Second Quarter Grants 2025

During the second quarter of 2025, the Northwest Area Foundation approved 40 grants worth $12,184,545.

Our grantmaking supports organizations building racial, social, and economic justice—helping communities within our region of eight states and 76 Native nations thrive on their own terms. They’re advancing long-overdue change in deep connection with the land they inhabit and communities they serve—Native Americans, communities of color, immigrants, refugees, and people in rural areas.

This year is proving to be uniquely challenging for the communities and causes that are central to our mission. We’re stepping up by doubling our funding for 2025—investing more deeply in our priority communities with funding for dynamic solutions to challenges that arise suddenly. One of the primary ways we’re doing this is by amending many current grants to include more funding. These additional funds are considered new grants, and you’ll find them noted as such in our quarterly grants listing.

We include grants of $10,000 or more in the list below. For information on grants of less than $10,000, please visit our grants database.

AAPI Civic Engagement Fund of Los Angeles received $500,000 as a cost amendment to the existing $250,000 grant it received to enable the organization to build local AAPI capacity, shape powerful and compelling narratives, and advance AAPI leadership.
Grant term: Nov. 1, 2024 – Dec. 31, 2026

ACLU of Montana Foundation Inc. of Missoula, MT, received $150,000 as a general operating grant to support its efforts to advance dignity, equity, and justice for all in Montana.
Grant term: June 1, 2025 – May 31, 2026

African Career Education and Resources (ACER) of Minneapolis received $100,000 as a general operating grant to support expansion of housing stability programs in Minnesota’s northwest suburbs, focusing on tenant organizing and culturally relevant workshops to empower families and youth to address housing challenges and systemic inequities.
Grant term: March 1, 2025 – Dec. 31, 2025

Akiptan of Eagle Butte, SD, received $375,000 as a cost amendment to the existing $250,000 general operating grant it received so it can continue providing community-centered lending and technical assistance to help Native agriculture producers during fluctuating government policies and regulations.
Grant term: May 1, 2023 – April 30, 2027

Awood Center of Minneapolis received $100,000 as a cost amendment to the existing $150,000 general operating grant it received to help provide capacity to hire a communications director who can engage the community in person, vet information, conduct know-you-rights workshops, and monitor ever-changing conditions.
Grant term: Dec. 1, 2023 – Nov. 30, 2025

Confluence Project of Vancouver, WA, received $224,100 to support capacity building to help it transform into a culturally specific, Native-serving nonprofit over the next year, while capitalizing on its existing strengths as a Native-focused arts and education organization.
Grant term: July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2026

Lakota Fund of Kyle, SD, received $300,000 as a cost amendment to the existing $200,000 general operating grant it received to help offset increased cost of funds and to help the organization self-fund critically needed programs like the Construction Internship Program to preserve a successful job-creation program that has strong community support.
Grant term: Dec. 1, 2023 – Nov. 30, 2027

Lakota Youth Development of Herrick, SD, received $50,000 as a cost amendment to the existing $100,000 general operating grant it received to help it continue to meet community needs during its busiest season (summer) despite significant federal budget cuts, elimination of AmeriCorps VISTA volunteers, and severe downturn in international tourism, so its programs can resume without major disruptions.
Grant term: Nov. 1, 2024 – Dec. 31, 2025

Makoce Agriculture Development of Porcupine, SD, received $750,000 as a cost amendment to the existing $250,000 general operating grant it received to help it respond quickly to evolving priorities as it builds a local food system rooted in Indigenous culture and develops programs that advance economic justice in Pine Ridge.
Grant term: July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2028

Metropolitan Consortium of Community Developers (MCCD) of Minneapolis received $25,000 to support its efforts to undertake a critical website redevelopment project to enhance its digital presence, better serve diverse stakeholders, and align with a recent rebranding.
Grant term: May 1, 2025 – Dec. 31, 2025

Metropolitan Consortium of Community Developers (MCCD) of Minneapolis will receive $500,000 over two years as a general operating grant to support its advancement of racial and economic justice by strengthening small businesses, expanding equitable access to capital, and advocating for equitable community development across Minnesota.
Grant term: June. 1, 2025 – May 31, 2027

Minnesota Humanities Center of St. Paul, MN, received $60,000 to support the launch of the Latino Film & Narrative Change Project, a film initiative that will elevate Minnesota’s Latino voices, foster pride, and build empathy and understanding across communities by showcasing the strength and complexity of Latino identities.
Grant term: April 1, 2025 – Oct. 31, 2025

MN8 of St. Paul, MN, received $750,000 as a cost amendment to the existing $200,000 general operating grant it received to support rapid response and resiliency efforts focused on Southeast Asian immigrant and refugee communities in Minnesota, North Dakota, and Iowa.
Grant term: Nov. 1, 2023 – June 30, 2028

Mni Sota Fund of Minneapolis will receive $300,000 over three years as a general operating grant to support its efforts to expand its work to foster opportunities for Native Americans to build intergenerational wealth and pursue self-determined visions for their lives.
Grant term: March 1, 2025 – Feb. 29, 2028

NDN Collective Inc. of Rapid City, SD, will receive $2,000,000 over four years to support its For the People campaign, a call to individuals and institutional philanthropy to support Indigenous Peoples, Indigenous-led movement infrastructure, and community-based organizations.
Grant term: May 1, 2025 – April 30, 2029

NDN Fund of Rapid City, SD, received $562,500 as a cost amendment to the existing $250,000 general operating grant it received for lending and investing as it pivots back to its previous operating model that did not include significant climate lending infrastructure.
Grant term: Sept. 1, 2023 – Aug. 31, 2027

North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems of Minneapolis received $750,000 as a cost amendment to the existing $250,000 general operating grant it received to support the opening of Wóyute Thipí, launch Meals for Native Institutions, and protect emerging Indigenous organizations.
Grant term: Nov. 1, 2024 – June 30, 2027

Opportunity Link of Havre, MT, received $85,000 to support its efforts retain the three AmeriCorps VISTA members currently serving on Tribal Food Sovereignty projects in the communities they serve.
Grant term: April 1, 2025 – Jan. 31, 2026

Renewing the Countryside II of Hammond, MN, received $50,000 to support work around farmland access and support for emerging farmers, especially as federal funds are frozen, by hosting a convening on innovative financing and business structures.
Grant term: May 1, 2025 – Dec. 31, 2025

Rondo Community Land Trust of St. Paul, MN, will receive $250,000 over two years as a general operating grant to support its goal to meet the affordable housing and economic development needs of all 18 cities across Ramsey County.
Grant term: May 1, 2025 – April 30, 2027

SAGE Foundation Inc. of Fort Yates, ND, received $2,000,000 as a cost amendment to the existing $500,000 general operating grant it received to help the organization adapt to the changing environment and bolster its renewable energy efforts on Standing Rock Reservation.
Grant term: Sept. 1, 2024 – Sept. 31, 2026

Seeding Justice of Portland, OR, received $250,000 to support a New Arrivals Fund, which will connect new arrivals coming through the US immigration system with coordinated support as they reestablish their lives in Oregon.
Grant term: Jan. 1, 2025 – Dec. 31, 2025

South Dakota Native Homeownership Coalition (SDNHOC) of Kyle, SD, will receive $1,200,000 over two years to support its Great Plains Housing Initiative (GPHI) subsidiary and social enterprise focused on expanding access to affordable housing and mortgage capital in Native communities across the Great Plains. GPHI manages the Native Impact Fund (NIF) which serves as an alternative secondary market to recapitalize community lenders, enabling them to deploy more housing loans. Grant funds to SDNHOC will be subgranted to GPHI to use as lending capital and to build its capacity to administer NIF.
Grant term: July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2027

TAALA Fund of Taholah, WA, received $450,000 as a cost amendment to the existing $300,000 general operating grant it received to support its efforts to prioritize tribal community loan needs and address its loan pipeline to ensure community needs are met as fully as possible, despite significant budget cuts due to the elimination of federal grant programs.
Grant term: Oct. 1, 2023 – Sept. 30, 2027

Uniting Resilience of Rapid City, SD, received $50,000 as a cost amendment to the existing $150,000 general operating grant it received to support its efforts to meet the increasing demand for culturally relevant education, emergency responses, and safe celebration spaces for two-spirit and LGBTQ+ Native people.
Grant term: April 1, 2025 – March 31, 2027

West Side Citizens Organization (also known as West Side Community Organization) of St. Paul, MN, will receive $250,000 over two years as a general operating grant to help build its capacity to advance social, cultural, and economic vitality on St. Paul’s West Side.
Grant term: June 1, 2025 – May 31, 2027

WomenVenture of Minneapolis received $100,000 as a general operating grant to support its efforts to offer access to capital, business training, consulting, and networking to primarily underserved women entrepreneurs across Minnesota and Western Wisconsin.
Grant term: April 1, 2025 – March 31, 2026