Impact 100

Across the country and across the globe women are taking their rightful place at the table where decisions are made. Nowhere is their presence more powerfully felt than in philanthropy, where women’s values and visions are reshaping our world. Registration is now open for Impact 100 2025.

What is Impact 100?

The Greater New Orleans Foundation’s women’s giving circle, Impact 100 is a group of over 100 local women who commit to giving $1,100 each and together making a single transformative grant to a local nonprofit. Impact 100 also give out smaller gifts to the other three finalists they select each year. 2025 will be Impact 100’s 13th year of grantmaking. Since its inaugural year, Impact 100 has granted more than $1.4 million to nonprofits across our region. Recipient nonprofits use the grant to deepen their impact and grow their network of supporters.

Why Impact 100?

Because, as Margaret Mead said, it really only takes a small group of committed individuals to change the world. In recent years, as women have stepped into their power—including their earning power—women’s giving circles have become influential change agents in communities across the country.

The nonprofits doing great work in our community need the support of philanthropists to sustain themselves and to continue making positive impact in our region. We believe it’s time for a women’s giving circle to transform some of the pressing issues facing the New Orleans region. By pooling our resources and focusing our efforts, we can be the change agents few of us can afford to be alone. Together, we can demonstrate the power of collaborative giving.

Women Making an Impact

Since its inaugural year 13 years ago, Impact 100 has granted out more than $1.4 million to nonprofits across our region.

On Monday, November 18, Impact 100, the Greater New Orleans Foundation’s women’s giving circle, surprised leaders of Health and Education Alliance of Louisiana (HEAL) with this year’s $100,000 transformative grant. HEAL will use the award money to grow their staff and support five new charter schools in New Orleans by providing them with nurses and mental health professionals whose salaries can be covered in future years by Medicaid reimbursements, adding these vital services for more than 3,200 additional children. HEAL enrolls schools in Medicaid in Schools program, allows schools to build capacity and make positions permanent, and connects families to resources thus boosting attendance and academic scores. HEAL has successfully enrolled 33 schools in the Medicaid in Schools program, impacting over 420,000 students. Watch the HEAL team learn about their win!

Before voting on the winner of the 2024 grant, Impact 100 members heard pitches from four local nonprofits about how they would use the $100,000 grant on November 13. View the pictures from the Pitch Event here. All participating nonprofits received pitch training and a profile video created by our nonprofit partner, New Orleans Video Access Center (NOVAC.) To watch the nonprofit pitch videos, please click here. While there is only one winner of the $100,000 grant, the three runners-up, 18th Ward Sports Club, Center for Employment Opportunities, and Grace at the Green Light, each received a $9,000 grant.

Thank you to Impact 100’s incredible presenting sponsor, Villere & Co., for their generous financial support.

For membership questions or to learn more about Impact 100, please contact Meg Miles, Vice President for Philanthropy, at 504.598.1291.