When USAID was unceremoniously shut down, we were in Africa—standing beside partners who had just lost decades of hard-won progress overnight and individuals who didn't know where they were going to get their ARVs anymore. We’ve long known that democracy is an upstream issue, shaping every outcome we care about—from health and education to livelihoods and climate resilience—but that day in February, we felt  it in a freshly acute way. We wanted our community to feel supported

At the Ray and Tye Noorda Foundation, our mission has always centered on supporting justice, health, education, and livelihoods—both globally and here at home. Today, we’re proud to share a new step in that journey: the launch of a small, dedicated fund to support nonpartisan efforts to strengthen democratic systems in the United States. This decision comes at a time when many of the systems we rely on to advance opportunity are under strain. Civic institutions, norms, and...

Site visits can be powerful moments—funders see programs in action, and communities have a chance to share their stories directly. But...

The Ray and Tye Noorda Foundation (RTNF) is pleased to announce the release of a Request for Proposals (RFP) aimed at identifying...

We wanted to take a moment to provide an important update regarding our grant application process. At the Ray and Tye Noorda Foundation,...

Each year at RTNF we have the distinct pleasure and honor to begin partnerships with new social impact organizations, and renew our...

If you’ve ever written a grant, you’ve probably experienced the frustration of spending hours writing what seems to be the perfect Letter...

At the end of 2022, RTNF welcomed 14 new partners and renewed (or provided additional) support to 7 current partners. Congratulations to...

Update: If you missed these sessions, you can watch a recording of the session and access the presentation slides, which have the links...

The integrated methods used by Bridge Liberia have been proven by Nobel-Laureate Michael Kremer to have resulted in among the largest...

The value of a dollar is a complex thing. The value of a million dollars is a bigger complex thing. When used for philanthropic purposes,...

How Foundations Source Opportunities Every foundation has a different intake and vetting process. While some require prospective...

An Unfortunate Power Imbalance If you work in the social impact sector, you’re certainly aware of the power imbalance between nonprofits...

There is an on-going debate in the philanthropic community about whether to spend down foundation assets or give in perpetuity. There are...

In December 2020, the Ray and Tye Noorda Foundation added a second full-time staff member, Erin Blackford. We are excited to have her and...

Today we're launching our new grant portal, where applicants and grantees will apply, monitor their grants, and report on any awards. We...

We are so excited to announce our 2019 grantees! Congratulations to you all, we are so proud and excited to partner with you (or continue...

With the new year just around the corner, a new Letter of Inquiry (LOI) season is quickly approaching. We'd like to remind all potential...

Grantseekers have a difficult job to do. While their work is surely rewarding, I can certainly appreciate that it must be incredibly...

At RTNF, we use the term "Legacy Grantee" fairly frequently. Applicants and grantees probably see us reference this special category of...