NEW HAVEN, CT -- The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven has announced its responsive grant awards for 2018, totaling $2,670,527 to nonprofit organizations working throughout Greater New Haven.
The grants will support 51 local programs and institutions, including health services to vulnerable residents, public libraries, homeless shelters, and efforts to expand economic opportunities for residents of all ages. The grants were selected from a pool of 97 applications seeking a total of nearly $8.2 million.
“The nonprofits supported by The Foundation are leading the way in how our community is addressing many of its central challenges,” says William W. Ginsberg, President & CEO of The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven. “At the same time, widening inequality is the defining issue of our time and a tremendous challenge for our community. Our grantees are helping more local people access the skills and opportunities they need to secure a foothold in this changing economy. Our community needs to do everything possible to ensure that as the economy grows, its benefits are widely shared.”
The annual responsive grant cycle is open to nonprofits serving Greater New Haven and is funded by unrestricted and preference funds established by donors at The Foundation. In addition to its competitive grantmaking, The Foundation also makes grants throughout the year from designated and other funds. In 2018, The Foundation will make a total of about $28 million in grants and distributions.
The responsive grants highlight many of the region’s most pressing issues. State funding cuts continue to be a concern for many nonprofits, and several grants are supporting strategic alliances, mergers, and sustainability planning that will enable the grantees to adapt to the new funding environment.
Behavioral and mental health clinics, hit by reduced state funding and declining Medicaid reimbursements, were among the largest grant recipients. Seven grants are specifically targeting the opioid epidemic, which has spiked into a public health crisis.
Innovative programs to increase access to education and skills also received significant funding. Gateway Community College received a grant for its Family Economic Security Program, which helps students who are struggling to earn degrees because of life challenges such as affording childcare. The New Haven Free Public Library and Branford’s James Blackstone Memorial Library both received grants in support of major renovations that are creating educational resources for 21st century skills. Other grants are supporting programs that promote greater inclusion in the economy: Career Resources, Inc. is supporting the STRIVE- New Haven job-readiness program; Connecticut Association for Human Services is providing tax assistance and financial literacy; and Connecticut Fair Housing Center is working to eliminate housing discrimination.
The Foundation awarded grants in partnership with The Valley Community Foundation to three organizations that have significant presences in the Valley. A grant to BHcare is supporting a drug therapy program for people addicted to opioids; Rape Crisis Center of Milford received general operating support; and Capital for Change received a grant to provide loans and technical assistance to nonprofits.
In total, the Foundation issued 51 grants across eight issue areas: arts & culture, basic needs, children & youth, civic vitality and social justice, economic success, education, environment and animals, and health & wellness.
2018 Responsive Grant Recipients
Animal Haven - $69,277 to expand the shelter and improve conditions for homeless adoptable cats and dogs.
BHCare - $80,000 to support a Medication Assisted Therapy program at clinics in Ansonia and Branford to address the opioid epidemic.
Branford Early Childhood Collaborative - $38,000 to support the Early Childhood Community Outreach program.
Bridges Healthcare, Inc. - $50,000 to provide general operating support for a comprehensive range of prevention, mental health and addiction recovery programs for adults, children and families.
Capital for Change - $18,750 to support a program that provides technical assistance and loans to Greater New Haven nonprofit organizations.
Career Resources Inc. - $85,000 to support the STRIVE job-readiness program in New Haven.
Center for Children's Advocacy - $25,000 to support the Racial and Ethnic Disparities Reduction Project, which works to reform policies and practices in education, law enforcement, juvenile justice and criminal justice systems to reduce overrepresentation of Greater New Haven Black and Latino youth in in the criminal justice system.
Circle of Care for Families of Children with Cancer Inc. - $14,000 to support the Lifeline Emergency Fund which provides financial assistance to families in Greater New Haven with children in treatment for cancer and undergoing a financial crisis as a result of their child's treatment.
CitySeed Inc. - $7,500 to improve service delivery by upgrading data management software systems.
Clifford W. Beers Guidance Clinic - $40,000 to increase capacity to serve children and families by pursuing a merger and developing a strategic partnership with the Child Guidance Center of Mid-Fairfield County.
Connecticut Appleseed Center for Law & Justice, Inc. - $60,000 to support the expansion of the Connecting through Literacy: Incarcerated Parents, Children and Caregivers, which strengthens bonds between incarcerated parents and their children using mentorship and literacy before and after the parent is released from prison.
Connecticut Association for Human Services - $75,000 to support the Family Economic Success suite of programs, including Volunteer Income Tax Assistance, Connecticut Money School and Youth Money School, one-on-one financial coaching, and Bank On New Haven.
Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness - $10,000 to support executive search and transition.
Connecticut Fair Housing Center - $30,000 to support the investigation of how affordable units are marketed and made available to people of color and whether illegal discrimination prevents people of color and families with children from obtaining existing affordable units.
Connecticut Food Bank - $20,000 to support the Mobile Pantry program that removes transportation barriers that make it difficult for food-insecure households in Greater New Haven to obtain the adequate nutrition they need.
Connecticut Healthcare Research and Education Foundation, Inc. (CARE) - $36,000 to support the implementation of an education and training program that informs hospitals, community-based practices and patients about strategies to avoid and address opioid misuse.
Connecticut Students for a Dream - $50,000 to support in school and after school programming as well as youth organizing work for undocumented, immigrant, and first-generation American youth in Greater New Haven.
Connection, Inc. - $20,000 to support programmatic and physical building needs of 525-529 Whalley Avenue which houses three behavioral health programs that serve individuals diagnosed with psychiatric and/or substance use disorders.
Continuum of Care, Inc. - $50,000 to provide general operating support to help individuals who are challenged with mental illnesses, intellectual disabilities and/or struggling with addiction live productive lives.
Cornell Scott Hill Health Corporation - $35,000 to support a recruitment effort for a psychiatric provider to serve adult clients, who will be mostly low-income, racial and/or ethnic minority individuals.
Creative Arts Workshop - $53,000 to support strategic business planning for and implementation of a new business model that sustains provision of visual arts and its financial future.
Elm City Robo Squad - $6,000 to support an after-school robotics program providing STEM experiences for inner-city New Haven high school students.
Fair Haven Community Health Center - $150,000 to provide general operating support for comprehensive primary healthcare and dental care to low-income Greater New Haven residents.
Foundation for the Arts and Trauma - $120,000 to support the ALIVE program which will provide preventive, trauma-informed services to middle-school students at Barnard Elementary School in New Haven in order to reduce disciplinary actions and involvement with the criminal justice system.
Gateway Community College Foundation, Inc. - $79,500 to support the pilot of the Family Economic Security Program, which provides wraparound services for students to increase college degree attainment.
Gaylord Hospital - $120,000 to support renovations to patient rooms and wings to include updated modern efficiencies and amenities that improve the care and comfort of patients and families.
Girl Scouts of Connecticut Inc. - $10,000 to support a feasibility study to help build a capital campaign strategy to restore and update its properties to be more suitable for use by girls and their families.
Habitat for Humanity of Greater New Haven - $25,000 to provide general operating support for the creation of homeownership opportunities for low-income families.
International Festival of Arts & Ideas - $45,000 to support a comprehensive, community-informed study that will assess current cultural impact and help select and appoint a new Executive Director.
IRIS - Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services - $75,000 to provide general operating support to assist refugees and displaced persons to start new lives and contribute to the vitality of the Greater New Haven community.
James Blackstone Memorial Library - $75,000 to support building renovations to increase accessibility for seniors and families with young children, accommodate the needs of teens, and provide more meeting space and opportunities to learn and acquire technology skills.
Junior Achievement of Southwest New England, Inc. - $10,000 to support financial literacy, workforce readiness, and entrepreneurship programming for Greater New Haven high school students.
JUNTA for Progressive Action - $185,000 to provide general operating support for services, programs and advocacy that improve the social, political and economic conditions of the Latino community in Greater New Haven.
Neighborhood Music School, Inc. - $130,000 to provide general operating support for instruction in music, dance and drama, an arts-based preschool and public performances.
New Haven Free Public Library Foundation - $105,000 to support Stetson Library: The Next Chapter, a fundraising campaign to move the Stetson Library into the re-imagined Q House with an expanded collection, improved community services, new furnishings, and state-of-the-art equipment and technology.
New Haven Home Ownership Center - $50,000 to provide general operating support for homebuyer education and financial assistance to individuals and families who are purchasing homes to stabilize and revitalize Greater New Haven neighborhoods through increased homeownership.
New Haven Land Trust, Inc. - $45,000 to provide general operating support for the management of community gardens and land preserves as well as environmental education programming.
New Haven Pride Center - $15,000 to support LGBTQ+ programming, which includes the 21st PRIDE New Haven, Transgender Awareness Week, HIV / AIDS Awareness Week, and an Art Exhibitions series.
New Haven Public Schools - $10,000 to support transition costs for the new superintendent of schools.
New Haven Symphony Orchestra - $20,000 to support To Thee We Sing, an April 2019 concert to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Marian Anderson's concert at the Lincoln Memorial in tandem with the Symphony's own 125th Anniversary celebration.
New Reach - $45,000 to support a strategic planning process to ensure the sustainability of providing housing to at-risk and homeless women.
Portrait of America - $20,000 to support WE ARE - A Nation of Immigrants public art project.
Project Access of New Haven - $180,000 to provide general operating support to increase access to specialty medical care and services for underserved individuals in the Greater New Haven area.
Rape Crisis Center of Milford, Inc. - $45,000 to provide general operating support for educational programming to end sexual assault and for comprehensive and culturally competent sexual assault victim services.
Rebooting New England - $20,000 to support regional long-range strategy to rebuild the economy of Southern New England and its mid-sized older industrial cities, including New Haven, by creating a high-performance, high-speed, state-of-the-art, inter-city railroad network.
Ronald McDonald House of CT, Inc. - $8,500 to support lodging and accompanying services to Sponsor A Stay families from Greater New Haven while their children are receiving life-saving treatments at nearby hospitals.
Spanish Community of Wallingford - $105,000 to support afterschool programming for Latino/Latina adolescents of immigrant families from Wallingford.
Student Parenting and Family Services, Inc. - $18,500 to provide general operating support for child care, parenting education and support services to teenage parents attending public school in New Haven.
Universal Health Care Foundation of Connecticut - $30,000 to support the Protect Our Care CT campaign in Greater New Haven.
Vantage Group, Inc. - $16,550 to support educational programs for Spanish-speaking parents from New Haven who have a child who has (or is suspected to have) Autism Spectrum Disorder.
VETTS, Inc. - $40,000 to support a strategic alliance.
Thanks to the generosity of three generations of donors, The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven awarded over $28.5 million in grants and distributions as of December 31, 2017. The endowment is valued at more than $620 million and composed of hundreds of individually named funds. In addition to its grantmaking, The Community Foundation helps build a stronger community by leading on issues and supporting donors and nonprofits in creating a community of opportunity for all. The Foundation’s 20 town service area includes: Ansonia, Bethany, Branford, Cheshire, Derby, East Haven, Guilford, Hamden, Madison, Milford, New Haven, North Branford, North Haven, Orange, Oxford, Seymour, Shelton, Wallingford, West Haven, Woodbridge.
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Contact:
Matthew Higbee
Communications Officer
The Community Fouhndation for Greater New Haven
203-777-7093
mhigbee@cfgnh.org
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