🏆 Congratulations to 2015 Kresge Artist Fellow Jonathan Rajewski and Kyle Daniel-Bey of Entry Points (@entry__points ), 2025 #JMKInnovationPrize awardee! Entry Points is a re-entry artist residency that offers housing, studio space, and support to returning citizens who were unconstitutionally sentenced to mandatory life without parole as juveniles in Michigan, allowing participants to not only transition to life outside, but also maintain their developed identity as artists. The J.M.K. Innovation Prize provides multi-year, unrestricted support for ten early-stage projects tackling urgent issues in social justice, the environment, and heritage conservation. Learn more at @thejmkaplanfund .

Meet our 2025 J.M.K. Innovation Prize awardees, selected from a nationwide search for transformative, early-stage projects in the fields of heritage conservation, the environment, and social justice. This sixth biennial cycle of the Prize drew a record 3,790 applications, more than triple the 1,100 applications received when we launched this venture in 2015. With the help of 538 volunteer reviewers, the J.M. Kaplan Fund has selected ten outstanding organizations who are confronting pressing challenges with determination, optimism, and ingenuity. Link to more info about their projects @thejmkaplanfund

We are overjoyed to share that Entry Points has been awarded the 2025 J.M.K. Innovation Prize! Following a nationwide search for early-stage projects with transformative potential, the J.M. Kaplan Fund awards the biennial Prize to ten innovators tackling urgent issues in the fields of social justice, the environment, and heritage conservation. Awardees receive $175,000 each and join a collaborative designed to help navigate critical phases of growth and impact. “By addressing the need for both stable housing and creative expression and community, Entry Points offers a transformative pathway for people rebuilding lives impacted by unconstitutional sentences,” said Julia Bator, Executive Director of the J.M. Kaplan Fund. “Their work reflects the humanity and ingenuity at the heart of the J.M.K. Innovation Prize, and we are thrilled to support them over the coming years.” Now in its tenth year, the J.M.K. Innovation Prize honors organizations pioneering transformative approaches to complex challenges in the fields of heritage conservation, the environment, and social justice. This year’s milestone cycle drew a record 3,790 applications, underscoring the growing need for philanthropic support of untested but promising ideas. The 2025 winners join a national network of 60 past recipients who continue to collaborate and learn from one another through convenings, mentorship, and strategic guidance provided by the J.M. Kaplan Fund. Learn more at jmkfund.org/innovation-prize-2025/ @entry__points @thejmkaplanfund