NVHF Upstream Grants - Schedule a pre-proposal conversation by 3/11

Upstream Grant Opportunity 

The mission of Northern Virginia Health Foundation (NVHF) is to improve the health of residents of Northern Virginia. Many of the health issues confronting Northern Virginians are preventable and are not solely related to direct medical care. Those circumstances, the so-called social drivers of health, include such things as poverty, education level, race, and where people live, work and play. In turn, these social drivers are shaped by multiple factors including policies and systems of all kinds.

Collaboration across sectors is a key ingredient in working “upstream” to improve health outcomes. Meaningful partnerships among government agencies, nonprofit organizations and healthcare providers can lead to systems change. Moreover, collaboration across sectors can have a greater impact than the efforts of a single organization or a single sector.

As part of its 2026 grantmaking, the Board of Directors of the Northern Virginia Health Foundation is issuing this call for proposals for efforts that strengthen systems, change policies, or empower community change. These grants will focus on organizations that address one or more issues that affect the health of predominantly low-income Northern Virginians, and that deepen collaborations among three important sectors: nonprofit community organizations, government agencies, and nonprofit healthcare providers (primary, oral, and/or behavioral health care). Funds will support aligned efforts that strengthen systems, change policies, or empower community change. Organizations providing healthcare may be partners, but are not eligible to receive these grants directly.

To ensure alignment with Foundation goals, NVHF will host a round of initial conversations with interested collaboratives through March 11. These conversations are in lieu of a letter of interest. Schedule a pre-proposal conversation with Foundation staff here. Following a round of initial discussions, the Foundation will invite a subset of applicants to submit a full proposal, which will be due by April 8.

Grants may range from $25,000 – $50,000. In determining grant amounts for successful proposals, the Foundation will consider the amount it has available to distribute, community need, and organizational capacity to effectively and efficiently administer the grant.

Grants will not be awarded to individuals, nor for capital campaigns, building renovations, endowments, or bio-medical research. The Foundation’s Articles of Incorporation also provide that grants will not be awarded for the provision of the types of medical services or procedures that are excluded by the Virginia Medicaid program, except for those medical services or procedures that are required to be provided by a community health center under Section 310 of the Public Health Service Act or by a federally qualified health center under Section 1905 of the Social Security Act.

Please direct any questions you have about this request for proposals to Rachel Ermann Lynch at rlynch@novahealthfdn.org.