Beech Brook – $75,000 for S.T.E.P.S., an early brain development program, in FY27
Birthing Beautiful Communities – $20,000 for the BREATHE program in FY27
Black Child Development Institute – Ohio – $50,000 for dissemination of research and advocacy in 2026-27 to inform Ohio’s Medicaid doula reimbursement policies
Bloom@PPRC – $20,000 for start-up support for perinatal mental health services in 2026
Bright Beginnings – $50,000 for Cuyahoga Parents Connect in 2026-27
Cuyahoga County Office of Early Childhood – $70,335 for FamilySpaces programming in 2026-27
Enterprise Community Partners – $100,000 for tax preparation assistance for families with young children in 2026-2027
Neighborhood Health Care, Inc., dba Neighborhood Family Practice – $50,000 to expand services at the newly relocated Ann B. Reichsman Community Health Center in 2026-27
Ohio Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics (Ohio AAP) – $50,000 to increase vaccine confidence among parents and caregivers in Cuyahoga County in 2026-27
Policy Matters Ohio – $25,000 for research to inform state policy on Publicly Funded Child Care in 2026-27
PRE4CLE – $75,000 for operating support in FY27
Responsive Grants
Housing, Health, and Skill Building
A Place 4 Me – $30,000 for navigation support for young families experiencing homelessness in FY27
Building Hope in the City – $25,000 for job and career readiness programming for families in 2026
Canopy – $40,000 for family advocacy services for child victims of abuse in FY27
Child and Family Advocates of Cuyahoga County – $40,000 for program support in 2026
Family Promise of Greater Cleveland – $50,000 to help unhoused families address economic stability in 2026
Journey Center for Safety and Healing – $50,000 for housing services for families impacted by domestic violence in FY27
Legal Aid Society of Cleveland – $50,000 for eviction prevention and housing law programming in 2026
Medwish Medworks – $25,000 for healthcare navigation services for parents and caregivers of children in FY27
Smart Development, Inc. – $30,000 for the Community First program in 2026
Spanish American Committee for a Better Community – $20,000 for the Families First program in 2026
Towards Employment – $20,000 for the Career Pathways program in 2026
West Side Catholic Center – $30,000 for housing stability services for families in 2026
Social and Emotional Well-Being
America SCORES Cleveland – $25,000 for youth development programming in 2026-27
Arts Impact – $15,000 for arts integrated residency programming in 2026-27
Beech Brook – $30,000 for Family Center parenting programming in FY27
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Cleveland – $30,000 for the community-based mentoring program in FY27
Girl Scouts of North East Ohio – $15,000 for social-emotional learning programming for Cleveland girls in 2026-27
Near West Theatre – $15,000 to provide theater arts residencies in Cleveland schools in 2026-27
Open Doors Academy – $30,000 for after-school programming for K-8 students in FY27
Partnership Schools – $25,000 for social-emotional learning programming in 2026-27 school year
Re:Source Cleveland – $20,000 for the Youth Mentoring program in 2026
ZENworks Yoga – $10,000 for yoga and mindfulness programming in CMSD in 2026-27
Other
Candid – $6,000 for operating support to provide capacity building resources to nonprofits in 2026
Our Revised Grantmaking Strategy
In 2024, the Bruening Foundation’s Distribution Committee and staff completed a planning process to refine the Foundation’s grantmaking strategy. The process included a literature review to seek information about the current wants and needs of nonprofits, agrantee survey, interviews with stakeholders, and conversations with community leaders. The purpose was to collect diverse, external perspectives about needs in the community that are aligned with the interest areas of the Foundation and to determine what possibilities exist for the Foundation to have a greater impact through its grantmaking.
The new responsive grantmaking focus, to be known as Thriving Families, is designed to complement our proactive Strong Start grantmaking strategy and aims to help families in Cuyahoga County out of poverty. Because kids need strong and supportive families to thrive, the Bruening Foundation seeks to invest in parents and caregivers who raise them. “Family” will be broadly defined as we understand that the construct of a family varies greatly. There will be two funding priorities within Thriving Families: 1) Housing, Health and Skill Building and 2) Social and Emotional Well-Being.
While some of the programming the Foundation has supported in the past may no longer fit with our new focus area, we value every grantee relationship and are grateful for the opportunity we have had to support so many important services in the community. We look forward to making a continued impact throughout Cuyahoga County with our new priorities. Please reach out to staff at Foundation Management Services with any questions.
Beginning in 2027, the Bruening Foundation deadlines will be February 1, June 1, and October 1. Applications will be open one month ahead of each deadline.
Beginning in 2027, the Bruening Foundation deadlines will be February 1, June 1, and October 1. Applications will be open one month ahead of each deadline.
