The Princeton Area Community Foundation awarded a total of $500,000 in Summer Initiative grants to 25 local nonprofits.

The grants were awarded to nonprofits working to help young people who face disconnection from summer programs for a variety of reasons, including prohibitive cost, trust barriers, a gap in services for middle schoolers, and transportation, food and housing instability.

“Our grantee partners are working to help students build their academic skills over the summer, while also providing the youngsters with fun, enriching experiences, including field trips and arts education programs,” said Mathieu Nelessen, President & CEO of the Community Foundation. “We are grateful for the philanthropists who help make these grants possible.”

Since its founding 35 years ago, the Community Foundation has connected donors to the causes that matter most to them, awarding more than $259 million in grants to nonprofits near and far.

This is the third year that the Community Foundation has funded summer programs through our Community Impact Grants Fund. That support is made possible thanks to the generosity of individual donors, corporations and foundations, including J&J and the Burke Foundation.

“Summer should be a season of opportunity, not a season of loss. It’s a time for exploration and joy, yet many young people in our region face significant barriers to the activities and support they need to flourish,” said Nelida Valentin, Community Foundation Vice President of Grants, Programs and Community Relations.  “The absence of school can mean a loss of access to steady meals, academic growth, and the mentorship of caring adults. By investing $500,000 in these vital summer initiatives, the Community Foundation is ensuring that every child, regardless of their zip code or financial circumstances, has a safe place to learn, grow, and simply enjoy being a kid. We are honored to support our grantee partners as they create these essential lifelines for our youth.”

Grantee partners:

  • Arts Council of Princeton, Princeton, $7,500, for its Creative Access: Summer Studio Scholarships, which will provide 15 camp scholarships for its high-quality arts education program. Meals will also be provided.
  • Artworks Trenton, Trenton, $7,500 for its Youth Art League, a 6-week affordable summer camp that offers programming taught by local working artists, as well as field trips and access to supplies like extra clothing.
  • Boys & Girls Club of Mercer County, in Lawrence and Trenton, $34,000 for its Tween & Teen Talent Pipeline Development program, a bridge to year-round workforce training, college access and leadership development. The 10-week tween camp, for kids ages 11-14, blends STEM, literacy, sports, swimming, career exploration and field trips. Meals are also provided. The Teen Drop-In program meets three evenings a week, and some Saturdays, offering mentorship, enrichment, dinner and door-to-door transportation.
  • Capital Harmony Works, Hamilton, $26,000 for its Free Summer Day Camp, a 3-week, half-day orchestra camp in July and a 2-week full-day chorus camp in August that includes small-group lessons, full ensemble rehearsals, reading circles, games, arts and crafts, field trips, and intensive study. Breakfast and lunch will be provided.
  • Catholic Youth Organization of Mercer County, Trenton, $14,000 for its East State Street Center Trenton (ESSC) Summer Camp, a 9-week program for children ages 5-12, with subsidized slots available. Activities include swimming, computer literacy, reading lessons, arts and crafts, sports, nature programs, and field trips. Breakfast and lunch are also provided.
  • Down Syndrome Association of Central New Jersey, Ewing, $7,500 for its Club DREAMS Summer Day Camp for youth with Down syndrome and intellectual disabilities, offering academic support, life and job skills training, recreational and enrichment activities, as well as family events.
  • Every Child Valued, Lawrence, $28,000 for its STEAMing into Summer 2026 program, which includes small-group literacy and STEAM projects, social-emotional learning circles, and digital storytelling and creative coding classes. Breakfast and lunch are also provided.
  • Fernbrook Environmental Education Center, Chesterfield, $5,800 for its Urban Youth Initiative – Summer Camp Scholarships, which will give 90 Trenton children spots at the camp and access to nature. Transportation to and from the farm is also provided.
  • Greater Mount Zion Community Development Corporation, Trenton, $11,400 for its Jasper Clark Freedom School: Summer Reading & Enrichment Program, a 6‑week literacy and enrichment program to strengthen reading skills and prevent summer learning loss for 40 scholars in grades 3–12. Activities including STEM, arts, civic engagement, social‑emotional learning, field trips and college/career readiness.
  • Greater Somerset County YMCA’s Princeton branch, Princeton, $25,000 for its Summer Camp. The grant will help provide scholarships for campers, and the program provides a safe, affordable place for children to thrive while their parents work. Swimming and water safety lessons are also included.
  • Hamilton Area YMCA, Hamilton, $40,000 for its Community Camp, an affordable school-based summer initiative that helps children overcome academic, social, and financial challenges and provides safe, dependable childcare for working parents. Students participate in literacy, STEM, sports, recreational and social-emotional skill programs.
  • Hamilton Township Public Schools, Hamilton, $7,000 for its Summer Camp Program; students in grades K-12 can choose from a variety of education-based camps that focus on activities including science, technology, culinary arts, art, language arts, performing arts, music, sports, and crafts.
  • Higher Up, Hightstown, $8,500 for its Summer Program, which matches Hightstown High School students with internships at local businesses, skilled trades and organizations. The program provides transportation to and from worksites via taxi-service vouchers and provides support through a professional development program.
  • HomeFront, Lawrence, $25,000, for Camp Mercer 2026: Summer Programming for Families Experiencing Homelessness, Housing Instability, and Poverty, an 8-week free camp for children ages 5- to 15-years-old. Mornings are devoted to academic support and afternoons to summer fun and enrichment. Meals, transportation, counselors, and connections to other social services are also provided.
  • Mercer Street Friends, Trenton, $50,000 for its Summer Bridge Program for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Middle School Students, a 6-week program, which focuses on academics in the mornings and enrichment activities, including gardening, video production, fashion design, drum line, and sports, in the afternoons. MSF partners with Project Lead the Way on STEM Robotics and Automation lessons. Campers also go on field trips.
  • Millhill Child & Family Development, Trenton, $20,000 for its Summer STEM Explorers Program, for rising 7th, 8th, and 9th graders. Lessons are offered in science, technology, coding, robotics, engineering, math and social emotion learning. Students conduct science experiments, go on field trips to university labs and museums and meet professionals in the field.
  • PEI Kids, Lawrence, $13,000, for its Juvenile Intervention Services (JIS) Summer Initiative, which is designed to provide a structured environment to prevent youth from becoming involved in the juvenile justice system. Students volunteer in the community, go on field trips and participate in team building exercises.
  • Princeton-Blairstown Center, Princeton, $10,000 for its Trenton Summer Bridge Program, held at the nonprofit’s 268-acre Blairstown Campus, where students get academic instruction, lessons on communication, cooperation, critical thinking, and creativity, and develop an increased appreciation for the outdoors.
  • RISE, Hightstown, $30,000 for its Summer Academic Enrichment Program, an affordable, 6-week, full-day initiative that serves up to 125 young people. Students receive morning instruction in literacy, math, science, and art. Afternoon activities include sports, robotics, and dance. It includes meals and weekly educational field trips. Older tweens and teens serve as Leaders-in-Training.
  • Shiloh Community Development Corporation, Trenton, $20,000 for The Lenora M. Green Freedom School of Trenton, a six-week summer literacy and enrichment program for 50 students in grades 3 through 8. Students go on college visits and educational field trips. Meals and family engagement workshops are also provided.
  • Snipes Farm and Education Center, Morrisville, Pa., $15,000 for its Summer Farm Day Camp, an eight-week camp designed to help tweens and teens understand nutrition, the importance of environmental stewardship and the value of agriculture. Students learn about growing, cooking, and eating natural food; and improve their reading skills. Teens get leadership experience.
  • Sprout U School of the Arts, Trenton, $12,500 for its Sprout U Green STEM & STREAM Learning Summer Program, an immersive outdoor experience, integrating ecology studies, engineering challenges using recycled materials, and nature-inspired creative writing and performance. Lessons include environmental literacy, collaborative problem-solving, and fitness activities.
  • The Children’s Home Society of New Jersey, Trenton, $32,300, for its Extended Day Summer Camp, a four-week program for 70 Trenton students in grades 4 to 8. Activities include coding and robotics clubs, cooking clubs, and field trips. The grant will allow the nonprofit to extend the camp day by two hours, providing needed childcare for working parents.
  • Trenton Circus Squad, Trenton, $35,000, for its free Summer Youth Development Through Circus program for students who attend Trenton’s Grace A. Dunn Middle School or participate in other nonprofit programs in the city. Academic support and tutoring will be provided by school faculty and through a partnership with the Children’s Home Society.
  • UrbanPromise Trenton, Trenton, $15,000, for its Summer Camp, a 6-week program that offers free academic support to Trenton students. Morning activities include STEM, reading, and arts and crafts. Enrichment activities take place in the afternoon, and students go on weekly field trips.