Thank you for your interest in our 2026 grantmaking cycle!
LOIs are due Tuesday, June 9, 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
Please find answers to frequently asked general, eligibility and application questions below. This page was most recently updated in April 2026.
General questions
Is Arbor Rising the same as Arbor Brothers?
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Yes! You can read about our 2022 name change here.​
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How can I learn more about your approach and work?
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In addition to our website, we encourage you to review our track record of impact, hear from prior grantees about their experience, and peruse our annual grantee survey results.
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Can I call, email, or meet with you before the deadline to discuss my LOI?
Due to expected volume, we are not able to respond to applicant email questions, phone calls, or meeting requests during the LOI stage. We look forward to being in closer contact with applicants in the following stages.
​I'm excited to apply! How do I access the 2026 application?
Our 2026 grantmaking process begins with an eligibility screen and the submission of an LOI, which you may access here.
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Submissions are due Tuesday, June 9, 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
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Our team will review the LOI submissions and invite a subset to the next application round towards the end of June.
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We will host a virtual information session for invited applicants to learn more about Arbor Rising and this year’s grantmaking process in July.
Eligibility questions
What types of organizations should apply?
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Arbor Rising supports direct service nonprofits that are:
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Building pathways out of poverty: An organizational focus on creating opportunities for low-income individuals to achieve economic mobility, most often through investing in education, job training, or other forms of human capital development
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High potential: Committed and diverse leadership teams employing a model which has delivered (or is on track to deliver) meaningful outcomes for program participants
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Second-stage: Operating an observable program and exhibiting a demonstrated interest in strengthening organizational performance. While this improvement focus can manifest at any point in an organization’s lifecycle, we find it most common between operating years 2-10 (what we generally term “the second stage”). Historically, AR's median incoming grantee is five years old with a budget of $1.2M.
To be eligible for support, organizations must:
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Have 501(c)(3) status or be fiscally sponsored by a 501(c)(3) organization
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Be based in and operate within the lower 48 states
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Have operated as an organization for at least 2 years, but no more than 15 years
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Have at least four full-time, paid staff members
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Have an annual operating budget of more than $500,000 and less than $3,000,000
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We make exceptions to the above operating budget guidelines for:
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Organizations less than five years old with budgets exceeding $3,000,000; and
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Schools and school networks with overall budgets up to $30,000,000 that are launching or growing programs which advance student outcomes
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Unfortunately, organizations that fall into the below categories fall outside the bounds of our program model and are excluded from grant consideration:
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For-profit entities
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Individuals, scholarships, and/or endowments
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Political parties
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Sectarian entities (religious, political or ideological in nature) whose services are limited to a particular sect or who require participants to adhere to specific dogma, political point of view or religious practice in order to receive services
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Advocacy-only organizations
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Broad multi-service community agencies
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Local or regional affiliates or chapters of national organizations
I thought Arbor Rising only funded organizations in NY, CT, and NJ. My organization is not located in this region. Is my organization eligible to apply?
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From 2011 to 2024, we partnered exclusively with organizations serving participants in the NY-NJ-CT region. Since then, we have accepted qualified applicants from across the continental United States, though we still prioritize those serving under-resourced populations in the greater NYC metro area.
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My organization does not yet have its 501(c)(3) determination, but I do have a fiscal sponsor. What information do you need from my fiscal sponsor?
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The only thing we need from your fiscal sponsor is a copy of its IRS determination letter.
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My organization has applied for Arbor Rising funding in the past. Are we eligible to re-apply?
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If you meet the eligibility requirements above, yes. That said, organizations that have repeatedly applied (especially in the last five years) are much less likely to be competitive in this cycle unless they have a new Executive Director and/or have undergone significant programmatic changes.
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We don’t quite meet all of the eligibility requirements (or we’re not sure if we do.) Should we still submit an application at this stage?
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To respect your time, we generally discourage applications from organizations that do not clearly meet this year’s eligibility guidelines. If, after reviewing those guidelines, you are unsure or know that your organization is not yet a strong fit, we invite you to complete this brief interest form. This will add you to our applicant database so we can keep your information on file for future cycles.
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Selection questions
I have a decent sense of the numbers you’re seeking but I’m not 100% sure of all of them. What should I do?
If you have exact numbers, please include them. If you have only a reasoned estimate, that is fine. All the numbers can be tightened and confirmed in later rounds.
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How do you define “low-income”?
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Since there is no perfect measure of “low-income” (or poverty for that matter) we don’t have an internal specific measure or bar to which we hold applicants. Instead, we’re seeking a realistic picture of the participants you serve. With that in mind, some people use the federal poverty guidelines, others use free/reduced lunch percentages, and others use self-reporting measures. We appreciate quantitative detail wherever possible.
As mentioned above, if you have exact numbers please include them. If you have only a reasoned estimate, approximate percentages are okay for the LOI.
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How do you distinguish between core participants and ancillary participants?
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Some organizations serve multiple groups of participants, some more deeply than others. The core participants are those that you serve deeply. If you only have one group of participants, then consider them all to be core.
Said another way: core participants are those for whom you hold yourself accountable to outcomes. Ancillary participants are those who you work with, but whose outcomes are either not tracked or on whom you feel you have only a minor impact.
For example: Organization A serves 3,000 people every year. 220 people participate in its 6-day-per-week academics and sports program over the course of 12 months. Those are the core participants. The remaining 2,780 people participate anywhere between 1-time sports lesson to 2-week summer session. Those are ancillary participants.
Is the Diversity Questionnaire actually optional?
Yes. If you are able to submit this information, we will be pleased to receive it. If the information is not readily accessible or if you are not comfortable sharing, your application will not be negatively affected.
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​How important is it that we’re interested in capacity-strengthening, and not just funding?
Very. Our model pairs unrestricted funding with a high-dosage consulting engagement of 200-300 hours per year. Organizations that are not ready or excited to invest leadership time in this kind of capacity-strengthening work are unlikely to be a strong fit for Arbor Rising.
