About the Grant Opportunity
A healthy democracy depends on active participation — volunteering, dialogue, collective problem-solving, and shared leadership.
Yet too often, young people are positioned as recipients of services rather than contributors to solutions. Access to meaningful civic engagement remains uneven. By supporting existing youth leadership programs that combine skill-building, real-world civic action, and authentic youth voice, we invest in youth as partners, problem-solvers, and community leaders. Additionally, we prepare the next generation to use their voices to shape the communities they live in.
San Diego’s youth bring resilience, creativity, and a strong desire to contribute. Investing in their leadership today not only addresses current civic challenges but also supports the long-term strategy to strengthen the region’s social fabric and future vitality.
The Vision:
To cultivate a generation of young people who are equipped with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to participate fully in civic life, shape their future, and contribute to a more inclusive and equitable future for all San Diegans.
The goal of this initiative is to invest in youth leadership programs that cultivate skills, confidence, and pathways for civic engagement* through real-world problem-solving and sustained participation.
*For this initiative, civic engagement is defined as nonpartisan efforts that strengthen democracy by fostering dialogue, participation, collaboration, and shared action for the common good.
The initiative will support programs that:
- Prepare middle and high school-aged youth with leadership, collaboration, and problem-solving skills.
- Offer experiential learning tied to real community issues (e.g., health and well-being, arts and culture, climate resilience, democratic participation).
- Build supportive networks connecting youth to mentors, civic leaders, and workforce pathways.
- Center and elevate youth voice through storytelling, content creation, and visible leadership roles.
Programs must provide ongoing engagement and culminate in an action project where youth actively contribute to community solutions. Priority will be given to programs that meaningfully engage youth across all forms of differences.
By strengthening the ecosystem of youth leadership development, the initiative ensures that young people across San Diego see themselves as stakeholders — and are prepared to lead positive change.
Guidelines
- Grant Term: July 2026 – December 2027, 18 months
- Anticipated Grant Awards: Up to $150,000
- Total Funds for the Initiative: $2.5M in funding
- Estimated Number of Awards: 15 – 20 grants
- Type of Funding: Programmatic
Eligibility
Eligible applicants must meet the following criteria:
- Be a 501c3, fiscally sponsored, or a Tribal entity working in and/or serving SD County.
- The program is located and serving youth in San Diego County.
- The program serves middle and/or high school-age youth.
- The program has a core emphasis on leadership development, civic engagement, and community problem-solving.
- The program is existing, expanding, or strengthening an aspect of the youth leadership program.
Fluxx
If you are new to Prebys’ Fluxx portal, note that registration requires approval from program staff, which can take 2 – 3 days (excluding weekends and holidays). Applicants will have access to the grant portal once the registration has been approved.
Project Criteria
- Programming must provide ongoing engagement (versus one-time interactions) and directly prepare youth with leadership, collaboration, and problem-solving.
- Action Project: In addition to skill development, youth must actively implement or contribute to community solutions by the end of the project term.
- Proposal must have a defined area of focus and achievable programmatic outcomes/outputs such as:
- Number of participants engaged
- Demonstrated leadership skill development (e.g., collaboration, communication, systems thinking)
- Type of civic engagement activity/ies (e.g. volunteering, peer-led workshops, youth advisory boards/councils, creative/digital expression)
- Proposal must ensure youth voices are visible and uplifted, such as:
- Opportunities for youth to share their leadership experiences
- Use of youth-generated content (videos, social media posts, testimonials)
- Use youth storytelling to elevate community impact
- Priority will be given to programs that actively engage youth from a wide range of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives.
- Leadership curricula should be inclusive and/or community-informed by integrating the insights, experiences, and priorities of the participants.
Preferences for programs that:
- Engage youth as program co-designers or decision-makers
- Clear demonstration of the program’s community impact (e.g., through theory of change, learning, and/or community outcomes)
- Engaged alumni networks
Timeline
| Date | Actvity |
|---|---|
March 9 – April 17 |
Application is available via Fluxx |
March 17 – April 16 |
Office Hours. To schedule a meeting, see the button below. |
April 17 |
Applications due. Grant portal closes at 5 p.m. |
Late May – Early June |
Notification of application status |
June |
For Applications moving forward, period to submit additional information and have conversations with Prebys team |
July 2026 – December 2027 |
Grant cycle period |
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I create an account on Fluxx, your grants management portal?
If you are new to Prebys’ Fluxx portal, note that registration requires approval from program staff, which can take 1 – 2 days (excluding weekends and holidays). Applicants will have access to the grant opportunities once the registration has been approved.
How to Register: If you are new to Prebys’ Fluxx, please follow the step-by-step instructions provided in the Prebys Fluxx Registration Guide.
If you have an existing account with Prebys’ Fluxx portal, grant opportunities will be available in the “Apply for Funding” section of the grant portal.
My organization is fiscally sponsored. How do I submit my application?
Fiscally sponsored organizations are eligible to apply. Applications must be submitted through the fiscal sponsor’s Fluxx account, as the fiscal sponsor will be the legal applicant and grant recipient.
If your project is fiscally sponsored, please coordinate with your fiscal sponsor to ensure the application is submitted accordingly.
How does the foundation define “ongoing engagement”?
Ongoing engagement is the process of building long-term, consistent relationships through regular, meaningful interactions rather than one-time interactions.
What does community-informed mean?
Community-informed means integrating the insights, lived experiences, and priorities of participants into the design, implementation, and evaluation of projects.
How do I know which region my program serves?
Applicants are recommended to use the San Diego Health and Human Services map. Using the map, select the region/s that best represent where your participants live.
If the preferences do not apply to my program, will that impact my eligibility?
Preferred practices are not required and will not reduce your score if they are not included. Applications are primarily evaluated based on the core program criteria.
Should we create new elements to meet a preference?
No. Only describe preferred practices if they are authentic and already integrated into your program design.
Will staff be available for office hours?
Yes. Staff are available to answer questions about the grant initiative from March 17 through April 16.
