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Foundations Launch Initiative for a Stronger Digital Society |
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On February 11, presidents of five major foundations came together with leading figures from government, business, and the tech world to launch a major new partnership, the NetGain Challenge, to jointly address the challenges and opportunities of the digital age—including ensuring the Internet is open, secure and accessible to all. This partnership, supported by the Ford Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Knight Foundation, Open Society Foundation and Mozilla Foundation, marks the first time a group of major foundations will work together to strengthen digital society. A set of six Technology Principles will guide the group’s work in the digital space, including privacy and transparency, free speech, and equal access to information online. The NetGain Challenge will support novel ideas by financing new research for the development of cutting-edge innovations and digital technologies used to improve lives. Currently the NetGain Challenge is seeking ideas to help focus on the most significant challenges at the intersection of the Internet and philanthropy. Submit a Challenge >> Access videos and resources from the NetGain Challenge kickoff event >> |
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Changing Hospital Landscape in CT is Captured in 2 Reports
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Recent reports from the Universal Health Care Foundation of Connecticut capture the changing hospital landscape in Connecticut.
Hospital Consolidations and Conversions, a literature review, seeks to increase understanding of hospital mergers---the potential conversion of non-profit hospitals to for-profit entities and hospital absorption of physician practices may impact health care cost, quality and access in Connecticut.
State of Connecticut’s Hospitals, provides a useful overview of the health of Connecticut’s hospitals and hospital systems through charts that present selected utilization, quality and financial measures.
Connecticut's hospital systems are growing larger and the remaining independent hospitals are seeking partners. The possibility of as many as five hospitals converting to for-profit status and becoming part of a large national company, Tenet Healthcare, was imminent until very recently. To add to this, hospitals are acquiring physician practices at an accelerated rate.
Universal Health Care Foundation of Connecticut believes that Connecticut residents deserve to know more about: the acceleration of hospital mergers; the possible conversion of non-profit hospitals to for-profit entities; hospital absorption of physician practices; and how these changes could impact health care costs, quality and access.
For more information: Francis Padilla, Universal Health Care Foundation of Connecticut: 203-639-0550, fpadilla@universalhealthct.org. |
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Foundation Kick-starts Be Homeful Project to Help End Family Homelessness
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The People’s United Community Foundation awarded a $25,000 grant to the Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness to kick-start the be homeful campaign intended to raise awareness and funds to end family homelessness before it begins.
Paddington Bear, the iconic children's book character who himself has experienced homelessness, is the “spokesbear” for the be homeful campaign. The be homeful campaign website includes action items to get involved, including tools to talk to children about homelessness and about how they can help neighbors in need.
Every year in Connecticut, 1,300 families experience homelessness, including 2,400 children, half of whom are under the age of 5. Funds raised through the be homeful campaign will help families on the brink of homelessness stay in the comfort of home by offering emergency resources for costs such as rent and utilities. The goal of be homeful is to raise a $1M emergency assistance fund to help end family homelessness in Connecticut.
“This morning, we all rolled out of our warm beds...,” said Vincent Santilli, executive director of People's United Community Foundation. “But across the state of Connecticut there are many families who didn't have a warm bed to crawl out of this morning. Be homeful will help change that. We couldn't be more excited to kick off this campaign with a $25,000 grant.”
For more information: Karen Galbo, Peoples Bank Community Foundation, 203-338-6113, karen.galbo@peoples.com; Katie Kenney, Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness, 860-721-7876, kkenney@cceh.org. |
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Reduced Youth Crime Target of Violence Free-Zone Program
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Hartford Communities That Care (HCTC), a nonprofit located in a high-crime area in Northeast Hartford, received a $10,000 donation from the Connecticut Health Foundation (CT Health) to support its Violence-Free Zone Program (VFZ).
The Violence Free Zone program is a community-based intervention that strives to reduce youth crime, drug abuse, violence and victimization. Its components include an after-school program working with more than 120 school-aged children, a crisis response team geared toward meeting the initial needs of crime victims affected by gun violence, and youth intervention specialists. These program components address many of the risk factors for violence, such as unsafe neighborhoods that lead to inequities in health and urban communities.
“We strongly believe that HCTC’s approach to preventing and reducing violence that affects youth is key to achieving equity in health and communities,” said Patricia Baker, president & CEO of CT Health. “Their work aligns with our vision that everyone has an opportunity for optimal health and well-being.”
The success of the VFZ as a strategy to reduce violence is just one of several to be highlighted in their upcoming report, Hartford Neighborhood Violence-Free Zone, which is also being funded by CT Health.
For more information: Maryland Grier, Connecticut Health Foundation, 860-724-1580, maryland@cthealth.org. |
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Business Training Shown to Empower Artists
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The Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation (EHTF) supported the Pave Program in Arts Entrepreneurship at Arizona State University to conduct a web-sourced inventory of field-based arts business training opportunities. How It’s Being Done: Arts Business Training in the US, is the result of research conducted in the inaugural year of the Tremaine Foundation Fellowship in Arts Entrepreneurship at Arizona State University. "We commissioned this report to better understand the growth in the types and range of professional practices that are available to artists. When we began funding artist training programs in the mid-90’s, the number of providers could be counted on a single hand. Based on this web scan, we now know that more than 78 organizations are directly empowering artists with the skills needed to survive and thrive with their artistic businesses," commented Heather Pontonio, Arts Program Director at EHTF. Beyond identifying the programs and organizations that are providing business training specific to the arts, the research also examines how the training is being delivered, and where there are gaps in this training. The primary audiences for this report are organizations serving artists, such as state and local arts councils, and artists seeking training. The secondary audience is funders supporting the arts sector, as well as those engaged in community and economic development. For more information: Mollie Flanagan, Tremaine Foundation Fellowship in Arts Entrepreneurship at Arizona State University, mollie.flanagan@asu.edu; Heather Pontonio, Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation, 203-639-5544. |
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COMMUNITY FOUNDATION NEWS |
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Grants Awarded to Advance Community Wellness
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The Bradley Henry Barnes & Leila Upson Barnes Memorial Trust at the Main Street Community Foundation, guided by a needs assessment study, recently awarded grants to enhance community wellness and to improve access to behavioral health services in the town of Southington. Three organizations received the following awards:- $75,000 to the Alzheimer’s Resource Center of Connecticut, Inc., to support Hope Full Lives, a community and home based program designed to decrease caregiver burden and promote the positive mental health and well-being of dementia care partners in Southington;
- $79,000 to Wheeler Clinic, to support the Southington Health Outreach Project with a full-time health outreach coordinator to enhance access to mental health and substance use prevention and treatment services for Southington residents; and
- $130,000 to the Southington YMCA, to support the purchase and installation of an elevator to transport individuals, especially those with physical limitations, to the basement pool location.
“We are thrilled to be announcing $284,000 in grants thanks to the generous legacy of Bradley and Leila Barnes,” said Susan Sadecki, president and CEO of the Main Street Community Foundation. “I think they would be very pleased.”
The Trust sought proposals from nonprofits that have programs focused on five health areas as identified by community members in A Study of Community Health and Healthcare Needs for Southington. This study was commissioned by the Main Street Community Foundation in 2013, in an effort to better understand health and healthcare needs in Southington, identify areas where support from the Trust might address gaps in services, and to promote the health and well-being of community members.
For more information: Samantha Rajotte, Main Street Community Foundation, 860-583-6363, samantha@mainstreetfoundation.org. |
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Mobile Legal Office to Reach Kids who are Homeless
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With funding from the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving and the Herbert and Nell Singer Foundation, the Center for Children’s Advocacy rolled out its new mobile legal office on February 11. This mobile legal office, only the second of its kind in the country, allows homeless teens to get immediate and easy access to an attorney.
“These kids have been an invisible population in Connecticut – couch surfing, house hopping, staying with friends. They don’t often identify themselves as homeless,” says Stacey Violante Cote, director of the Center for Children’s Advocacy’s Teen Legal Advocacy Project.
“We can help them if we can reach them. And our new mobile legal office lets us go where the kids are – to community sites, high schools and the streets of our cities and towns,” says Martha Stone, executive director of the Center for Children’s Advocacy.
A social media campaign will help youth identify the mobile legal office when they see it on the street. Online postings at speakupteens.org and kidscounsel.org, and printed posters of the van’s schedule will let youth know when and where they can meet with an attorney from the Center.
For more information: Bonnie Berk, Center for Children's Advocacy, 860-570-5327, bberk@kidscounsel.org. |
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Links to More Community Foundation News
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LINKS TO MORE FOUNDATION NEWS |
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Member News |
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POVERTY SIMULATION Sunday, February 22, 2:00 - 5:00 pm, Congregation Mishkan Israel, Hamden United Way of Greater New Haven and the Jewish Federation of Greater New Haven are holding a Poverty Simulation in conjunction with their Neighbor-to-Neighbor Campaign. Over the course of an evening they invite participants to step into the shoes of a family living at or near the poverty level. The participatory event is designed to challenge assumptions and give a deeper awareness of the struggles many face on a daily basis. Light refreshments and a facilitated discussion will conclude the event. Register >> |
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WORDS TO GIVE BY Monday, February 23 - Thursday, April 2, Locations in Greater Hartford As part of the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving's 90th anniversary celebration, they are collaborating with WNPR on an innovative project to collect stories of everyday giving and receiving. Through this innovative project, they will tell stories of those in their community, stories that may otherwise go unnoticed but that showcase compassion and kindness. Anyone with a story to share is invited to sign up at WordstoGiveBy.org to be interviewed at one of 15 locations in the Greater Hartford area during March. Stories will be aired on WNPR, posted on both websites and highlighted in local media. Learn more and find times and places >> |
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ENVIRONMENTAL GRANTS Monday, March 2 - Application Deadline Nonprofit organizations will share up to $1.2 million through a new environmental stewardship initiative sponsored by Dominion Resources. The competitive program is designed to support specific, short-term projects that improve the environment. Organizations in and near the communities served by Dominion and Dominion Nuclear Connecticut may request up to $50,000 each. Learn more and submit an online application >> |
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FAIRFIELD COUNTY GIVING DAY Thursday, March 5 - Fairfield County Giving Day Fairfield County's Giving Day on March 5, is a 24-hour period of online donations through www.FCGives.org. Initiated last year by Fairfield County’s Community Foundation, Giving Day encourages individuals, families, companies, clubs and groups to “give where you live” and support Fairfield County nonprofits. Last year on Fairfield County Giving Day, 9,211 online donors gave more than $620,000 to 267 Fairfield County nonprofits – all in just 24 hours. An additional $127,500 in cash prizes, funded by the Community Foundation, lead sponsor Bank of America and other corporate and community sponsors, were awarded to more than 50 nonprofits. |
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DOLLARS, SENSE AND THE HIGH COST OF LITIGATION Friday, March 6, 7:45 am - 1:00 pm, Quinnipiac University Law School, North Haven Connecticut Bar Foundation's Judge Mark R. Kravitz Symposium on the Administration of Justice will explore one of the legal profession’s most pressing issues: the high cost associated with the delivery of legal services. This symposium will discuss the impact that costs have had on the traditional trial system and the role that alternative fee arrangements and other initiatives designed to increase judicial economy will have in shaping the future of the legal profession. Register >> |
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CONVENING: THE PRESIDENT'S EXECUTIVE ACTION ON IMMIGRATIONMonday, March 9, 4:00 - 7:00 pm, Fair Haven K-8 School, New Haven Find out what the President Obama's Executive Action of November 2014 can mean for the Greater New Haven community. Join The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven for a discussion with Felicia Escobar, Special Assistant to the President for Immigration Policy. The President's Executive Action will offer the opportunity for undocumented immigrants to stay in the country temporarily and streamline the legal immigration process by expanding work authorization for high-skilled workers already in line for a green card. Register >> |
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ORAL HEALTH ADVOCACY RFPTuesday, March 17 - Proposal Deadline The Connecticut Health Foundation (CT Health) has announced the availability of funding to diversify and strengthen oral health advocacy in Connecticut. CT Health anticipates making two awards of up to $40,000 for a two-year period.
Learn more and download the request for proposal >> |
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GIVE LOCAL GREATER WATERBURY & LITCHFIELD HILLS Monday, March 30 - Nonprofit Registration Deadline
Tuesday, May 5 - Wednesday, May 6 - Give Local Greater Waterbury & Litchfield Hills Connecticut Community Foundation will host its third annual online community giving challenge for their region, from 7 am on May 5 to 7 pm on May 6, 2015. Give Local Greater Waterbury & Litchfield Hills inspires people throughout the region to give generously to local nonprofit organizations that make a stronger, more vibrant community for all. Donors will be able to search for organizations, read profiles, and make online contributions at a single web site – www.GiveLocalCCF.org – throughout the 36-hour challenge. Together, the Foundation’s first two Give Local events raised over $1.1 million that was distributed to more than 150 nonprofits. Find nonprofit registration details >> |
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THE FUND FOR WOMEN AND GIRLS ANNUAL LUNCHEONThursday, April 9, 12:00 - 2:00 pm, Greenwich Hyatt, Greenwich The Fund for Women and Girls Annual Luncheon will feature Academy Award Winner actor and philanthropist Geena Davis. Learn more and register on the Fairfield County's Community Foundation's website >> |
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The Connecticut Community Foundation (CCF), serving Greater Waterbury and the Litchfield Hills, has elected a slate of officers for 2015. New officers are: MARTHA BERNSTEIN, chair; DANIEL CARON, vice chair; WAYNE MCCORMACK, secretary; and JOHN MICHAELS, treasurer.
“It is an honor to have the opportunity to serve as the board chairman of CCF. We are enjoying a period of growth under the leadership of our very talented and dedicated board and staff and I look forward to continuing to be part of our efforts to build thriving communities,” comments Martha Bernstein, the Foundation’s new board chair.
CCF also acknowledged and thanked JACK BAKER, MARGIE FIELD, and CHARLES BOULIER, III as retiring chair, vice chair, and treasurer, respectively.
Read more >> |
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 The Connecticut Council for Philanthropy is an association of grantmakers committed to promoting and supporting effective philanthropy for the public good. A foremost resource on philanthropy, Council membership is open to foundations (private, corporate, community), business and corporate giving programs, public charity grantmakers, bank trusts, donor-advised funds and individual philanthropists. Associate and Professional Membership in the Council is open to professionals and organizations serving the philanthropic sector. The Council benefits the larger grantmaking community, the nonprofit sector and the public in Connecticut.
For more news about philanthropy in Connecticut, go to the Council's news room, Connecticut Philanthropy Digest archives and our blog, CTPhilanthropyNotes.org.
News about Connecticut funders may be submitted to the Council for consideration. The Connecticut Philanthropy Digest is brought to you by the Connecticut Council for Philanthropy. Edited by Laurie Allen. |
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