National Council For Community
Grow America (formerly National Council for Community Development) is a New York–based community development nonprofit that invests capital and provides small business lending, affordable housing and community development financing, advisory services, and professional training. The site lists the New York HQ and offers program pages for lending, investments, technical assistance and training.
Source: Website · Mar 2026
Ideal Applicant
Organizations carrying out small-to-midsized economic recovery or community development work (small business support, local relief grants, community lending or technical assistance) with a New York footprint or clear links to the funder’s program areas.
Good Fit
- • Programs focused on economic recovery, small business stabilization, or community development.
- • Requests sized in the small-to-mid grant range (many awards cluster around $5K–$25K with some larger awards).
- • Ability to demonstrate rapid local impact or use of funds for business relief and community recovery.
- • Presence or partnerships in New York, or capacity to serve NY populations while also operating regionally.
Geography
Grants are concentrated in the foundation’s home state—about 62% of dollars in New York—but the latest year shows awards across 10 states, indicating a regional/multi-state footprint rather than a strictly local or fully national program.
Recipient Variety
The latest year shows very broad distribution (745 grants to 743 distinct recipients), with low dollar concentration at the top (largest recipient ≈2% and top five ≈9%), which indicates a large and diverse recipient set for the funder’s size.
New Applicants
Behavioral evidence strongly suggests open access: in the latest year nearly all grantees were new (about 737 new recipients) and only a handful of repeat recipients appear across three years, and the funder maintains a public website/contact page—direct evidence that unfamiliar applicants have been admitted into the portfolio.
Source: Zeffy Agent · Mar 2026
