TaskForce Chicago

View Website
Education
|

Teach for America

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Team Rubicon

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

TechTonica

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Teen Line

View Website
Youth Development
|

The 18th Ward

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

The Confess Project

View Website
Youth Development
|

The Conscious Kid

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

The Dovetail Project

View Website
Immigration
|

The Florence Project

View Website
Education
|

The Hidden Genius Project

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

The Night Ministry

View Website
Environment
|

The Ocean Cleanup

View Website
Environment
|

The Ocean Project

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

The Resurrection Project

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

The Simple Good

View Website
Environment
|

The Solstice Initiative

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

The WasteShed

View Website
Environment
|

The Wetlands Initiative

View Website
Education
|

TheDream.US

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Thistle Farms

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Top Box Foods

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Treatment Alternatives for Safe Communities

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Uncharted

View Website
Education
|

Unite Against Book Bans

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

University of Illinois Baby Cuddling Program

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Upsolve

View Website
Immigration
|

Upwardly Global

View Website
Environment
|

Urban Growers Collective

View Website
Youth Development
|

Urban Initiatives

View Website
Education
|

Vox Teen Communications

View Website
Community and Economic Development
|

Water.org

View Website
Health and Human Services
|

Watsi

View Website
Environment
|

Well Done Foundation

View Website
Education
|

Wishbone

View Website
Immigration
|

Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

Young Chicago Authors

View Website
Arts and Culture
|

Youth In Focus

View Website
Youth Development
|

YR Media

View Website