OUR MISSION IS EASY
Environment
Art
Science
Youth Education
The Cornelia T. Bailey Foundation was founded in 2007 to promote the arts, education, and initiatives that seek to better our world by utilizing nature and the sciences. The Foundation was established by Mrs. Cornelia T. Bailey during her life and now serves to honor her philanthropic legacy as she so enjoyed supporting philanthropic organizations centered on education, veteran outreach, medical research, and, most significantly, the arts in all forms. We are proud to continue her legacy.
Our Foundation promotes equal opportunity for all and does not consider gender, race, ethnicity, disability, religion, or sexual orientation as a basis for issuing grants. We comply with all applicable federal, state, and local equal opportunity laws. When assessing grant applications, we focus on the program’s potential to make a difference in as many lives as possible.
Our Programs
The Cornelia T. Bailey Foundation provides four funding streams - four programs in addition to the general application process. Our general application requires a Letter of Inquiry to be submitted and approved before being invited to submit a full grant application. Our three programs do not require a Letter of Inquiry before applying for a grant.
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P/Arts stands for Philanthropic Arts and is our Foundation’s own initiative launched in 2019 to help catalyze non-profit, tax-exempt public charities, accredited schools and universities, and government or public agencies to implement or enhance programs utilizing art and art education in daily curricula, early childhood education and to assist disadvantaged students. Grants do not exceed $10,000 and applications submitted for more than $10,000 are sent back.
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Our Eager to Learn program was created to provide college test prep assistance to vulnerable learners and, in 2022, is expanded to promote education and access to trade schools. This program will ensure that students from every socioeconomic background have access to the highest quality SAT and ACT prep materials and tutors and opportunities to explore careers in the skilled trades by attending a trade-specific school. We formed the ETL program to partner with organizations poised to provide these services or who are already working with students to raise scores on the ACT and SAT or to mentor students who are interested in a trade. We want to empower students by providing them with a fair and equal opportunity to get into the best colleges, universities, or trade schools and position them to be offered scholarships and tuition packages by raising their scores or learning a trade. Grant awards do not exceed $25,000.
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The New Era Writers Program aims to inspire individuals to learn to write or support improving their current abilities. We believe that one of the most important life skills is learning to be an effective writer and communicator. We support programs that will provide those seeking to learn with the knowledge and skills to express themselves through the art of writing and encourage higher levels of training designed to assist in delivering clear and persuasive arguments for change and equality. Grant awards do not exceed $25,000.
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Beginning in late 2024 our Foundation will set aside specific program funding for veterans. We will fund projects and programs designed to honor veterans' sacrifices while providing them with the tools they need to thrive in civilian life. By addressing their unique challenges through a comprehensive and flexible programing, we can ensure they have the opportunities to achieve their full potential.
General Grants
Our Eligibility Form is the first step in the general grant process. The eligibility form will redirect applicants to the Letter of Inquiry form if successfully answered. The letter of inquiry should be used for projects outside our three programs' scope. Some additional areas of focus for our Foundation include:
Environmental Ingenuity:
We are working with organizations to reduce human environmental impact and increase fresh and saltwater quality.
Medical Research:
Focusing on funding initiatives involving high-mortality, under-funded diseases, specifically, but not exclusively, pancreatic and colon cancer.
Visual and Performing Arts:
We fund projects that provide students and children in the regions we serve with opportunities to experience quality arts programming, both visual and performing.
Veterans Initiatives:
We work with several veterans organizations to provide respite locations, therapeutic programming, and service animals for our wounded, recovering, and returning servicemen, women, and members.
“With so many budget cuts in the United States to the arts and performing arts curricula, it is necessary and essential that charitable and donor organizations step up and fill this gap."
— Hayley Little, Executive Director
Our Mission
Our mission is to assist organizations seeking to promote the arts or create programs that inspire, engage, and teach.
We dream that someday, the arts will no longer be considered a school elective or an interest for the few but necessary for living an entire and healthy life.
Through our partnerships in the community, we are utilizing the arts’ extraordinary power to inspire, raise educational outcomes for students, and enrich the overall quality of life in marginalized communities.
We believe that combining the talents of musicians, museum educators, nonprofit arts advocates, actors, teachers, and writers creates excellent synergy. In all forms, the arts have significant intrinsic societal value and can play multiple roles in youth education for healthy brain and social development.
In keeping with our mission, the Foundation values and will support organizations that protect and utilize nature to enrich peoples’ lives through conservation and beautification. We believe that a healthy environment means a healthier population overall.
Studies have shown that children benefit mentally and physically from outdoor activity and clean air. We seek to continue working with organizations that understand the value of our human connection with and reliance on a thriving and accessible green infrastructure.
As a charitable organization, we are further interested in supporting health science and medical research. We understand that supporting cutting-edge technology and research is paramount in gaining important ground on treating and hopefully curing all forms of cancers and diseases. We are specifically interested in supporting research in treating and curing pancreatic and other forms of high-mortality illnesses that have lagged in funding and medical advancement.
