Morgan Stanley

Children’s Mental Health Innovation Awards

The Purpose of the Innovation Awards

Launched in 2021, the Morgan Stanley Alliance for Children's Mental Health Innovation Awards initiative aims to identify and fund mental healthcare solutions for children and young adults across the U.S. This program specifically addresses the lack of both private and public investment in children’s mental health and offers effective ways to connect innovative ideas with capital through seed funding, networking and capacity building opportunities. 

The Morgan Stanley Alliance for Children’s Mental Health was created to fund and leverage solutions for what we believe is a serious and growing problem for the next generation. With the Innovation Awards, we hope to further this goal by identifying and advancing new, impactful ways to help address mental illness in children and young adults.
— Ted Pick, Chief Executive Officer of Morgan Stanley and Chair, Morgan Stanley Alliance for Children’s Mental Health Advisory Board

THE 2023 INNOVATION AWARD WINNERS

Watch these videos to learn more about the game-changing work being done to support children's mental health by the latest winners of our initiative designed to address this growing crisis.

About the Program

WHAT APPLICANTS CAN EXPECT

The Morgan Stanley Alliance for Children’s Mental Health (the "Alliance") invites U.S.-based 501(c)(3) public charities to submit innovative ideas for advancing children’s mental health. Five selected winners have opportunities to: 

  • Be awarded with a grant of $100,000.
  • Raise their profile and showcase their program.
  • Receive consultation and training from industry professionals.
  • Learn from peers and build powerful connections.

In response to the high volume of applications in previous years, we will expand the Innovation Awards to support more charities. Through a capacity building platform, select applicants will be invited to join expert-led and peer learning sessions, as well as networking opportunities, aimed to benefit small to mid-sized organizations. 

For more information, please see program FAQs. >

ELIGIBILITY AND PROJECT SCOPE

We are looking for new or piloted projects from direct-service organizations that will help address the far-reaching challenges of stress, anxiety, depression or other mental health issues in children and young adults on a national or local level in the U.S. Projects must tackle specific issues and address unmet needs, with a goal of reducing stigma, increasing access to care, improving equity in mental health, enabling early identification/prevention or enhancing intervention, especially among disadvantaged and vulnerable populations. Organizations that are shortlisted for selection must agree to applicable terms and conditions in order to be eligible for final selection and awarding of any grants.

While all registered 501(c)(3) public charities based in the U.S. are eligible to apply to the program, it is focused primarily on those with an annual total revenue under $10 million. Applicants with an annual total revenue over $10 million must demonstrate why existing funds cannot be used to support the proposed initiative. 

WINNER SELECTION CRITERIA

Applications are reviewed by an expert panel of judges and are evaluated based on the equally-weighted criteria below:

  • Innovation: Applications must present an innovative solution for addressing unmet needs in children's mental healthcare, especially among disadvantaged and vulnerable populations.
  • Expertise: Applications should outline executable services informed and/or delivered by mental health professionals, highlighting any related mental health expertise and evidence-based models that they employ. 
  • Impact: Applications should offer measurable deliverables aimed at improving the state of mental wellbeing in children or young adults.
  • Potential: Applications will also be judged on the feasibility of replicating or scaling the proposed service to benefit children and young adults in broader communities.

 

KEY DATES FOR THIRD INNOVATION AWARDS

  • May 8, 2023: Applications open. 
  • June 6, 2023: Briefing session. 
  • July 14, 2023: Application deadline. Shortlisted applicants may be asked to submit additional information throughout the ensuing review process.
  • Spring 2024: Winners are announced and a broader group of applicants are invited to join a new capacity building platform.

For more information, please see program FAQs. >

For additional inquiries, email us at acmhinnovation@morganstanley.com.

More About the 2023 Winners

Closegap is an EdTech nonprofit startup focused on providing real-time mental health support and early crisis intervention for students in K-12 public schools through a free online mental health check-in tool.

K-12 Daily Mental Health Check-In: Captures relevant mental health information from students on a daily basis and delivers it to educators and school counselors using an interactive tool. 

View Closegap Website

The Confess Project trains barbers and stylists to become mental health advocates, with the mission to build awareness and break stigmas around mental health within the Black community.

Black Youth Mental Health in the Shop: Provides trauma-informed mental health training to barbers and stylists specifically for working with Black youth, leads workshops to train parents as mental health advocates, and sponsors free youth haircut events to raise awareness about youth mental health.

View The Confess Project Website

The Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide is dedicated to increasing awareness, saving lives and reducing the stigma of suicide through specialized training programs and mental health resources that empower teens, parents, school staff and community members with the skills needed to help youth build a life of resiliency. 

Adolescent Clinical Suicide Prevention Training for Nurses: Empowers non-psychiatric nursing professionals to identify and assist adolescents at risk of suicide through specialized prevention training in partnership with hospital systems.

View The Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide Website

Strategies for Youth aims to keep vulnerable young people out of the juvenile justice system and to provide them with the knowledge, support and resources they need to succeed.

Trauma Jeopardy and From Stress to Success - LGBTQ+ Youth Experiences: Offers psycho-social educational game-based interventions that help young people—particularly at-risk LGBTQ+ youth—effectively and safely recognize and manage trauma and distress. 

View Strategies for Youth Website

Up2Us Sports is the country's only national sports-based service program that trains coaches to address mental health and other challenges facing youth in underserved communities.

Sports-Based Youth Development (SBYD) Coach:  Provides a series of innovative and highly interactive videos accessed online and via a coaching app, which will provide coaches with techniques and best practices for fostering social and emotional learning skills as well as mental wellness among youth.

View Up2Us Sports Website

THE INAUGURAL INNOVATION AWARDS WINNERS

Discover more about the groundbreaking programs developed by winners of the inaugural Innovation Awards by watching these videos.

More About the Inaugural Winners

Black Girls Smile

Black Girls Smile provides virtual and in-person mental health literacy programming, education, therapy scholarships and resources to help Black girls and women lead mentally healthy lives.

Suicide Prevention Program: Building on its proven mental health literacy programming, this culturally and gender-responsive curriculum focuses on suicide prevention among Black girls and youth, with a new digital platform for enhancing virtual and on-demand programming across the country.

View Black Girls Smile Website

citiesRISE

citiesRISE is committed to transforming mental health through local innovation, coalition building, and youth-led action globally.

Mental Health Gathering Spaces: The Gathering Space model meets youth, particularly those who are marginalized, where they are by integrating mental health enhancing interventions into existing community spaces, with potential for adaptation into a range of settings and scaling for nationwide impact

View citiesRise Website

The Rural Behavioral Health Institute

The Rural Behavioral Health Institute is focused on improving the mental health of those living in rural communities by disseminating clinically proven digital mental health care.

Digital Screening Linked to Same Day Mental Health Care: This piloted project will identify and connect youth with an elevated risk of suicide to same-day mental health care and includes a universal digital suicide-risk screening of youth, linkage to same-day follow-up telehealth or in-person care, and an implementation template for replicating to other schools

View The Rural Behavioral Health Institute Website

Smart from the Start is a trauma-informed, multi-generational family support and community engagement organization with a mission to promote the healthy development of young children and families living in the most underserved communities of Boston and Washington, DC.

 

Address the Stress Program: This program is embedded in the community, engaging both parents and their kids in talk therapy and behavioral health counseling by developing fun and interesting group activities that promote mental, emotional, and physical health while reducing stigma and barriers to care.

View Smart from the Start Website

Teen Line is dedicated to peer-to-peer support by providing teenagers across the country with an anonymous, non-judgmental space to talk about their problems with highly trained teens who are supervised by adult mental health professionals.

 

Latinx Youth Career Development Program: This pilot program will train Latinx youth to answer texts on the peer-to-peer hotline, aiming to encourage Latinx teens to pursue careers in mental health, increase the diversity of hotline volunteers, expand the hotline’s service hours, and build more Latinx mental health ambassadors.

View Teen Line Website

ABOUT THE MORGAN STANLEY ALLIANCE FOR CHILDREN’S MENTAL HEALTH

For more than 60 years, the Morgan Stanley Foundation has supported healthy starts and solid education for the children in our communities, and has continued to expand the reach of those initiatives globally for the past 20 years through the Morgan Stanley International Foundation. Our latest initiative, the Morgan Stanley Alliance for Children’s Mental Health, combines the resources and reach of Morgan Stanley with the knowledge and experience of our distinguished nonprofit member organizations to help deliver positive, tangible impact on the critical challenges of stress, anxiety and depression in children, adolescents and young people.

 

 

 

Frequently Asked Questions

 

 

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Background and Basics

 

What are the goals of the Innovation Awards?

The Innovation Awards program aims to help fill the funding gap in the under-resourced children’s mental health sector and provide runway for game-changing ideas. Our goal is to bring nonprofits and funders together, in order to match much-needed capital with innovative projects in the field of mental healthcare for children and young adults.

Who can apply for the Innovation Awards?

While all registered 501(c)(3) public charities based in the U.S. are eligible to apply, this program is primarily focused on those with an annual revenue under $10 million. Applicants with an annual total revenue over $10 million must demonstrate why they cannot fund the proposed initiative internally.  

What is the eligible project scope?

We are looking for new or piloted projects from direct-service organizations that will help address the far-reaching challenge of stress, anxiety, depression or other mental health issues in children and young adults in the U.S. Projects must tackle specific issues and address unmet needs, with a goal of reducing stigma, increasing access to care, improving equity in mental health, enabling early identification/prevention or enhancing intervention, especially among disadvantaged and vulnerable populations. 

Is a local or regional project eligible or does it need to be national?

A proposed project can be national, regional or local in scope. We are especially interested in projects that can show feasibility of replicating or scaling the service to benefit children and youth in broader communities.

Are international organizations eligible?

No, only U.S.-based public charities are eligible to apply.

When are applications open?

While we aren't currently accepting applications, the application period for the next cohort will open in Spring 2024. 

Application Details

When does the application period open? When is the application deadline?

The application period for this year's cohort is currently closed. The application period for the next cohort will open in Spring 2024. 

If I applied for this program in previous years, can I apply again?

Yes, past applicants are welcome to apply again. However, we would encourage you to review your proposal against our evaluation criteria and questions listed on our application form and adjust as applicable. You are also welcome to submit a new proposal on a new project

How many applications can each organization submit?

One application may be submitted per organization, or per department for higher education institutions.

How are applications reviewed? Do I need to provide any further information?

Applications are reviewed by an expert panel of judges based on the selection criteria stated above. You may be asked to provide further information on your organization and proposed project during the process. Decisions by the Alliance are discretionary and final.

When will I hear back about my application?

We will notify applicants of their status before we announce the winners in Spring 2024.

Benefits of the Program

What are the potential benefits for winning organizations?

Five winners will receive grants to test and scale their innovative work. In addition, they will receive consultation and training from industry professionals, build powerful connections and raise their profile.

How much funding is available?

Grants of $100,000 will be awarded to each winner.   

Can funding cover overhead costs?

The funding does not cover institutional overhead on the proposed project—funds will go directly to the project itself and will not cover or contribute to any overhead costs of the organization.

Are grants recurring or made on a one-time basis?

Grants are made on a one-time basis.

What are the profiling opportunities?

Winners will be announced in Spring 2024, after which we will promote their innovative ideas through Morgan Stanley’s global communications channels. 

Capacity Building Platform

What is the new capacity building platform?

This year we have introduced an additional capacity building platform that will include expert-led and peer learning sessions as well as networking opportunities for a broader group of applicants.

What are the goals of this platform?

The first and second Innovation Awards received more than 1,400 applications from across the country, making clear there is huge need to accelerate mental health solutions. This new platform aims to provide in-kind support to benefit a broader group of applicants beyond the five winners.    

Will organizations selected for this platform receive a grant?

No, only the five winners will receive a grant. Participants of this platform will receive in-kind support.

Who is eligible for this platform?

All Innovation Awards applicants, which must be registered 501(c)(3) public charities based in the U.S., can indicate their interest in joining this platform. Note that this new initiative is aimed primarily at small and mid-sized nonprofits and/or those that have identified a crucial need to grow their organizations and connect with peers.

How do I apply for this platform?

On the Innovation Awards application form, you will be asked to indicate your interest in joining this platform.

When will I hear back after indicating my interest in joining this platform?

Your indication of interest does not constitute an official enrollment in this platform. We will review all applications and invite a select group of applicants to join this platform in Spring 2024.

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC (“Morgan Stanley”) are not implying an affiliation, sponsorship, endorsement with/of the third party or that any monitoring is being done by Morgan Stanley of any information contained within the website. Morgan Stanley is not responsible for the information contained on the third party website or the use of or inability to use such site. Nor do we guarantee their accuracy or completeness.

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