Boston Foundation and its Donors Give $10,621,292 to Nonprofits

September 23, 2003

Boston – At  today’s quarterly meeting of its Board of Directors, the Boston Foundation awarded a total of $3,174,000 in discretionary grants to support the work of nonprofit organizations in the Greater Boston community.  In addition, the Foundation awarded $6,576,831 to nonprofits through Donor Advised Funds held by the Foundation, and $510,461 in designated fund grants to nonprofit organizations in Boston and around the country.  Combined discretionary, advised and designated grants totaled $10,261,292.  This is the last grant cycle under the quarterly proposal submission system; a new, semi-annual discretionary grant process will begin in December.

Developing civic leadership in Boston in both the private and the nonprofit sectors was an important theme of this quarter’s grant-making at the Foundation.  A grant to City Year, for example, will be used to launch an alumni development program designed to engage its alumni in activities that will support their community.  City Year will design and pilot this program in Boston.  Each year, the project will select and act on at least one priority issue facing the city, and will offer education, advocacy and volunteer opportunities through workshops, forums and analytical discussions.

“Grants like the one to City Year match the Boston Foundation’s strategic interest in tapping the expertise and civic interest of the alumni of local leadership programs,” said Paul S. Grogan, President and CEO of the Boston Foundation.  “At the present time, there is an untapped pool of approximately 7,500 City Year alumni across the country, and about 2,500 of them live in the Boston area.  An alumni association can be used to provide new energy to civic action, both in Boston and on a national level.”

Other grants focused on developing civic leadership this quarter went to the University of Massachusetts College of Management for the Emerging Leaders Program, which seeks to identify and develop new leaders who reflect the changing demographics of the region; to the Partnership Inc., to develop and support leaders of color and mobilize their impact throughout the City of Boston; to the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, to implement a new Regional Vision and Growth Strategy and strengthen its Metropolitan Mayors Coalition; to the National Conference for Community and Justice’s LeadBoston program to strengthen its alumni efforts; and to the Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts, for an Advocacy and Public Policy Program to secure equal opportunity in all sectors of society for African-Americans and other people of color. 

The Foundation’s Community Safety Initiative, which was launched in March 2002, made a number of grants in the Grove Hall community this quarter.  Aimed at increasing public safety in this neighborhood, these organizations have advanced a set of new strategies for addressing the problems that Grove Hall residents have been dealing with.  The grants include funding for Harvard University’s Program in Criminal Justice and Policy Management, which will conduct research on the day-to-day impact of more than 214 high-risk individuals in Grove Hall; the Stop Handgun Violence project, to help move the former “City Hall Bubble” to Grove Hall and create a new, temporary Grove Hall Community Center;  to Project R.I.G.H.T. to engage community members in crime prevention efforts; and to Boston Centers for Youth and Families, to add additional street-worker capacity for the Grove Hall community.  In addition, grants were made to the Ella J. Baker House to support outreach and leadership development activities through its Hearts to Homes high-risk youth visitation and service referral program; and to the Commonwealth Corporation’s New Futures Project, which will strengthen educational support services for youth involved within the Department of Youth Services system.

In the health and human services sector, a grant to the South Boston Neighborhood House will provide resources to create capacity to tackle the alarming substance abuse epidemic gripping that community, particularly among teens and young adults.  These funds will be used to expand information, referral and counseling services, and will sustain a multi-agency collaborative facilitated by the Neighborhood House.  The Foundation also made a grant to Health Care for All to continue its very successful public policy advocacy work that helped reinstate low-income adults who had been dropped from the MassHealth Basic program, saved the Uncompensated Care Pool, and reinstated a number of previously cut benefits.  Their ongoing advocacy work is being done at a time when many are looking at making massive cuts in the MassHealth program.  Funding is also extended to the Massachusetts Health Policy Forum to provide visibility to the issue of public health, and to revitalize the effort to reverse cuts to programs addressing HIV/AIDS, teen pregnancy, substance abuse and tobacco use.

The New Economy Initiative made grants to a number of organizations that illustrate the growing acceptance of the power of technology for capacity building, particularly in a tight funding environment.  A grant to Sociedad Latina will help three organizations jointly hire an Information Technology director; a grant to Local Initiatives Support Corporation will be used to develop the collective capacity of the Community Development Corporation (CDC) sector through the application of technology; and a grant to the Timothy Smith Network will enable this Roxbury-based organization to continue to develop its organizational infrastructure development.

In the area of education this quarter, the New Boston Pilot Middle School, the first newly built school in Boston in 30 years, received a grant.  This pilot school incorporates several innovations in school organization, including the creation of four small learning communities within the large, 750 student middle school.  Overall, the Boston Foundation’s Pilot School Initiative continues this fall, with implementation grants to four schools that have voted to convert from district to pilot schools as the result of Boston Foundation funded planning grants.  Also in the works are plans for a second request for proposals to district schools that may wish to explore the advantages of pilot status. 

Other grants to promote systemic reform in the Boston public schools in the key areas of math and literacy include a grant to Northeastern University/Math Power, to continue its advocacy for improved math instruction in the middle schools, and a grant to Lesley University for a program designed to help elementary school teachers use technology, including the internet, to teach core reading and writing skills.

The recipient of this quarter’s “Out of the Blue” grant for $75,000 is Boston Community Capital, a community development financial institution that was founded by local housing and religious groups to make loans to nonprofits developing affordable housing.  It has grown into one of the largest and most respected community loan funds in the country, with assets in excess of $25 million, and is now an active player in capitalizing businesses in low-income communities. 

The Foundation is also extending its support to the nonprofit sector in a series of beyond-grantmaking activities, beginning with a series of meetings this quarter to explore how the various areas of the nonprofit community have been affected by the current climate of economic uncertainty.  As a follow-up, the Foundation will host a series of strategic alliance and advocacy forums, and enter a pro bono consulting arrangement with Community Action Partners, a Harvard Business School alumni program, that will analyze the needs of the nonprofit sector, assess the Foundation’s capacity building grants and provide guidance about future investments to support nonprofits.  A forum to provide information and support to clusters of nonprofit groups regarding merger or collaborative behavior is also being planned.  The Vision Fund of the Boston Foundation, which provides small, flexible grants for organizational capacity building, will now give priority to requests from organizations that focus on coping with changes in today’s hostile funding environment.

The Boston Foundation, one of the nation’s oldest and largest community foundations, has an endowment of more than $570 million, made grants of $48 million to nonprofit organizations, and received gifts of $38 million last year. The Boston Foundation is made up of 750 separate charitable funds, which have been established by donors either for the general benefit of the community or for special purposes. The Boston Foundation also serves as a civic leader, convener, and sponsor of special initiatives designed to build community.  For more information about the Boston Foundation and its grant making, visit www.tbf.org , or call 617-338-1700.

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Discretionary grants are made from the Boston Foundation’s Community Fund, a collection of unrestricted gifts made to the Foundation to be distributed to nonprofit groups working to meet the needs of Greater Boston’s residents across a broad range of issues.  Donor Advised grants are made from Funds established by donors who want to play an active role in selecting the organizations and programs they support.  Designated grants are made from Funds established by donors to support one or more of their favorite nonprofit organizations in perpetuity.  The following is a complete listing of the Boston Foundation’s $3,174,000 in discretionary grants made this quarter:

ARTS AND CULTURE – 13 grants totaling $295,000
American Composers Forum-Boston Area Chapter - $15,000
Ballet Rox -$15,000 Boston Children’s Chorus - $20,000
Boston Foundation, Inc./Cultural Task Force - $10,000
Boston Modern Orchestra Project - $15,000
Bostonian Society - $15,000
First Night, Inc. - $40,000
First Night, Inc. - $25,000
FleetBoston Celebrity Series - $20,000
Greater Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra - $15,000
Madison Park Development Corporation - $40,000
Theater Offensive, Inc. - $15,000
Wang Center for the Performing Arts, Inc. - $50,000

CIVIC ENGAGEMENT – 12 grants totaling $570,000
Brazilian Immigrant Center, Inc. - $20,000
Chelsea Human Services Collaborative, Inc.- $25,000
City Year, Inc.  -  $100,000
Columbia Point Community Partnership - $20,000
Federated Dorchester Neighborhood Houses, Inc. - $60,000
Greater Boston Interfaith Organization - $30,000
Hyams Foundation/Immigrant and Refugee Leadership Development Initiative - $50,000
Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition, Inc. - $50,000
MBTA Advisory Board - $30,000
Metropolitan Area Planning Council - $70,000
Partnership, Inc. - $75,000
Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts, Inc. - $40,000

EDUCATION – 8 grants totaling $238,500
Boston Foundation/EdVestors - $50,000
Boston Latin School Association - $2,500
Boston Private Industry Council - $10,000
Lesley University - $70,000
MathPower - $30,000
New Boston Pilot Middle School Design Team - $50,000
New England Dollars for Scholars - $1,000
United Way of Massachusetts Bay, Inc. - $25,000

ENVIRONMENT – 2 grants totaling $70,000
Charles River Conservancy, Inc. - $20,000
Conservation Law Foundation, Inc. - $50,000

HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES – 15 grants totaling $525,000
AIDS Action Committee of Massachusetts, Inc. - $20,000
Arthritis Foundation Massachusetts Chapter, Inc. - $25,000
Boston Center for Independent Living, Inc. - $50,000
Cambridge Cares About AIDS, Inc. - $10,000
Commonwealth Care Alliance, Inc. - $50,000
Haitian Multi-Service Center - $35,000
Health Care for All, Inc. - $60,000
Health Services Partnership of Dorchester, Inc. - $50,000
HomeStart, Inc. - $25,000
Massachusetts Alliance of Portuguese Speakers - $25,000
Massachusetts Health Policy Forum - $20,000
Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children - $30,000
Project Bread-The Walk for Hunger, Inc. - $50,000
South Boston Neighborhood House, Inc. - $50,000
Trinity Church - $25,000

HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT – 7 grants totaling $220,000
Chelsea Neighborhood Housing Services, Inc. - $20,000
Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association, Inc. - $60,000
Homes for Families, Inc. - $30,000
Mass Alliance of HUD Tenants - $25,000
Massachusetts Association of Community Development Corporations - $40,000
Northeastern University-Center for Urban and Regional Policy - $20,000
Rebuilding Together Boston, Inc. - $25,000

NONPROFIT SECTOR – 4 grants totaling $155,000
Boston Foundation, Inc./Vision Fund - $100,000
Greater Worcester Community Foundation/ExecutiveTransitions Support System - $20,000
National Conference for Community and Justice, Inc. - $20,000
University of Massachusetts College of Management - $15,000

OUT OF SCHOOL TIME – 13 grants totaling $435,500
All Dorchester Sports League, Inc. - $15,000
BELL Foundation, Inc. - $75,000
Bethel A.M.E. Church - $30,000
Boston After School for All Partnership - $30,000
The Girls’ Coalition of Greater Boston - $25,000
John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, Inc. - $80,000
Parents United for Child Care, Inc. - $100,000
Sportsmen’s Tennis Club, Inc. - $20,000
Stop Handgun Violence, Inc. - $20,000
Trina Persad Charitable Fund - $2,500
United Way of Massachusetts Bay, Inc. - $8,000
Urban Dreams Youth Development Program - $25,000
Wellesley College/ Achieve Boston Summit - $5,000

WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT – 2 grants totaling $55,000
Aquinas Education Institute - $15,000
Boston Employment Service/STRIVE - $40,000

SPECIAL INITIATIVES
OUT OF THE BLUE GRANT – 1 grant totaling $75,000
Boston Community Capital, Inc. - $75,000

COMMUNITY SAFETY INITIATIVE – 6 grants totaling $235,000
Boston Centers for Youth and Families - $50,000 Commonwealth Corporation - $50,000
Ella J. Baker House - $35,000
Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government - $50,000
Project R.I.G.H.T., Inc. - $25,000
Roxbury Youthworks, Inc. - $25,000

NEW ECONOMY INITIATIVE – 9 grants totaling $300,000
Carroll Center for the Blind, Inc. - $40,000
CitySkills, Inc. - $25,000
Health Care for All, Inc. - $30,000
Local Initiatives Support Corporation - $75,000
North Shore Community Action Programs, Inc. - $20,000
Sociedad Latina, Inc. - $25,000
Timothy Smith Network - $35,000
Villa Tech, Inc. - $25,000
Youth Tech Entrepreneurs, Inc. - $25,000