Learn about our recent grantees by reading our grantee highlights and visiting their web sites to explore the breadth of support Comis Foundation provides. (Click any grantee name below to begin exploring.)
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826 Valencia
San Francisco, CA
826 Valencia is dedicated to supporting under-resourced students ages six to eighteen with their creative and expository writing skills and to helping teachers inspire their students to write. Comis funding provided support for expansion of the writing program into 2 extra elementary classrooms and additional grants were made for the Student Leadership program at the Tenderloin Center.
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American Mural Project
Wilstead, CT
AMP is a celebration of American ingenuity, productivity, and commitment to work. It seeks to inspire, to educate, to invite collaboration, and to reveal to people of all ages the contributions they can make to American culture. Comis funding was used to support the Summer Arts Enrichment Program to serve 70 students through a summer arts enrichment program (ages 8-17) and apprentice-style Digital Story Work internship program (ages 18-25).
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Ball for Life Oakland
Oakland, CA
Ball for Life Oakland (BFL), a fiscally sponsored project of L.C. and Lillie Cox Haven of Hope, facilitates equitable and inclusive Social Emotional Learning integrated recess enrichment daily to 250 students at Escuelita Elementary (OUSD). Through our recess enrichment program, we help students build Social Emotional Learning skills, develop strong relationships with students, improve school culture and reduce issues of bullying and behavior school wide. Comis funding provided the resources needed to expand the program to reach additional students.
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Bay Area Music Project
Oaklands, CA
BAMP has developed a secondary school music production program that provides opportunities for young people to fully explore the intersection of experimentation, artistry, and technology as a pathway to college or careers in the music industry. The multi-year Comis funding is allowing expansion of the Digital Audio Composition and Design programs for grades 6-12, creating access points to music composition and music technology careers that include real-world studio experiences, internships and mentorship opportunities from professional producers and musicians.
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Boulder Day Nursery
Boulder, CO
Boulder Day Nursery’s mission is to provide and promote high quality early learning programs, childcare, and family support services for low-income working families, in environments that respond to diverse ethnic, cultural and social traditions. BDN has been fulfilling this mission since 1917. Comis provided general operating funding to help support the Early Learning Programs and Health and Family Resource Program.
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Buffalo Prep
Buffalo, NY
Buffalo Prep was founded in 1989 by education and community leaders to help talented underrepresented students prepare for, obtain entrance into, and excel at demanding college preparatory high schools. Comis funding has allowed the program to expand and provide needed financial resources to students for the many extra-curricular activities available to all who can afford the additional costs.
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CentroNía
Washington, DC
CentroNía is a nationally-recognized early learning community founded in 1986 with a mission to educate children and youth and strengthen families in a bilingual, multicultural environment. CentroNía has provided early childhood education, wraparound family supports, and educator workforce development for a predominantly low-income, immigrant community for 36 years. Comis funding will be used to study the impact of its CIRPA model across 30 D.C. classrooms to conclusively document whether it improves Instructional Support scores under the Classroom Assessment Scoring
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Child Care Aware of America
Arlington, VA
CCAoA advances a child-care system that effectively and equitably serves all children. We lead, collaborate with, support & convene partners to design and implement quality child-care and community-driven systems change locally, in states and nationally. Comis funding will allow CCAoA to lead and facilitate stakeholder engagement around the launch of Colorado’s new universal preschool program (UPK).
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DC Wheels Dance Place
Washington, DC
Wheels Dance Place is a non-profit center of dance activity in Washington, DC offering performances, dance classes for adults and kids, and arts in education programs for youth. Comis Foundation started with this as our first grantee. Comis provided scholarships for students without the resources to pay for dance lessons. Initiating a Dance Scholarship program in the early 2000’s so that those with ability but not resources could develop their talents in dance.
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Denver City LAX
Denver, CO
Denver City Lax’s mission is to create educational and enrichment opportunities for youth in underserved Denver neighborhoods through the sport of lacrosse.Comis funds will be used to provide general support to both sustain and expand existing offerings and help build organizational capacity.
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Early Learning Ventures
Englewood, CO
Early Learning Ventures (ELV) is a Colorado based nonprofit organization dedicated to expanding access to quality, affordable child-care. Comis funding for a 2-year grant enabled ELV to provide scholarships for 12 months of free access and training in the Alliance CORE child care management system, enabling us to help more providers in ELV’s current markets in CO, TX, SC, IN, NY, WI, MI, HI, VA, and LA.organizations
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Education Through Music (ETM) Colorado
Education Through Music (ETM) Colorado
Denver, CO
ETM-Colorado makes music education a reality for thousands of children in the Denver metro area. We use music instruction to strengthen students’ ability to learn in all areas and work to build schools’ capacity to sustain music programs.Comis funds will be used for teacher training meetings, salaries, and instruments for students
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Enriching Lives Through Music
San Rafael, CA
Enriching Lives Through Music’s intensive music programming, coupled with a focus on academic achievement, social/emotional wellness and family engagement, provides students with opportunities to develop discipline, increased self-esteem and leadership skills.Comis Foundation funds will provide 170+ children with a tuition-free music education, year-round, for their entire childhood, providing increasing layers of support to them and their families as they grow older.
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Friends of the Children – Bay Area
Friends of the Children – Bay Area
San Francisco, CA
Friends of the Children-SF Bay Area (Friends-SF) effects generational change by empowering youth who are facing the greatest obstacles through relationships with professional mentors–12+ years, no matter what. We enroll only children who have experienced significant trauma and provide them with intensive, individualized guidance from full-time, paid, professional Mentors from ages 4-6 through high school graduation; focusing on school success, prosocial development, and overall well-being. Comis’s multi-year funding provides services for 124 youth enrolled in the program.
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Harmony Project Bay Area
Daly City, CA
HPBA provides free instrumental music training to youth from under-served communities in Daly City and Oakland. They commit to providing high quality music education from as young as 2nd grade through HS graduation. The Comis funding provided program administration, teaching hours, materials, and/or instruments as needed.
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Jewish Family and Children Services
Jewish Family and Children Services
Boston, MA
Founded in 1850 and serving 100,000 individuals annually, JFCS is the Bay Area’s most comprehensive problem-solving center, alleviating challenges from major life transitions and personal crises to everyday hardships. Comis funding was used to subsidize clinical services for CCY clients with financial need.
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Martha’s Table
Washington, DC
Born from humble beginnings on 14th Street NW as a safe space for children to access after-school meals, today Martha’s Table supports strong children, strong families, and strong communities by operating nationally accredited education programs beginning at birth; fighting for food justice and increasing access to healthy meals and fresh produce for over 20,000 residents; and promoting family success through our no-cost community store and engagement programs. Comis funding provided needed support for the expansion of our Healthy Meals program for school-aged children.
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Mautner Project
Washington, DC
Mautner Project is a national organization in the United States dedicated to improve the health of lesbians and other women who partner with women (WPW). It was founded in 1990 and it is based in Washington, DC. It provides direct services, engages in community outreach and health education campaigns, trains health care professionals to deliver culturally competent care, and raises awareness of lesbian and WPW health issues. Comis funding for support of various programs allowed for expansion of services.
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Mission Delores Academy
San Francisco, CA
MDA provides an education to children regardless of financial status; graduating students who are confident, lifelong learners, and academically prepared to succeed in the global community. Comis funding has provided the First, Second and Third grade classes with iPads for both remote and in-class learning. Comis also provided funding for an updated mural designed and installed by the students for the outside playground and storage container at the school facility.
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Pandemic Professors
New York, NY
Our mission is to provide free educational services to K-12 students in low-income communities. In our first year, we successfully served over 450 students nationwide. We value our unique approach of personally pairing each student with tutors that fit their specific needs and help them grow holistically in academics, social emotional skills, and in life.Comis funding was used to help students recover from the challenges brought on by COVID-19 and provide the technological and educational resources they need to succeed.
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ParentCorps
New York, NY
ParentCorps is based at NYUGSOM (New York University Grossman School of Medicine) and staffed by a diverse team of roughly 40 mental health professionals, educators, practitioners, and others. It works to build a more impactful education experience, one that centers race and culture, engages parents as partners, and supports children’s social-emotional well-being, to help unlock the full promise of early childhood education. Comis funding provided n eeded support to expand the scale of the existing program into new areas.
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ParentPossible
Denver, CO
Parent Possible equips parents of young children with the tools and information to be their child’s most valuable teacher, trainer and mentor in life. We promote and oversee delivery of parent engagement programs (Parents as Teachers, HIPPY, and Vroom), providing access and support, ensuring efficacy and impact, and advocating and collaborating with early childhood partners across the state. Comis funding provided for the opening and support of two new sites for the Enhanced Home Visitation program.
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Sacred Heart Community Service
Sacred Heart Community Service
San Jose, CA
SHCS’ K-12 Youth Education Program (YEP) provides low-income, at-risk youth with extended learning opportunities to excel academically, develop leadership skills, and bolster stress management necessary for self-sufficient adulthood. Our education programs began in 1984 to address the lack of extended learning opportunities in San Jose for low-income students.Comis funding provided for the After School Academy (ASA), Summer Academy (SA), and Parent Engagement Committee.
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We Care Services for Children
Concord, CA
Their Preschool Consultation Program brings mental health and behavioral support to preschools and provides skill-building for teachers, strategies to manage behavior and avoid expulsions, and capacity-building that remains long after our work ends. Expulsion from preschool is highly correlated to poor educational outcomes. Children supported are from marginalized and underserved families and successful educational experiences are vital to healthy growth and ability to reach their potential. Comis funding allowed for the expansion of services and support for staff struggling with the challenges of post-pandemic pre-k schooling for children up to the age of 5.
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Women’s Audio Mission
San Francisco, CA
WAM is a San Francisco/Oakland-based nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing women/girls/gender-expansive people in music production/recording arts, fields in which they are chronically underrepresented (< 3%). Comis funding will support the Girls on the Mic, an award-winning afterschool program that provides diverse women/gender-expansive instructors & hands-on, project-based training in podcasting, music recording, sound design and coding.
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Youth Art Exchange
San Francisco, CA
Our mission is to spark creative exchange between artists and San Francisco public high school students, who are primarily low-income youth and youth of color. Youth explore who they are as leaders and artists through free, high quality arts education and leadership programs. Our staff and faculty of artists reflect the diversity of our youth. Comis funding will provide general operating support to help develop and sustain our presence in two new, visible locations within Mission Housing Development Corporation