Investing in
Women’s Safety
and Independence

The WCA Foundation, a Signature Fund of the Minneapolis Foundation, has awarded more than $555,000 to 20 Twin Cities metro-area organizations providing women with vital support in safety, shelter, health, and economic stability.

WCA’s 2026 project-based grants reflect its commitment to addressing urgent challenges facing women across our community, particularly immigrants and women of color.

“The WCA Foundation is investing this year in projects that take a holistic approach to supporting women, recognizing the interconnectedness of personal safety, housing stability, economic empowerment, and overall health and wellbeing,” said Nancy Gunderson, Advisory Board Chair of the WCA Foundation. “We are inspired by the dedication and impact of our grantees in serving the complexities of women’s lives and are proud to support their important work.”

The WCA Foundation is a place-based women’s fund with an advisory committee of women volunteers who come together to learn about issues affecting women in the Twin Cities and recommend grants to organizations addressing those needs from an endowment of approximately $20 million. The fund’s grantmaking programs are guided by their Strategic Framework, which identifies three core principles: Trust, engagement, and responsiveness.

Projects funded by WCA in 2026 support community-based responses to gender-based violence, promote economic security, and address the Twin Cities’ childcare crisis through programs that expand access to affordable care while creating employment opportunities for women facing the greatest economic and racial disparities.

“In the face of today’s challenges, these grants support organizations that are deeply connected to their communities and working to ensure women have the resources, power, and opportunity to survive periods of crisis and thrive,” said Julia Ruther, the Minneapolis Foundation’s Program Officer for Impact and Collective Giving.

Asian Women United of Minnesota (AWUM), a Minneapolis-based organization serving women and families experiencing domestic abuse, is among WCA’s 2026 grant partners. “When a woman knocks on our doors, scared and isolated, facing multiple barriers to safety and security, she is showing us what courage looks like,” said Clara Haycraft, the organization’s Executive Director. “This grant makes it possible for AWUM to be there to meet her courage with unwavering support, reminding her of her dignity and right to live a life free from violence.”

Another grant will help Latina women start or grow childcare businesses through a program run by Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio. “CLUES is deeply grateful to the WCA Foundation for its generous support of our Logros Tempranos childcare training program and Childcare Business Incubator, the first of its kind in Minnesota,” said Liliana Letran-Garcia, President and CEO of CLUES. “This funding reflects our shared commitment to supporting and uplifting childcare providers through professional training and business development, leadership opportunities, meaningful partnerships, and recognition of the invaluable work they do every day.”

Photos courtesy of Asian Women United of Minnesota and Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio (CLUES) 

• 180 Degrees received $30,000 for Brittany’s Place, a transitional living program providing emergency shelter and wraparound support, rebuilding lives after exploitation, trafficking, and homelessness.
• 360 Communities received $30,000 in capital support for Lewis House, a new 50-bed shelter in Eagan with independent living suites for people fleeing intimate partner violence.
• Accola received $20,000 for Sarah’s… an Oasis for Women, which serves immigrant and refugee women who have survived torture, trafficking and war-related trauma, providing them with emergency housing and comprehensive support until they can achieve more permanent stability.
• Arts Us received $30,000 for STEMPreneurs Young Women, a workforce development program for young women that provides paid hands-on training in STEM fields, bridging the gender and racial wealth gap.
• Asian Women United of Minnesota received $30,000 to provide emergency shelter to victim-survivors of domestic violence in the Asian community at the House of Peace in Minneapolis.
• CAPI USA received $30,000 for WealthWise Women, a comprehensive financial wellness program that provides individual coaching and group training, guiding BIPOC women toward improved credit, sustainable budgeting, and readiness for homeownership.
• Centro Tyrone Guzman received $30,000 to pilot Manos Montessori Intergenerational Social Enterprise, a new model for providing vocational training, resources, and economic opportunities for Latina mothers.
• Children’s Dental Services received $30,000 for trauma-informed dental care for 500 low-income, housing-insecure women, delivered on-site at culturally focused shelters across the Twin Cities.
• Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio (CLUES) received $30,000 for its Early Childhood Initiatives program, which provides Latina childcare providers with the resources, training, and supports they need to enhance the quality of their in-home childcare or start their own small childcare businesses.
• ConnectUP Institute received $30,000 for three interconnected programs—Lunar Startups Accelerator, Capital Readiness Accelerator, and Integrated Capital Fund—that support women of color to advance from early-stage business owners to capital-ready enterprises.
• Dress for Success Twin Cities received $30,000 for emPowerU, a program that increases the job readiness and career advancement of diverse, low-income women in the Twin Cities.
• GMCC received $30,000 to sustain and expand Uniting and Mobilizing Mothers, a culturally specific recovery support program for pregnant and parenting East African women.
• Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota received $30,000 for its New Beginnings program, which provides legal services to immigrant survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking.
• Little Earth Residents Association received $20,724 for the Little Earth Women’s Circle, a weekly program centered on financial wellness, personal safety, and Indigenous means to health for women in the Little Earth housing complex of Minneapolis.
• Sojourner Project received $15,000 to provide free emergency housing and comprehensive, survivor-centered services for women and children who have experienced domestic violence.
• Southside Community Health Services received $30,000 for its Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) program. This program provides sexual assault victims with acute exams, including forensic evidence collection for criminal investigations, as well as follow-up medical and behavioral health care in a trauma-sensitive, culturally informed clinic site.
• The Annex Teen Clinic received $30,000 to provide low- and no-cost sexual health services and contraception to young women in North Minneapolis and northwestern Hennepin County.
• Think Small received $30,000 for its Wayfinder program, a workforce training program for women working in childcare that offers professional coaching, business advising, and community-centered leadership.
• Volunteers of America of Minnesota received $20,000 for Sisters Helping Sisters, a re-entry support program that equips women incarcerated at Minnesota Correctional Facility-Shakopee with cognitive-behavioral skills and practical tools for successful reintegration.
• YWCA St. Paul received $30,000 for its STRIDE program, which ensures stable housing for and teaches independent living skills to young Black women of color as they transition out of foster care.

The WCA Foundation will hold its next open grant round in late 2026. Learn more about the WCA Foundation and sign up for updates about funding opportunities.