Kessler Foundation - 2013 Signature Employment Grant Cycle Opens

Grants to increase employment outcomes for people with disabilities

Deadline – February 1, 2013 at 5 pm EST - Visit kesslerfoundation.org and link to the application

Kessler Foundation awards Signature Employment Grants yearly to support non-traditional solutions and/or social ventures to increase employment outcomes for individuals with disabilities. 

Signature Employment Grants are awarded nationally to fund new pilot initiatives, demonstration projects or social ventures that lead to the generation of new ideas to solve the high unemployment and underemployment of individuals with disabilities. Preference is given for interventions that overcome specific employment barriers related to long-term dependence on public assistance, advance competitive employment in a cost-effective manner, or launch a social enterprise or individual entrepreneurship project. Signature grants are not intended to fund project expansions or bring proven projects to new communities. Innovation lies at the core of all signature employment grants.

Projects must be collaborative, serve a large geographic area and include multiple funding partners and stakeholders. In addition, initiatives or projects must have the potential for growth, scalability or replication. Applicants may seek funding for $100,000 - $250,000 per year, for maximum project funding of $500,000 over two years. 

All interested candidates must submit an online concept application. After scoring and review, a selected group of candidates will be asked to submit a full grant proposal to Kessler Foundation by May 14, 2013. Grants will be awarded in December 2013 for the grant period January 1, 2014 – December 31, 2015.

Any organization recognized as a tax-exempt entity according to the Internal Revenue Code may apply for funding. This includes non-profit agencies, public or private schools, and public institutions, such as universities and government (state, local, federal) based in the United States or any of its territories. Kessler Foundation will not fund projects that discriminate in hiring staff or providing services on basis of race, gender, religion, marital status, sexual orientation, age, or national origin.

Visit the Program Center tab on kesslerfoundation.org and select “Signature Employment Grants” for more specific information and the link to online application.

About Kessler Foundation

Kessler Foundation, a large public charity in the field of disability, conducts rehabilitation research in mobility and cognition that advances the care of people with multiple sclerosis, brain injury, stroke and spinal cord injury. Kessler Foundation is one of eight centers in the U.S. to have NIDRR-funded model systems for both traumatic brain injury and spinal cord injury. Kessler Foundation Program Center fosters new approaches to the persistently high rates of unemployment among people disabled by injury or disease. Targeted grant making funds promising programs across the nation.

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