With the coronavirus in the US moving past six months and deaths exceeding 200,000 people, there is an urgency to find ways to counter the virus, as well as its broad range of impact. The Booz Allen Foundation has joined other organizations and corporations such as TDBank, Google and others who have directed their funding programs toward the battle against COVID-19, recently announcing the recipients of nearly $1 million in total grants from its Innovation Fund.
The grant program opened for applications from individuals, nonprofit organizations and eligible small businesses on April 30th and ended on June 5th, having received over 3000 applications from all 50 states, four U.S. territories and Washington D.C. Seeking creative solutions to the wide-ranging impacts of COVID-19, 21 teams were selected to receive grant funding, ranging from $10,000 to $100,000 per project.
“Our diverse set of winning teams displayed creativity, innovative thought and best-in-class ability to create impact for our most vulnerable populations affected by the pandemic,” said John M. Murdock, President and co-founding board member of the Booz Allen Foundation.
Some of the winning project proposals included:
- ways to scale production of and sanitize personal protective equipment (PPE),
- new methods of contact tracing,
- creation of mobile health units to specifically help at-risk communities, and
- the furthering of mental health services, among others.
Over 150 individuals participated in the grant application review process that yielded 30 semi-finalists who gave virtual pitches to a team of outside evaluators having backgrounds in innovation, entrepreneurship and grant making. The 21 selected teams were then reviewed and approved by the Booz Allen Foundation Board.
The grant recipients will also receive support from Foundation partners, enrollment into a virtual Seed Spot Boot Camp and a complimentary copy of “IMPACT: Reshaping capitalism to drive real change” by Sir Ronald Cohen.
Read about COVID-19 related Grants awarded to Innovative Women-Led Startups
