To Our Community,

COVID-19 is already affecting all of our lives, some more profoundly than others.  This is a time for foundations to listen, to remove barriers, to increase support, and to act quickly.

Along with hundreds of other funders across the nation, we have made our general commitments public. But more specifically, the Opportunity Fund is accountable to you. While we are still actively determining much of our COVID-19 strategy, we want to share with you some of the preliminary commitments we are making:

• We commit to a higher total payout in 2020 than ever before.
• We commit to granting roughly $500,000 to support COVID-19 response, outside of our two normal grant cycles, and sourcing a significant portion of those funds from our endowment.
  • We have not yet determined how or to whom we will distribute these funds. We are not currently accepting applications or solicitations for these funds.
• We commit to continuing our two normal grant cycles, with a slightly reduced budget in 2020.
• We commit to loosening restrictions for active and future grantees. We’ll also provide more flexible options, including conversations, for grant reports during this time.
• We commit to listening to you. To reading your emails. To reaching out to ask advice.

Finally, less formally but wholeheartedly, we commit to walking the tightrope between being responsive to the urgency we are all experiencing in the moment, and to remaining nimble and flexible over the duration of this crisis. There are lots of ways we can support each other, including but certainly extending beyond us granting money.

In solidarity,

Jake, Tiffany and Idy