On June 1, 2026, the Women’s Fund of Santa Barbara is launching a Small Grants pilot program, opening a fresh funding stream for local nonprofit agencies with annual budgets under $500,000. Eligible organizations may apply for unrestricted grants of $10,000 or $25,000. Board Chair Carolyn Jabs and Board member Lynn Karlson sat for an interview with Cynder Sinclair discussing this new program. The interview airs in April and May on TVSB's 805 Focus on Cable Channel 17.

The Small Grants program offers unrestricted agency grants—usable for programs, capacity-building, or capital needs—with a streamlined application and minimal reporting requirements. The goal is to ensure that small agencies can focus more on serving the community and less on administrative burdens.

This new program, largely the result of feedback from Women’s Fund members, is part of a broader strategy to keep its grantmaking responsive to community needs. While the Women’s Fund will continue to award its traditional larger grants of $50,000 to $200,000—generally to agencies with annual revenues above $500,000—the Small Grants program is specifically designed to reach smaller organizations that often struggle to access larger, highly competitive funding pools.

For more details about eligibility and to access the application when it opens on June 1st, visit womensfundsb.org or nprnsb.org

About the Women’s Fund of Santa Barbara: With more than 1,400 members, the Women’s Fund of Santa Barbara is the largest women’s collective giving circle in the United States by membership. The Women’s Fund is committed to changing lives through philanthropy, focusing on the critical needs of women, children, and families in south Santa Barbara County. Since its founding in 2004, the Women’s Fund has granted nearly $13 million to 163 local nonprofits, supporting programs and projects that create measurable, lasting change in the community.