Grants are an excellent way to pay for expenses towards a business, education, personal finances, and other needs. In addition, grants don’t ever need to be paid back, unlike loans. For Black American women, there is an abundance of grant funding worth thousands of dollars they may be eligible for. 

Here are some great grant opportunities African American women can apply to.

Dr. Julianne Malveaux Scholarship for African-American Women

The National Association of Negro Business and Professional Women’s Clubs, Inc (NANBPWC, Inc.) offers the Dr. Julianne Malveaux Scholarship for African-American Women awards worth $1,000 to African American women who are studying journalism, creative writing, public policy, economics, political sciences, or a related field. 

Students must meet the following additional criteria to be eligible for the scholarship:

• College sophomore or junior enrolled in an accredited institution

• Cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale

• United States citizen

• Submission of scholarship application form

• Essay of 500 words or more on the topic of “Your Career plans and their relevance to the Dr. Julianne Malveaux Program theme: “Black Women’s Hands Can Rock the World.”

Black Founder Startup Grant

SoGal Foundation, in collaboration with Winky Lux, bluemercury, twelveNYC, Twilio, Walmart.org’s Center for Racial Equity, and other sponsors, is offering grant awards worth $5,000 to $10,000 for Black women or nonbinary entrepreneurs. Aside from grant funding, grant awardees will receive education about fundraising to help them scale their business and access to SoGal Foundation and SoGal Ventures teams.

Requirements for these grants are:

• Identifying as a Black woman or Black nonbinary entrepreneur

• Have a legally registered business

• Have plans to seek investor funding now or in the future

• Have a high-impact solution or idea with the aspiration to have a billion-dollar business

The Amber Grant

Created in memory of 19-year-old Amber Wigdahl, a Black teen who aspired to open her own business, WomensNet offers the Amber Grant, which gives away $10,000 monthly for women-owned enterprises. 

Here is a list of the other grants offered by the organization:

• $25,000 Annual Amber Grant 

• The Marketing Grant

• The Non-Profit Grant

• Business Category Grants

• Mini-Grants (up to $2,000)

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