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Recent Grants March 2008 December 2007 October 2007 March 2008 Caritas Communities, a partnership between Catholic Charities Housing Opportunities and Humility of Mary Housing Ministries runs Eastwood Village, a housing complex on the East side of Youngstown. The group hopes to more fully utilize the capacity of the housing with the assistance of a $17,500 grant from the Foundation. The Foundation has granted $15,000 to Coleman Professional Service in support of its "Homeless Transition Youth Rental Subsidy Program" which will provide assistance for homeless transitional youth ages 18-22. As part of its Early Care and Development Focus, the Foundation will make a grant of $25,000 to Community Solutions Association. The funding will support the development of a program to benefit young children in Warren through a collaboration of community organizations and the Warren City School District. A group that has created a national model fighting foreclosures will receive $50,000. The group, based in Cleveland and known as the East Side Organizing Project, brings subprime lenders to the table through organizing. Homeowners who have mortgages with ballooning payments are then offered an opportunity to renegotiate their loan. The money will be used to hire an organizer for the Mahoning Valley. The Greater Warren Youngstown Urban League, Inc. has received a grant of $30,000. The funding will support the development of a strategic plan which will be responsive to the agency's service to both Trumbull and Mahoning Counties. The Foundation is providing a grant to Habitat for Humanity ($35,000) to support their ReStore program. This will be an attempt to raise funding for the organization through the operation of a business selling secondhand building materials and furnishings. Junior Achievement of the Mahoning Valley will receive $16,848 to help fund a part-time program manager to work directly with both the Warren and Youngstown school districts. By linking these districts to entrepreneurial education, the program will benefit urban kids most in need of this type of education. Lien Forward is Mahoning County's effort to return vacant lots to usage. After the properties become abandoned, the County Treasurer is able to pass the lots on to local residents who own adjacent property and are seeking to use the lots. A grant of $50,000 will allow Lien Forward to expand its outreach capability. The Ohio Association for the Education of Young Children received a grant of $14,040 to support attendance by child care providers in Mahoning and Trumbull counties at its annual conference in Columbus. Three groups in Youngstown will receive funding to hire community organizers. These grants are part of a neighborhood organizing initiative that the Foundation is supporting. The Northeast Homeowners and Concerned Citizens Assn. will receive $65,000, and on the North side a group of stakeholders will oversee an organizer ($60,000), as well as the 7th Ward Citizens Coalition ($60,000) on the City's Southeast side. The board approved a capacity-building grant of $55,000 to Tru-Mah-Col Association for the Education of Young Children. This membership organization of child care providers focuses on promoting professional development and improving the quality of care for young children in the Mahoning Valley. Trumbull Lifelines will expand its services targeted for improving the emotional and behavioral health of young children with a $45,000 grant from the Foundation. Volunteer Services Agency, Inc. mobilizes and coordinates volunteer activity principally in Mahoning County, but a grant of $60,000 from the Foundation will allow the group to expand their services into Trumbull County. The YMCA of Youngstown will receive $40,000 to enable children in Warren City Schools to experience hands-on learning at Camp Fitch through its school camping program. A portion of the grant will also be targeted as scholarship assistance for Warren children to attend Camp Fitch during the summer. The Youngstown-Downtown Revitalization Committee is a project to bring residents and stakeholders together to discuss improving Wick Park. A grant was made to support Youngstown Cityscapes' involvement in the process. The Kent State Urban Design Coalition will also be a resource to the group in its efforts ($70,000). December 2007 The YWCA of Youngstown has embarked on a capital campaign to raise $4 million to renovate their aging building in downtown Youngstown. A modernized building will allow the group to better respond to the needs of women and children, particularly those who are economically disadvantaged. The Foundation has targeted a grant of $125,000 to increase the YWCA's fundraising capacity. The Foundation has made a grant of $65,000 to hire a development staff person for the Warren City Schools Foundation. These funds will support their efforts to engage loyal alumni to provide resources for various educational initiatives. REACH (Rewarding Education Through Advanced Careers in Healthcare) is a partnership of public and private entities with the Humility of Mary Health Partners serving as coordinator in the Mahoning Valley. The group's goal is to create a sustainable upward career path for entry-level long-term-care employees by working in partnership with educational institutions, social service agencies, and the public workforce sector. The Foundation made a grant of $36,070 to support the first year of this innovative three-year pilot program. Mahoning Valley Urban Homeownership Incentive Program: two grants--$500,000 for Youngstown and $75,000 for Warren will be used to provide grants of $5,000 for interested homeowners to purchase a house. Interested applicants must live in the house for at least five years and must not currently own a house in the city. In Youngstown, full time employees of Youngstown State University (and affiliates), the City of Youngstown and any nonprofit may participate in the program. Also in Youngstown, those who purchase a house that is in need of extensive repair and who are at 80% of median income or lower may receive an additional $5,000 for repairs to the house. The Foundation made a grant of $15,000 to support the Mahoning County Continuum of Care, a coalition of community agencies. The group will use the funds to monitor and evaluate progress in coordinating housing programs and services for the homeless in Mahoning County. Catholic Charities has received $150,000 to support their effort to provide home heating assistance to those in need during the winter months. This organization has an effective outreach to those who may not have sufficient resources to keep the heat on during the coldest time of the year and the Foundation has provided resources for those most in need. October 2007 ACLD Learning Center will receive $20,000 from the Foundation for its Urban Outreach Program. Their psychological and educational evaluation services will be expanded for school-age children in Youngstown and Warren. The Alliance Community Outreach Program (ACOP) in Warren will receive $34,200 to support a strategic planning process. This effort is intended to strengthen this organization into the future to effectively continue its mentoring and tutoring efforts for low-income children in Warren. Associated Neighborhood Centers provides a variety of activities and programs at McGuffey Centre on the east side of Youngstown. The Foundation has approved a grant of $62,800 to support and increase their fundraising capabilities. The Boys and Girls Club of Youngstown will receive $41,900 to hire a development staff person. This new staff will enable the organization to bring in funding to support its important programming. The Mahoning CASA/GAL program at the Mahoning County Juvenile Court will receive a $7,500 grant from the Foundation for an expanded recruitment program of volunteers. The Center for Community Solutions will continue its groundWork strategy with a multi-year grant of $135,000 from the Foundation. groundWork is a non-partisan, statewide public policy initiative aimed at ensuring every child in Ohio, including the 40,000 in Mahoning and Trumbull counties, has access to high-quality early care and education. Child Care Connection will receive $57,795 in the final year of funding for its Quality Enhancement Project. This five year project improved the quality of day care centers in the Mahoning Valley. With state funding for day care centers an emerging reality, this project has aligned centers with the State's new voluntary rating system, Step Up To Quality. The Children's Museum of the Mahoning Valley will receive a $45,000 grant from the Foundation to increase their internal administrative capacity as this new nonprofit develops. The Foundation will support the Community Volunteer Council with a grant of $10,000 for their ongoing project to supply low-income Warren school children with school supplies, winter coats, hats, and gloves. The D & E Counseling Center will expand its Early Childhood Services with a $40,000 grant from the Foundation. Staff will focus on preparing preschool children for kindergarten through its work with their parents and teachers. The Greater Mill Creek, Inc. will receive $15,000 for its Health Awareness and Nutrition Education Program. The Center will continue to offer wellness and physical fitness activities for youth and adults. To support homeless people in Youngstown, the Greater Youngstown Point provides a daytime drop in center. The Foundation will make a grant of $18,000 for this group to plan for its future in the face of declining government funding in this area. In Youngstown, Jubilee Gardens provides opportunities for community gardening in distressed neighborhoods. The Foundation will provide this organization with $35,000 to support their ongoing efforts. Kent State Trumbull will receive $60,119 over two years to seed a program of business internships. The University will recruit employers who will pay for the education of future employees. There will be an effort to recruit low-income and minority students to receive the scholarships. OhioVOTES is a statewide effort to leverage to increase voter registration and turnout. The Foundation will provide a grant of $10,000 to support the organization's efforts to begin work in the Mahoning Valley by creating partnerships with local nonprofit groups. Planned Parenthood of Northeast Ohio will expand services for Mahoning and Trumbull residents through their "Closing the Gap" program with a $50,000 grant from the Foundation. Someplace Safe is Trumbull County's only domestic violence agency providing shelter and crisis intervention. The board approved a $42,357 grant to support internal capacity-building. United Way of Mahoning County and United Way of Trumbull County will come together to prepare a campaign to sign up low-income children for government health insurance. A statewide group called Voices for Ohio's Children will receive $65,000 to coordinate this effort locally and to ensure that the effort is coordinated with state and federal funding opportunities. The Warren Community and Clergy Coalition is a new group of Warren residents and church leaders who are coming together to address neighborhood concerns in a systematic way. The Foundation will provide $40,000 of funding to support a community organizer and other costs related to this group's activities. Warren GROWS is a group of stakeholders in downtown Warren who have come together to improve Courthouse Square and the surrounding area. They are seeking to bring in federal and state resources for this community improvement project; the Foundation will provide them with $75,000 to hire a director and to initiate activities. Youngstown City Schools will receive $70,000 for two separate efforts: $50,000 will be for a math and science mini-grants program for teachers to buy supplemental materials to support classroom activities. The Schools will also receive $20,000 to study the possibility of creating a program called the Youngstown Promise. This program would allow for two years of free tuition at Youngstown State University for students who attend Youngstown City Schools. The program, based on a similar program in Kalamazoo, Michigan, will be examined to assess local feasibility for such an effort. The Youngstown Urban Minority Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Outreach Program (YUMADAOP) will receive $30,000 from the Foundation to continue its efforts to provide mentoring and anti-substance abuse program for Youngstown Youth. To assist with developing a plan for a vibrant future, the YWCA of Warren will receive $7,500 to match its own funding to do a strategic plan. York Avenue Church of God will receive $30,000 from the Foundation to support its new housing program for parents who have lost custody of their children due to substance abuse problems.
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