Program Areas

The Weissberg Foundation funds efforts in four core program areas:

  • Disrupt, Move, Voice Power (DMV Power)

    • A four-year initiative centered on building power – through advocacy, organizing, and civic engagement – by and for people of color in the District, suburban Maryland, and Virginia as a strategy to dismantle structural racism in pursuit of a more equitable region.
    • In September 2019, we issued a request for proposals, and following review process engaging both foundation and community representatives, awards were made to a cohort of ten grantee partners in January 2020.

  • Equitable Justice

    • An initiative to advance small, community-based organizations in Maryland, New Mexico, New York, and Washington, DC that builds the leadership and advocacy capacity of system-impacted women, girls, transgender, and gender non-conforming individuals of color to advance equity and change the narrative about who they are, what our criminal justice system is, and what it can be.
    • In June 2018, we issued a request for proposals and after engaging foundation and community representatives in review process, awarded grants in November 2018. Funding for these grantees has been extended through 2021.

  • Equity, Diversity & Inclusion in Theater

    • A three-year initiative to build the capacity of DC-area theaters to advance equity, diversity, and inclusion through their governance, operations, and programming.
    • In 2016, six theaters were awarded three-year grants based on a competitive, multi-step RFP process that engaged both internal and external reviewers. The foundation and the grantee partners are currently engaged in a learning and evaluation process for the program and hope to share our learnings with the broader theater and funding community in the spring of 2020.

  • JustVA Fund

    • This fund seeks to support Black, Indigenous, and person of color led and centered organizations advancing critical structural changes to Virginia’s criminal legal system, to actively dismantle structural racism within the Commonwealth to create a more equitable and just world for Virginians.
    • In 2021, a request for proposals was released. Letters of interest are due on August 6, 2021. Following a robust review process, it is expected that grantee partners will be announced and awards will be made in December 2021.

  • Program in Human Rights & Social Justice

    • A long-term partnership with Beloit College in Wisconsin using a multi-pronged approach to prepare students to engage critically with human rights, as well as promote and defend them.