Chick-fil-A’s annual $5 million grant program, the True Inspiration Award, has new criteria for 2022: All nominees must either be majority Black-led or serve communities of color. The decision to focus the awards for this year is part of the quick-service chain’s “pledge to take action against racial justice,” according to the company.
Developed in 2015, this annual award distribution is meant to honor the chain’s founder, S. Truett Cathy, and finance organizations that help local communities and serve others.
Atlanta-based Chick-fil-A defines a Black-ked organization as “an organization with majority Black board of directors, executive leadership and staff.”
“By refocusing our annual awards, we are taking an intentional step to support leaders and organizations that are finding solutions to address key systemic issues experienced by many Black children and families,” the company website states.
The eligibility requirements include:
- Must be a (i) a 501(c)(3) based in the U.S. or (ii) a Canadian charitable organization that can provide an opinion of counsel that confirms it is the equivalent of a U.S. 501(c)(3) public charity in its home jurisdiction;
- Have a majority Black board of directors, executive leadership and staff or provide services that currently and intentionally impact Black communities or other communities of color in a quantifiable or measurable way; and
- Serve in the areas of education, hunger or homelessness.
Applications are open from March 1 through May 31.
There will be 34 winners announced in January 2022. Grants will range from $50,000 to $350,000. It is not required that a Chick-fil-A operator submit an organization, but some awards are only available for those submitted by operators.
More information on the awards can be found here.
The 2021 top category winners include DuBois Integrity Academy, Homeboy Industries, Yonge Street Mission, St. Paul CDC, C5 Youth Foundation Inc., Wheeler Mission, HOPE Multiplied, City Kids Wilderness Project, Lifestyles of Maryland Foundation and Good News Community Kitchen.