Partnership Grants

The Foundation makes grants primarily in alignment with our Ground Building, Policy & Systems, and Common Ground strategies, amplifying the power of Detroit students, educators, and community members to influence the education changes they want to see, supporting statewide policy advocacy efforts that advance systemwide changes that benefit them and all Michigan students, and building connections and collaboration across education stakeholders.

We award single and multi-year grants for general operating support as well as for specific projects.

Learn more about our grant areas here and by signing up for our monthly newsletter.

President’s Discretionary Fund

Currently Open for Applications: Our President’s Discretionary Fund is a $1 million annual fund for small, one-time grants that support 501c3 nonprofits that serve Detroit youth but fall outside The Skillman Foundation’s grantmaking priorities. This is a limited, highly competitive fund, allowing us to support Detroit youth in ways beyond our strategy.

Our Grant Partner Requirements 

In order to be eligible for a grant from The Skillman Foundation, an organization must be: 

• Nonprofit 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organizations or a government or public agencies (city, county, state, public school district) 
• Publicly supported charities as defined in Section 509(a) of the Internal Revenue Code 
• Offering opportunity and service to all, in policy and practice, regardless of age, race, creed, gender, religion, disability, sexual orientation, and ethnicity 

We do not fund: 

• For-profit institutions 
• Endowments, building campaigns, or capital costs, including construction, renovation, or equipment 
• Political campaigns, political activities, or lobbying for or against pieces of legislation

Grant Partner Resources

If you are a current grant partner, please contact your partnership manager. Current grant partners seeking information about our grants management system (FLUXX), grant payments, reporting, and more can find these resources here.

Contacting Grants Management

Our grants management team is here to help organizations that have been invited to submit a grant application and current grant partners seeking assistance with the Foundation’s grants management system (FLUXX). Reach them at grantsmanagement@skillman.org.

Grant seekers: Identify whether one of our funding areas matches the work you do, then contact the team at the email address provided on that page.