About Prism Foundation
Who We Are
Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, the Prism Foundation is dedicated to exploring critical issues that affect the Asian & Pacific Islander LGBTQIA+ community and supporting innovative programs and individuals seeking solutions to those issues.
Currently, we provide academic scholarships to non-traditional API LGBTQIA+ students and core funding to under-resourced and underrepresented local community organizations and projects.
In addition to the monetary support, we also seek to nurture and support these organizations for future growth and independence through infrastructural support such as mentorship and leadership development.
Our Mission
Prism Foundation empowers the Asian & Pacific Islander LGBTQIA+ community by raising critical funds and mobilizing resources to build a more just and equitable society.
Our Vision
True equity, global inclusion, and radical empowerment of our collective Asian & Pacific Islander LGBTQIA+ community free from social, economic, and structural barriers.
“What the scholarship means to me is a sense of relief after a really difficult past year and past summer. I came from a place of not even knowing whether or not I could go back to school. That's where I was at when I applied to the scholarship, to being really excited for the school year.”
Weiwen Balter (they/them)
University of California, Los Angeles
2017 Scholarship Recipient
Our Values
Empowerment
Our scholarships and grants, totaling $61,000 in giving in 2021, empowers promising students and organizations making impact in the LGTBQ+ & API communities.
To complement our fiscal support, we are developing a QTAPI Emerge Fellowship Program to equip community members with key competencies to serve on a nonprofit Board of Directors.
Impact
Since our founding, we have increased our giving to the LGBTQIA+ and API community every year, starting from our first grant of $250 in 2011 to $61,000 in 2021.
In May 2020, we organized a COVID-19 relief fund that distributed $10,000 in financial support to nonprofit workers and volunteers for LGBTQIA+ and API organizations and causes who had been impacted by the pandemic in hopes of sustaining their ongoing commitment to social impact and amplifying collective efforts for good.
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI)
In 2019, we created a DEI subcommittee that, in its first year, developed one- and five-year board DEI goals, conducted a board diversity survey, and identified critical training topics for the future.
We standardized a recruitment protocol to maintain an equitable application, nomination, and review process.
We incorporated accessibility measures for our events, including ASL for in-person events and closed captioning for videos.
Accountability
We publish end-of-year reviews that outline exactly what program areas our funding goes to and who it goes to, and make these reviews available to the general public.
We conduct internal reviews of our financial status and entire budget, evaluating our organization’s spending and giving distributions.
Community
Our annual event, Community Connections, convenes the Prism Foundation Board of Directors, recipients of our philanthropic giving, and members of the LGBTQIA+ and API community to connect and celebrate our culture, identity, and accomplishments.
We provide marketing, financial, and other forms of support for grassroots community events.
We serve as an ongoing resource for our grant and scholarship recipients by providing guidance or assistance as needed.
“Learning how my liberation is tied with other people's liberation has allowed me to become more insightful and intentional in my social justice work.”
Adrian Huq (they/them)
Tufts University, Massachusetts
2020 Scholarship Recipient
Funding
Prism Foundation is committed to providing accountability, transparency, and value to our donors and supporters who are integral partners in our stewardship of the API LGBTQIA+ community. Largely funded by individual donors, our donor base is as diverse as the community we serve. From donor advised grants to planned giving, we hope to provide our donors with impactful giving opportunities.
As an exclusively volunteer-run organization, we are able to dedicate a vast majority of donor funds directly back into our programs such as our scholarships, grants, and fellowship program.