Connelly Foundation Funds Women's Leadership Institute

An $80,000 planning grant will help Little Flower Catholic High School for Girls develop a four-year leadership program.

Updated on Nov. 2, 2026 in Women’s Issues

Red-brick urban school building with tall windows and a stone entrance on a quiet city block under overcast daylight. — The Connelly Foundation awarded Little Flower Catholic High School for Girls an $80,000 planning grant to develop a four-year Women's Leadership Institute in Philadelphia. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

The Connelly Foundation has granted Little Flower Catholic High School for Girls $80,000 to plan a Women's Leadership Institute and Service Center. The school, located in Philadelphia's Hunting Park neighborhood, will use the grant for curriculum development, collaborative learning space planning, and long-term sustainability.

Why it matters

The proposed program would integrate faith, service, entrepreneurship, mentorship, and career readiness into the student experience. Full implementation will require additional funding and community support for Philadelphia students.

The Connelly Foundation's grant totals $80,000 and is designated as a planning grant for a program lasting four years. The extraction does not state the total cost of full implementation or the timeline for securing remaining funding.

The players

Connelly Foundation

A philanthropic foundation that awarded the $80,000 planning grant to support the school's leadership initiative.

Little Flower Catholic High School for Girls

A Catholic girls' high school in Philadelphia's Hunting Park neighborhood that is developing the Women's Leadership Institute.

The details

The grant will support curriculum development, collaborative learning space planning, and efforts to ensure the initiative's long-term sustainability. The program is designed to deliver hands-on learning opportunities that blend faith, service, entrepreneurship, mentorship, and career readiness.

November 2, 2026: Article announcing the Connelly Foundation grant is published.

Culture Shift

Philanthropic planning grants like this one typically fund program design before implementation, reflecting a funding pattern in which initial design money precedes larger commitments. Girls' leadership programs of this kind connect faith-based education with entrepreneurship and career preparation for young women.

Philadelphia families considering Catholic girls' schools may see the Women's Leadership Institute expand the school's offerings if full funding is secured. Students at Little Flower would gain hands-on exposure to mentorship, service, and career readiness once the program is implemented.

The takeaway

Planning grants give schools the groundwork needed to design leadership programs before seeking full implementation funding. Readers interested in similar initiatives can watch how the school secures the additional support it will need.