Grants | Bob Woodruff Foundation

Grants

The Bob Woodruff Foundation invests in programs that help our service members, veterans, their families and caregivers thrive.

We find, fund, and shape innovative programs across the nation that produce measurable outcomes that best meet the emerging and long-term needs of today’s veterans and their families.

Our Grantees are Our Partners



Beyond awarding grants, the Bob Woodruff Foundation works closely with these partners to ensure efficiency, gain awareness for evolving trends within the veteran space, and provide opportunities for collaboration with other members of the grantee network.

Our grantees, along with our local partners, are members of the Bob Woodruff Foundation’s Got Your 6 Network, which provides support to millions of veterans, service members, and their families in the communities they call home.

Interested in Joining the Got Your 6 Network?

“We’ve got your 6” is the Bob Woodruff Foundation’s enduring commitment to the population we serve. Our mission unites leaders and subject matter experts from the highest levels of business, government, healthcare, the nonprofit service sector, academia, advocacy, and philanthropy to address the urgent and emerging needs of impacted veterans, service members, families, and caregivers.

Our Got Your 6 Network provides access to no-cost programs designed to lift the tide of our nation’s veteran serving community. The network works closely to share resources and accelerate solutions that ensure veterans thrive after service.

Grant Opportunities

The Bob Woodruff Foundation Grants Program funds programmatic efforts serving the military/veteran community. BWF focuses on programs that improve overall health and wellbeing of service members, veterans, their families, and caregivers. We are interested in programs that:

  • Improve social determinants of health 
  • Decrease barriers to accessing physical and mental healthcare 
  • Increase accessibility to programming that fosters a healthy lifestyle 
  • Enhance opportunities for veterans to thrive after service 

To submit an application, your organization and program must:

  • Provide direct services to the military/veteran population
  • Be administered through a non-profit organization 
  • Demonstrate financial responsibility and sustainability and have filed a 990EZ or 990 for the last two fiscal years
  • Provide an audited financial statement or a certified financial statement (to include a balance sheet and income statement)
  • Have two years of gross receipts greater than $50,000

Competitive applications will:

  • Clearly articulate the logic of their program, to include the:
    • Specific need(s) the program addresses
    • Activities and outputs, and how they adhere to evidence-based practices
    • Impact on the individuals served by the program to date 
    • Intended measurable outcomes, and how they relate to the demonstrated need and are attributable to the program’s activities
  • Indicate how the organizations tracks and reports on the program’s impact on participants
  • Describe a program that is deliberately inclusive and equitable in both process and intended outcomes 
  • Demonstrate strong partnerships across the nonprofit and public sector, as appropriate to the program
  • Indicate the staff’s experience/expertise in the subject matter
  • Describe how the program uses scientific evidence, program evaluations, and industry best-practices to inform their program delivery 
  • Complement services that are publicly available, such as those provided by the Small Business Administration and U.S. Departments of Defense, Labor, and Veterans Affairs, the U.S. Departments of Defense, Labor, and Veterans Affairs and the Small Business Administration 
  • Benefit from professional executive leadership and governance 

We accept applications year-round and review applications on a rolling basis. We award grants twice a year, in our Spring and Fall grant cycles, and will notify all applicants on their application status as follows:

  • Applications submitted by January 12, 2023 will receive a response by June 1, 2023*
  • Applications submitted by June 15, 2023 will receive a response by November 1, 2023*
     

*Dates are subject to change

How to Apply for Funding 

  1. After reviewing our guidance below, returning users can log in to the BWF grantee portal and proceed to Step 4. If your organization has an account and needs your credentials, email [email protected] New users should adhere to guidance as follows. 
  2. New users can create an account for their organization. Note:  Save the username and password you used to create an account. Your username is not your email.
  3. Confirm your account by clicking on the link in your confirmation email. Note: Check your junk folder for this email.
  4. Once you confirm your account, you’ll receive an email asking you to create a new account password. Use at least 8 characters, and confirm the new password.
  5. Once logged in, choose “Explore Grant Opportunities” to access the application. 
  6. After you complete the required fields, click “Review/Submit” to review your application. 
  7. When you’ve completed your application, choose “Submit.” 
  8. You can confirm you submitted your application by clicking on the “Applications” tab in your Grantee Dashboard. 
  9. Wait for BWF to contact you regarding your application. 

Once you’ve completed the steps above to create your account, you’re able to access the Bob Woodruff Foundation grant portal

For updates on grant announcements, sign up for our newsletter.

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Questions? Please email [email protected]

NFL Grants

The National Football League’s Salute to Service is a year-round effort to Honor, Empower, and Connect our nation’s service members, veterans, and their families. It is grounded in deep partnership with nonprofits and organizations that support the military community in the United States and across the world.

The NFL partnered with the Bob Woodruff Foundation (BWF) to expand their Salute to Service initiative in support of those who have served in the military and their families. As the pre-eminent foundation dedicated to ensuring that veterans, service members, and their families are thriving long after they return home, BWF Finds, Funds, and Shapes™ best-in-class programs across the country meeting the urgent and emerging needs of this population. Through this partnership, BWF will invest NFL Salute to Service funds for the greatest impact on the military and veteran community.

Learn About Our Grantees

Warrior-Scholar Project

Veterans emerge from the military as highly adaptable team leaders with technical skills, and problem-solving capabilities accustomed to making decisions under stressful conditions. Warrior-Scholar Project introduces veterans to esteemed higher-level academics, ensures they are informed academic consumers, and provides them with academic skills critical for confidence and success.

Team Red, White & Blue

Team RWB focuses on exercise and social activities that, over time, become part of a healthy lifestyle and will facilitate an authentic interaction with community residents. Through its grant from the Bob Woodruff Foundation, Team RWB will build out its Eagle Leadership Development program to develop and strengthen local chapter leaders and thus partnerships and military-civilian relationships, in over 200 communities nationwide.

Sesame Workshop

SS4MF: Caregiving addresses the impact of caregiving and provides guidance and support for military and veteran families with young children (ages 2-8) to help them cope and build resilience while dealing with the challenges of living with a wounded, ill, or injured parent. Following initial BWF funding to identify and develop this curriculum, this grant supported Sesame Workshop’s creation of valuable resources for military families addressing three fundamental themes and strategies: Comfort and Strength, Sharing and Talking, and Routines.

University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio

The South Texas Research Organizational Network Guiding Studies on Trauma and Resilience, or STRONG STAR, is a multidisciplinary and multi-institutional research consortium funded by U.S. Departments of Defense (DoD) and Veterans Affairs (VA) to develop and evaluate the most effective early interventions possible for the detection, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and related conditions in military service members and recently discharged veterans. The most recent BWF to STRONG STAR grant builds on the current STRONG STAR Training Initiative infrastructure by working on innovative strategies to incentivize the delivery of EBT for PTSD to veteran patients and connect veterans with care providers offering evidence-based treatments (EBT).

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I apply for a grant from the Bob Woodruff Foundation?

The Bob Woodruff Foundation holds itself, and its grantees, to the highest standards of accountability. Grants are awarded annually in the Spring and Fall. To submit an application for open grants, log in to the grantee portal to fill out the appropriate forms below.

Log In to the Grantee Portal

At what times of the year are grant applications open?

Grants are awarded annually in the Spring and Fall. Sign up for the newsletter below to stay informed of the opening and closing dates for grant applications.

What criteria does my organization need to meet to be eligible for a BWF grant?

Programs considered for funding must:

  • Provide direct services to the military/veteran population
  • Be prepared to begin immediately upon receipt of BWF funding
  • Be administered through a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization
  • Demonstrate financial responsibility and sustainability and have filed a 990EZ or 990 for the last two fiscal years
  • Provide an audited financial statement or a certified financial statement (to include a balance sheet and income statement)
  • Have two years of gross receipts greater than $50,000
  • Clearly articulate an understanding of the issue(s) to be addressed
  • Be evidence-based and/or supported by peer-reviewed research
  • Collaborate with existing community resources and organizations
  • Provide solutions that complement services and resources provided by the Small Business Administration and U.S. Departments of Defense, Labor, and Veterans Affairs
  • Collect and report demographic information for participants
  • Report measurable outcomes to the Bob Woodruff Foundation

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