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girlsBEST: Building the Economic Power of Girls

In 2002, the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota launched girlsBEST (girls Building Economic Success Together), a grantmaking and public awareness program to build the economic power of girls, ages 12-18. In 2006, the Foundation became the first to permanently endow a fund for girls.

Applications are Open for the girlsBEST Fund

In the eighth cohort of girlsBEST, we are continuing our focus area on STEAME (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Math, and Entrepreneurship). We invite Minnesota organizations and groups with majority girl-driven programs to apply for a planning/seed grant or a multi-year grant to fund programs designed so that: Individual girls ages 12 to 18 will increase readiness to create financial security and wealth as a part of a more just economy.  Learn more about the girlsBEST Fund Grant Guidelines here.

Two Types of Funds

Multi-Year Grant

Grant size: $30,000 per year

Grant Period: Grants will be awarded for up to three years of funding, renewable each year based on evidence of satisfactory progress toward goals and outcomes 

Grant Criteria:

  • Programs serving girls ages 12 to 18. 
  • $25,000 in general operating support for the program. 
  • $5,000 restricted to staff wellness and development. WFM makes this restriction to ensure the organization receives an investment in the rest and wellness they deserve. 

Multi-Year Grant Important Dates

  • Application Opens: April 14, 2026
  • Informational Session: Live on April 16, 2026, from 11 am – noon (CST) via Zoom.
  • Application Closes: May 1, 2026, at 5 pm
  • Grant Notifications 1: The week of May 25
  • Site Visit Day 1*: June 3, 2026, from noon – 4 pm
  • Site Visit Day 2*: June 4, 2025, from noon – 4 pm
  • Grant Notifications 2: The week of June 15. Grant decisions will be sent from communityimpact@wfmn.org. Please save this email for grant communications.
  • Grant Payments: Community Impact team will moved approved grants forward for payment once all grant payment information is received.
  • Grant Period: The grant period is one year, renewable each year for up to three years based on evidence of satisfactory progress toward goals and outcomes.
  • Grant Report: A report will be due approximately one months after the grant period ends.

*NOTE: The site visit meetings are held virtually and scheduled on a first-come, first-served basis; please hold the date/time for scheduling purposes. 

Seed/Planning Grant

Grant size: $10,000 per year

Grant Period: One-time, one-year investment 

Grant Criteria:

  • Programs serving girls ages 12 to 18. 
  • These grants are for newly established organizations or organizations piloting a new program. 

Seed/Planning Grant Important Dates

  • Application Opens: April 14, 2026
  • Informational Session: Live on April 17, 2026, from 11 am – noon (CST) via Zoom.
  • Application Closes: May 1, 2026, at 5 pm
  • Grant Notifications*: The week of June 15. Grant decisions will be sent from communityimpact@wfmn.org. Please save this email for grant communications.
  • Grant Payments: Community Impact team will moved approved grants forward for payment once all grant payment information is received.
  • Grant Period: One-year.
  • Grant Report: A report will be due approximately one months after the grant period ends.

*NOTE: No site visit meetings required for seed/planning grant applicants. 

Eligibility

To be eligible, an organization must:  

  • Be a legally incorporated entity with 501(c)(3), or, 501(c)(4) status, or have a fiscal sponsor, or be a tribal nation/tribal entity.  
  • Schools with programs operating in Minnesota
  • Be based in and work in Minnesota

In addition, eligible organizations may:  

  • Be a current or past WFM grantee-partner (except for sponsorship grants: current grantees are not eligible to apply for a sponsorship grant in the same fiscal year) 
  • Be new to WFM. 
  • Be an emerging or established organization.  

Ineligible Organizations and Activities

The following entities and activities are ineligible for this grant: 

  • Projects within religious institutions that do not align with the mission and values of the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota 
  • Retroactive support of projects or activities 
  • Individual scholarships to attend college or university (exception: We Thrive) 
  • Capital campaigns  
  • Fundraising events (except for Sponsorship grants) 
  • Individuals; these grants are for organizations 
  • Organizations that may be deemed as discriminatory based on race, creed, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender expression, age, physical or mental ability, veteran status, military obligation, and marital status 
  • An organization that limits or opposes a woman’s right to self-determination 
  • Reduction of an operating deficit or to liquidate existing debt (sunsetting your organization) 
  • Not compliant with IRS standards 
  • Partisan efforts 
  • Late or incomplete applications 

How to Apply

Please reference our Grant Application Packet for all the information needed to include in your application. Applying for a girlsBEST grant is a three-step process. We encourage you to start early — account and eligibility approvals can each take up to two business days.

  1. Create an account in the Foundation Cloud Portal using your email and password. (New accounts require staff approval before accessing grant applications — allow up to two business days.)
  2. Complete the eligibility review after logging in and selecting the WFM Grant Application for Programs. You must answer “Yes” to all questions to be eligible. Eligibility questions cover your organization’s legal status, Minnesota presence, focus on women/girls/gender-expansive people, non-discrimination practices, religious inclusivity, and reproductive health access policies.
  3. Begin your application once you receive an email confirming your eligibility has been approved.

Are you a first-time user? Learn how to apply by using our registration guide, including full application instructions and eligibility questions.

Apply Today

Questions & Additional Resources

  • Zoom Information Session: The live webinar was recorded live on April 16. You can watch the playback down below and on the WFM YouTube Channel.

girlsBEST Today

Since launching girlsBEST, the Foundation has funded seven cohorts of grantee partners with multi-year funding across the state.

  • 416 planning and implementation grants provided
  • $5.9 million granted to 159 girl-led and girl-driven programs statewide
  • 60,406 young women and families engaged across Minnesota

Our girlsBEST grantees knock down roadblocks to girls’ future economic success, like low wages and job discrimination, sexist academic and career tracking by schools, poor body image and self-esteem, teen pregnancy, lack of leadership and athletic opportunities, and violence against girls. girlsBEST has shown time and again that when girls define their priorities and create change in their own lives, they expect more from themselves now, and later, as adults.

Grantmaking & Grantee-Partners

Grants go to girl-driven programs that have the support and involvement of women, mentors, community organizations, schools, and other organizations serving women and girls. Priority is given to underrepresented and underserved girls and communities across the state, including low-income girls, girls of color, and girls from greater Minnesota. girlsBEST grantees demonstrate a strong focus on girls’ economic development and girls are involved in all aspects of the program, including planning, implementation and evaluation.

girlsBEST girls represent hope for tomorrow. And at the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota, we know it will be the next generation of social changemakers — like the girlsBEST girls — that will ultimately make sexism, racism, and poverty in Minnesota history.

Meet our statewide grantee-partners:

Evaluation & Statistics

After 20 years of girlsBEST grantmaking, we know girlsBEST model programming is effective. Take these key findings from independent program evaluations:

Key Outcomes

  • High School Graduation: girlsBEST participants have a 98% high school graduation rate, compared to Minnesota’s 2019 average statewide graduation rate of 84%.
  • Post-Secondary Enrollment: girlsBEST participants have a 93% post-secondary education enrollment rate, compared to 31-73% in Minnesota overall, depending on the institution, in 2017.
  • Teen Pregnancy: 99% of girlsBEST participants avoided unintended pregnancy.

Strong Futures

girlsBEST girls represent hope for tomorrow. And at the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota, we know it will be the next generation of social changemakers — like the girlsBEST girls — that will ultimately make sexism, racism, and poverty in Minnesota history.

Read the evaluation reports of our girlsBEST Fund:

Explore our funds and areas of impact

See Our Impact