COVID-19 & Higher Education Community Grants – United States

Deadline: 15-May-2024

The American Association of People with Disabilities is excited to announce the COVID-19 & Higher Education Community Grants.

The American Association of People with Disabilities’ COVID-19 & Higher Education Advocacy Program will be providing Community Grants of $500-$5,000 to groups working to address issues in higher education felt by the disability community, especially as it related to issues created or made worse due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

They will be for groups doing work to address issues in higher education felt by the community, especially as it pertains to issues created or made worse due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Project Categories

• They have four distinct categories where community grantees may submit a proposed project or event. Your project can focus on just one or multiple categories. While you are not expected to achieve all of them, the project should fall into at least one of the below categories.
  • Category 1: Knowledge Acquisition, Construction, Integration and Application
    • Connecting knowledge
    • Constructing knowledge
    • Relating knowledge to daily life
  • Category 2: Intrapersonal Development/Community Building
    • Meaningful relationships
    • Identity development
    • Interdependence
    • Leadership development
  • Category 3: Civic Engagement & Disability Rights
    • Activism to address civil rights for people with disabilities
    • Mobilizing disability community
  • Category 4: Disability Joy & Love
    • Embodies and promotes a culture of disability joy and love within their activities and initiatives.
    • Creates an environment where individuals with disabilities feel celebrated, valued, and embraced for who they are.
    • Actively fosters and spreads disability joy and love throughout the campus community, promoting a sense of belonging and affirmation.

The COVID-19 & Higher Education Community Grants can be used for things like:

• Leading a campaign to create a Disability Cultural Center on your campus
• Bringing a Disabled speaker to campus
• Host a gathering for your Disability Affinity Group
• Host a panel of disabled students to talk about the ongoing pandemic
• Seed money for a scholarship

Principles

• Excellent applicants will reflect all of the following principles in their application and approach to their work:
  • Principle 1: Centering the Most Impacted
  • Principle 2: Creating Inclusive Spaces
  • Principle 3: Challenging Ableism and All Forms of Oppression
  • Principle 4: Community Impact
  • Principle 5: COVID-19 Impact

Eligibility Criteria

• Funds must be used during the funding period (August – December 2024)
• There must be an individual or an organization who is identified to be receiving the funds
• Eligible groups may be made up of current students, staff, faculty, and/or alumni, or members representing a non-profit organization.
• Groups that are not eligible: For-profit organizations/businesses, Individuals (unless representing a group)
• If you are an individual identified to receive funding on behalf of a group they strongly recommend you seek partnerships with a registered non-profit OR at a college campus who may be able to receive the funds to serve as a fiscal intermediary. If an individual receives the fund directly, this will be considered taxable income and if applicable, may impact benefits. If this is the only option, they recommend consulting with a financial advisor for any potential impact.

For more information, visit American Association of People with Disabilities.