Grants Available to Improve Neighborhoods

The United States Department of Education recently released a request for proposals to support communities in developing comprehensive plans in which communities embrace children, families, and schools to replicate the success of the Harlem Children's Zone, which is transforming the lives of children and families in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City.

Promise Neighborhoods, established under the legislative authority of the Fund for the Improvement of Education Program, provides funding to support eligible entities, including nonprofit organizations, which may include faith-based nonprofit organizations, and institutions of higher education.

The program is intended to significantly improve the educational and developmental outcomes of all children in our most distressed communities, including rural and tribal communities, and to transform those communities by supporting efforts to improve child outcomes and ensure that the outcomes are communicated and analyzed on an ongoing basis by leaders and members of the community; identifying and increasing the capacity of eligible entities that are focused on achieving results and building a college-going culture in the neighborhood; building a continuum of academic programs and family and community supports, from the cradle through college to career, with a strong school or schools at the center; integrating programs and breaking down agency "silos" so that solutions are implemented effectively and efficiently across agencies; supporting the efforts of eligible entities, working with local governments, to build the infrastructure of policies, practices, systems, and resources needed to sustain and "scale up" proven, effective solutions across the broader region beyond the initial neighborhood; and learning about the overall impact of Promise Neighborhoods and about the relationship between particular strategies in Promise Neighborhoods and student outcomes, including a rigorous evaluation of the program.

The Promise Neighborhoods program will award one-year grants to support the development of a plan to implement a Promise Neighborhood that includes the core features described above. At the conclusion of the planning grant period, grantees should have a feasible plan to implement a continuum of solutions that will significantly improve results for children in the community being served. Click here for more information on how to apply for a $500,000 Promise Neighborhoods grant.

Leading scientists, community people and early career prevention students formed the Promise Neighborhood Research Consortium. The PNRC was funded by the National Institutes on Drug Abuse to help 50 neighborhoods move toward being Promise Neighborhoods. To find tools to help your community, please explore the PNRC’s new website.