In the second year of grantmaking from its new Mental Health and Well-Being portfolio, the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation has granted more than $8 million in 2023 to nonprofit organizations supporting mental health and well-being, with a particular focus on young people. In addition to direct service providers working in the foundation’s primary geographies of Georgia and Montana, many of the nonprofits in the grant portfolio include national organizations driving influence in mental health care across the country, as well as state-wide funder collaboratives that catalyze collective action through philanthropy.
These grants build upon $5 million committed from the foundation in 2022 and address a range of needs along a continuum of mental health, from crisis to stability to flourishing. Data from National Alliance on Mental Illness show the ongoing need for mental health services, especially among young people: one in six U.S. youth experiences a mental health disorder each year, and 50% of all lifetime mental illness begins by age 14.
“Over the past two years, we’ve been learning from experts in the mental health field, policymakers and, most importantly, young people, about the extent of need for services as well as hopeful innovations in supporting mental health and well-being,” said Beth Brown, managing director, Mental Health and Well-Being, Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation. “One of the ways we believe we can make a difference is through supporting and fostering collaborations among foundations and inspiring an increased philanthropic commitment to mental health and well-being.”
As the Blank Family Foundation explored the needs in the mental health and well-being space, two themes came to the forefront, digital mental health and the epidemic of loneliness. Three grants address the impact that technology has on youth mental health, both as a detractor and a solution. A $325,000 grant to Common Sense Media will address the impact of…
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