Funding Opportunities

Through our work, we occasionally have the chance to support organizations in various research, programmatic, training and technical assistance (TTA), and other endeavors through competitive funding opportunities. All active public requests for proposals (RFPs) can be found below, as well as an archive of past such solicitations. 

Proposals submitted in response to solicitations are reviewed by CUNY ISLG staff and may also be reviewed by advisory committees, thought partners, and stakeholders from partner organizations, as further described in the specific solicitation.    

We invite proposals that present a range of experiences, expertise, strategies, and methods in the pursuit of stated goals. In line with our organizational goals and values, we strive to support initiatives that are culturally competent and serve the communities we work in.  

For questions related to specific solicitations, please check the solicitation for contact information. For more general information about our open funding opportunities, email info@islg.cuny.edu.  

Unsolicited materials are read at our discretion. 

Current Opportunities:

Past Opportunities

Community-Based Restorative Justice Grant Progam

CUNY ISLG, in partnership with the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice (MOCJ), is seeking proposals to implement the Community-Based Restorative Justice Grant Program in New York City.  This solicitation offers funding to incorporate or expand restorative practices and approaches in New York City, focusing investments on small and grassroots organizations that have historically faced barriers to accessing public funding.

MOCJ and ISLG anticipate funding approximately 15 proposals total, up to $300,000 per award, across three categories of programming.

The three categories of programming are:

  1. Category One: Design and implement community-based restorative justice programming that is culturally responsive in one or multiple settings/populations. 

  2. Category Two: Offer training and technical assistance on restorative justice principles and practices to organizations/individuals for the purpose of designing and/or implementing restorative justice activities in the community.

  3. Category Three: Design and implement a restorative justice paid fellowship for individuals interested in doing restorative justice work within their communities.

Documents

Deadlines & important dates

Proposals for this RFP were due by Friday, December 22nd, at 11:59 p.m. EST.

The deadline to request the support of consultants available to assist with compiling and completing the application, November 28th, 2023, has passed.

The deadline to submit questions about this solicitation was November 22nd, 2023. See Questions & Answers for that information.

Answers to all questions will be available as an addendum to this solicitation posted on the CUNY ISLG website. It will be the responsibility of proposers to remain up-to-date regarding all addenda issued for the current solicitation.

The proposal review process is currently ongoing, and CUNY ISLG will reach out to all applicants with decisions at its conclusion. Please stay tuned for updates.

Anticipated Public Award Announcement: May 2024

Anticipated Contract Dates: April 2024 – June 2025

Additional Background

Following the City of New York’s announcement of its plan to close the jails on Rikers Island, the City worked with the City Council to engage community stakeholders on the plan and to solicit ideas for investments in community safety. In October 2019, this process resulted in several Points of Agreement (POA). The POA guided the City to fund several initiatives to enhance community safety and re-envision justice. One of those initiatives was to increase funding for community-based restorative justice programming for programs that are both affiliated with the criminal justice system and those that operate independently in the community. 

To prepare for this investment, the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice (MOCJ) and the Restorative Justice Initiative (RJI) convened a 22-person Advisory Committee, most engaged in restorative practice or brought other expertise in funding, grantmaking, and program design. The Advisory Committee recommended focusing investments on small and grassroots organizations that have historically faced barriers to access to public funding. 

MOCJ is engaging the CUNY Institute for State and Local Governance to serve as the management entity for this solicitation and to oversee and support grantees selected for this program.