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Headwaters Foundation for Justice
Headwaters Foundation for Justice was founded in 1984 as a public foundation dedicated to funding front-line organizers in Minnesota. The founding moment —...
Headwaters Foundation for Justice
Headwaters Foundation for Justice was founded in 1984 as a public foundation dedicated to funding front-line organizers in Minnesota. The founding moment — shortly after the 1983 merger of the Haymarket People's Fund and the North Star Fund — established Headwaters as a vehicle for place-based, community-controlled philanthropy. Co-Executive Directors Bilal Alkatout and Migdalia Loyola Meléndez, the latter appointed in 2025, now lead the organization under a shared-leadership model. The foundation targets social, racial, economic, and environmental justice through a portfolio of community-selected grants. Its asset-class mix centers on participatory grantmaking vehicles: the Fund of the Sacred Circle, the Giving Project model, and the Wellspring Fund. Joint initiatives include the Justice & Liberation Fund, co-funded with Black Visions at $2 million, and the Bush Prize: Minnesota, run in partnership with the Bush Foundation. Geographic focus is concentrated in Minnesota, with specific support for Native, immigrant, and Black-led organizations across the Twin Cities. Headwaters operates from a single office in Minneapolis with a team anchored by its board co-chairs Eric Howard and Fran Hutchins. While an endowment figure has not been publicly disclosed, Altss estimates total assets in the $5 million to $15 million range based on grantmaking volume and regional foundation comparables. Institutional affiliations include the Minnesota Council on Foundations, the Giving Project Network, Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy, and the Trust Based Philanthropy Project's 'Meet the Moment' initiative. In 2025: Appointed Migdalia Loyola Meléndez as Co-Executive Director, formalizing its shared-leadership structure. The foundation's structural differentiator is its Giving Project model — a cross-class, multi-racial cohort of volunteers who fundraise, then collectively decide grants. This diffuses decision-making power away from a single donor or board and embeds accountability with the communities receiving funds. The architecture is further defined by the separation of its three grantmaking funds, each with distinct community governance, rather than a unified committee structure.
General information
Firm type
Endowment / Foundation
Year founded
1984
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Minneapolis
Corporate office
Minneapolis, MN, United States
Principals
Bilal Alkatout
Co-Executive Director
Migdalia Loyola Meléndez
Co-Executive Director
Eric Howard
Board Co-Chair
Fran Hutchins
Board Co-Chair
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs the day-to-day grantmaking and investment decisions at Headwaters Foundation for Justice?
Co-Executive Directors Bilal Alkatout and Migdalia Loyola Meléndez share leadership of the foundation. Loyola Meléndez was appointed to the role in 2025, formalizing a shared governance structure. Grantmaking decisions are not centralized with staff; they are delegated to community-led committees structured through the Giving Project model and specific funds like the Fund of the Sacred Circle.
How does Headwaters source the organizations it funds?
Headwaters uses a participatory model called the Giving Project, where a cross-race, cross-class cohort of community members fundraises and then collectively decides on grants. This structure sources organizations through community networks rather than professional program officers. The foundation also co-funds specific funds, such as the Justice & Liberation Fund with Black Visions, to reach movement-aligned groups.
Is Headwaters a private foundation or a public charity?
Headwaters is structured as a public foundation, meaning it actively fundraises from a broad donor base rather than relying on a single family or corporate endowment. This structure underpins its community-led mandate and distinguishes it from private foundations governed by a single donor's legacy.
Does Headwaters Foundation do direct grantmaking or does it also commit to funds?
The foundation conducts direct grantmaking through three internal vehicles: the Fund of the Sacred Circle, the Giving Project grants, and the Wellspring Fund. It also pools resources through partnerships, such as the $2 million Justice & Liberation Fund co-administered with Black Visions and the Bush Prize: Minnesota program with the Bush Foundation.
What is the geographic focus of Headwaters' grantmaking?
Grantmaking is concentrated exclusively in Minnesota, with a particular focus on Twin Cities-based organizations. Historically, Headwaters has prioritized Native, immigrant, and Black-led groups working on front-line issues of racial, economic, and environmental justice within the state.
How is the Fund of the Sacred Circle governed separately from the rest of the foundation's assets?
The Fund of the Sacred Circle operates as a distinct grantmaking entity within Headwaters, steered by a Native-led advisory committee. Its governance is separate from the foundation's main board and Giving Project, carrying its own decision-making authority to ensure that funding for Native communities is directed by Native community members.
What is Headwaters' relationship with the Trust Based Philanthropy Project?
Headwaters is an institutional partner in the Trust Based Philanthropy Project's 'Meet the Moment' initiative. This partnership aligns with the foundation's practice of multi-year, unrestricted general operating support and its emphasis on reducing the administrative burden on grantees, reinforcing its community-first, low-barrier funding posture.
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