The Hear Foundation Programs
Bridging the Badge
is a full-scale public safety Career & Technical Education (CTE) pipeline embedded within Pittsburgh Public Schools and housed at Westinghouse High School. While the lab is physically located at Westinghouse, the program serves students from across the district. Students from other PPS schools are bused daily to participate. This is not an after-school exposure program. It is an integrated career pathway.
Community Safety Innovation Fund Fellowship
Applications are open. Deadline: Friday, December 11, 2026 at 11:59 PM.
The Community Safety Innovation Fund Fellowship invests directly in the community leaders who are already making Pittsburgh safer. Fellows receive up to $10,000 to carry out a community-led safety project in their neighborhood, along with mentorship, monthly fellowship sessions, and a place in a citywide network of violence prevention leaders. In this inaugural round, The Hear Foundation will select at least one fellow from each of Pittsburgh’s six police zones.
Who should apply
Residents, organizers, and community leaders 18 or older who live, work, or operate in one of Pittsburgh’s six police zones and have an idea that responds to a safety concern residents want addressed. You do not need to be part of an organization to apply, but your project must be carried out in collaboration with community partners. Teams working on a shared project may also apply together.
What fellows receive
- Up to $10,000 in project funding
- Monthly fellowship sessions with leaders from across the city’s police and community zones
- A mentor matched to your work
- Workshops, with topics that will include storytelling, grant writing, budgeting, and community engagement
- Opportunities to share your work and story through The Hear Foundation
What fellows commit to
- Carrying out their project, tracking expenses, and providing updates
- Taking part in monthly sessions and mentorship
- Taking part in supported community speaking opportunities
- Submitting a final report by October 2027
- Obtaining Pennsylvania Act 33 and Act 34 clearances if selected, since youth from the community will take part in project activities. Clearance costs can be reimbursed from fellowship funds.
Funding and fiscal sponsorship
Fellows who do not represent a 501(c)(3) organization will receive their funding through New Sun Rising, the fellowship’s official fiscal sponsor. Funds are released once your project budget and event plan are finalized with The Hear Foundation. A fiscal sponsor fee applies for fellows using New Sun Rising.
Timeline
- Applications close: Friday, December 11, 2026 at 11:59 PM
- Fellows notified: by Thursday, December 24, 2026
- Orientation and monthly sessions begin: mid-January 2027
- Most community project events: April through August 2027
- Final reports due: October 2027
See it in action
Rain didn’t stop District 9. Residents, families, and the District 9 Street Team came together for a day of music, local vendors, and community. Neighbors showing up for neighbors is what community-led safety looks like.
Before you apply
The application asks about your connection to your neighborhood, the safety concern residents want addressed, the community partners you work with, your project plan and budget, and three community references. The form does not save your progress, so we recommend drafting your answers first.
Questions? Contact Amber Jackson at ajackson@hearfoundation.com.
Our goal is a stronger, better-connected network of frontline leaders, deeper trust between communities, institutions, and law enforcement, and lasting progress on the factors that drive violence. Over time, The Hear Foundation plans to grow the Fund, offer multi-year support to high-performing leaders, and build a citywide council of alumni to help shape public safety strategy.
The Hear Foundation Programs
The Hear Foundation is centered on bringing residents, activists, organizations, community groups, and Public Safety Professionals together to collaborate, build trust, and create solutions for public safety. We hold events where people work in partnership to identify clear and actionable strategies that address three key areas:
As consensus is reached on the approaches that are the most urgent and appropriate for Pittsburgh, The Hear Foundation’s grantmaking provides funding to support local initiatives that engage public safety professionals and residents around these three focus areas.
