About Woods Fund of Chicago
To promote social, economic, and racial justice by supporting community organizing, coalition building, and public policy advocacy led by people and communities most impacted.
Focus Areas
racial justiceeconomic justicecommunity organizingpublic policy advocacycapacity buildingmovement infrastructure
Funding Style
general operating / unrestricted supportcore operating supportcapacity strengtheningflexible funding
Topics
nonprofit operating expensesorganizational capacity
About Woods Fund of Chicago
Woods Fund of Chicago centers general operating support for organizations advancing social, economic, and racial justice in Chicago and the surrounding area. A defining feature of the funder is its trust-based model: it uses multiyear support to sustain community organizing and public policy advocacy rather than tying grants to a single program. That approach shows up in both its core grants and its annual grantmaking, which are built for grantee partners working on racial and economic justice, movement infrastructure, and coalition building. The foundation’s recent grant record also shows substantial support for anchor institutions in the local ecosystem. Crossroads Fund received $190,000 in 2024 and $170,000 in 2025 for general operating support, while Kenwood Oakland Community Organization received $140,000 in 2024 and $100,000 in 2025. Those recurring awards fit a pattern of renewing support for organizations that organize communities and advocate for policy change. Woods Fund of Chicago also made a $500,000 strategic award through its Movement Building for Racial Justice Fund, indicating that it can deploy larger, special-purpose funding when racial justice organizing calls for it.
What Woods Fund of Chicago Funds
Community organizing is a core throughline in the foundation’s grantmaking. It gave $120,000 in 2025 to Southside Together Organizing for Power for general operating support, and the organization also received $69,000 in 2023. Public policy advocacy appears alongside organizing, with grantees using support to sustain ongoing advocacy work. In 2025, the funder awarded $60,000 to Chicago United for Equity for general operating support. The foundation also funds movement infrastructure and field support. It provided $100,000 in 2024 to Open Collective Foundation Aka Paths, fiscal sponsor the Praxis Project, for general operating support, and it gave $70,000 in 2024 to Center for Third World Organizing for general operating support. Racial justice is not treated as a separate add-on; it is embedded across the portfolio, including the 2025 grant to Black Roots Alliance for general operating support.
How Woods Fund of Chicago Gives
Woods Fund of Chicago’s typical grant size sits at $35,000 at the 25th percentile, $40,000 at the median, and $50,000 at the 75th percentile. The structured program information points to a largely multiyear, general operating approach, especially for core grants and returning grantee updates. New core grants are one-year and renewable, while returning partners use a shorter organizational update process rather than a full application. The recent grants list shows both recurring support and large general-operating awards, including repeated funding to the same organizations across multiple years. The funder is a regular funder, not a DAF, and it does not fund individuals or make program-related investments. Unsolicited applications are accepted in several core and multiyear grant programs.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$5.6M
Total Assets
$40.3M
Total Revenue
$3.2M
Total Expenses
$8.6M
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $35K and $50K, with a median of $40K.
25th Percentile
$35K
Median
$40K
75th Percentile
$50K
Geographic Reach
Local8 states funded
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
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