Open Call Funding Opportunity

Systemic barriers and inequitable policies often make it more difficult for historically marginalized communities to access the mental health support they need. Many people from these communities may not trust doctors or therapists — because providers don’t always understand or respect a patient’s culture or life experiences. Additional challenges such as high costs, provider shortages, lack of transportation, confusing systems, and fear of judgement make it harder to get help. As a result, those who most need support are often the least likely to receive it. 

The Culturally Responsive Mental Health Support funding opportunity seeks to increase the number of Central Texans from historically marginalized communities receiving culturally responsive mental health and well-being supports that honor their racial and cultural identities in trusted spaces in community. The focus is on:  

• Preventative supports rather than clinical mental health services that focus on diagnosis and treatment of mental health conditions 

• Non-clinical, community -based supports in settings outside of traditional healthcare clinical environments 

• Supports with a clear and direct impact on the mental health or well-being of historically marginalized Central Texans 

Applicants should be Central Texas organizations that are highly trusted and connected to their community, understand their specific community’s needs and assets, are proactive about addressing and removing barriers to mental health and well-being, and serve Central Texans from historically marginalized communities. Both large, established and small grassroots organizations are encouraged to apply, and, where and when appropriate, collaborate to combine their unique assets in offering culturally relevant mental health supports.  

The Foundation expects to award up to $5M for this funding opportunity. Each awardee will receive a flexible, one-time, 24-month grant.  

Eligibility

We encourage applications from a wide range of organizations that are rooted in and trusted by the communities they serve. This includes organizations that:  

• Operate in one or more of the following Central Texas counties: Bastrop, Caldwell, Hays, Travis, or Williamson. 

• Are a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (with a valid determination at the time of LOI Submission), a public or government entity (county, municipality, public health department, public university, public school), or use a fiscal sponsor that is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization.  

• Are community-based and serve a historically marginalized population in Central Texas. 

• Provide non-clinical, culturally responsive mental health supports, OR provide culturally responsive training and education for providers within community-based settings. 

Note: Organizations with an existing St. David’s Foundation grant are eligible to apply.  

How to Apply

The Culturally Responsive Mental Health Support open call will open on July 1, 2025, using a rolling Letter of Intent (LOI) process. The LOI will be a short eligibility screen on the criteria above and high-level summary of the applicant’s project, which will be reviewed by Foundation staff on a rolling basis. LOIs will not be accepted after July 28, 2025, at 5:00 pm Central Time. Proposals that strongly align with the intent of the funding opportunity will be invited to submit a full application after receipt of the LOI.  Invited applications are due by August 15, 2025, at 5:00 pm Central Time.    

Organizations are encouraged to submit their LOI as early as possible to allow more time if invited to submit a full application. Applicants can submit multiple LOIs, however each LOI must represent a unique program/project. If applying as part of a collaborative, applicants must identify one organization to serve as the lead organization of the collaborative. We define a collaborative as more than one organization formally partnering with another/other organizations to deliver coordinated services. The lead organization should be the only organization to submit an application for the scope of work. If a grant is awarded to the collaborative, the grant agreement will be issued to the lead organization, which is responsible for reporting and administering funds to the rest of the collaborative as agreed to by the participating organizations.   

All letters of intent must be submitted through the online Grants Portal.  Paper copies and emailed submissions will not be accepted.  

Contact Information

For programmatic questions, please email [email protected]. 

For technical questions, please email [email protected].