United Way of NYC Launches 2012 Community Grants

This January and February 2012, United Way of NYC (UWNYC) is accepting applications for two community grants - Collaboration Grants and Community Leaders Impact Grants.

Collaboration Grants
What: Grant for "support teams of two or more community-based organizations that seek to create or expand innovative partnerships in order to achieve measurable outcomes."
When: Applications will accepted from January 2 - January 31, 2012 (no later than 5:00 p.m.)

Visit http://unitedwaynyc.org/pages/collaboration-grants for more information.

Community Leaders Impact Grants
What: Grant that "will enable emerging nonprofit leaders to obtain professional development training to better address critical issues impacting their organizations."
When: Applications will accepted from February 1 - 15, 2012 (no later than 5:00 p.m.)

Visit http://unitedwaynyc.org/pages/community-leaders-impact-grants for more information

Reconnecting McDowell - Creating a village through partnerships

"It takes a village to raise a child" is an age-old saying that, quite frankly, often seems to be the opposite of what's seen in American society these days.  In fact, a study commissioned by State Farm in late July of last year revealed that only 25% of Americans surveyed knew their neighbors names. This says a lot about the depth of relationships that Americans have with the people that live the closest to them(1).

If McDowell County was one of the few areas that fostered the "village mentality", then Reconnecting McDowell is elevating it to a new level to solve the major challenges in this West Virginia county. McDowell County is ranked last in education in the state and 72% of its students live in households without gainful employment(2). Reconnecting McDowell's aim is to "make educational improvement in McDowell County the route to a brighter economic future"(2). Their approach has been to partner with the business, philanthropic, government, nonprofit, and labor sectors to tackle "poverty, underperforming schools, drug and alcohol abuse, housing shortages, limited medical services, and inadequate access to technology and transportation"(2). Click here to learn more about Reconnecting McDowell.

Reconnecting McDowell has shown just what partnerships can do - create "villages" - a community where everyone feels a sense of responsibility to make sure that the children and adults alike are doing well. In McDowell County, although they face tough challenges, there is hope in collective problem solving. The problems of society cannot be solved alone. Their complexities require collaboration amongst many sectors. Of course, Community Optimization will be paying attention to this effort and share its progress.


References:
(1) CBS Los Angeles. "Love Thy Neighbor? Most Americans Don’t Know Next-Door Names"
(2) Reconnecting McDowell website http://www.reconnectingmcdowell.org/

Slow economic recovery for nonprofits gives even more of a reason to partner

A new study from the Nonprofit Research Collaborative (NRC), a collective of six organizations that study nonprofits, was released this month detailing slow economic growth for nonprofits. The Late Fall 2011 Nonprofit Fundraising Study found that 59% of nonprofits received the same or less in contributions in the first nine months of 2011 compared to the first nine months in 2010. For the other 41%, there was a 5% increase in giving compared to 2010. While funding seems to be declining or stagnant for the majority, 65% of the nonprofits surveyed reported that there was an increased demand for their services compared to last year. Click here for the full report.

The Late Fall 2011 Nonprofit Fundraising Study highlights that like individuals, nonprofits have also suffered from the down economy. The irony is the very organizations that are supposed to help those in need are in need themselves. So where does this leave them and how can they address this burden? This is the precise situation in which partnerships are extremely valuable. Nonprofits must pool their resources (material and human) so that they can continue to do the great work that they do.  After all, an ever increasing amount of people in the community are counting on them.

CNN Heroes 2011: Everyday people, everyday partnerships

Last night the 4th annual CNN Heroes 2011 honored the top 10 finalists and CNN Hero of the The Year at a star studded event in Los Angeles, CA. The show, which aired live on CNN, showcased amazing everyday people who are changing the world one day at a time. Click here to if you would like to see the heroes and read their stories at the CNN Heroes 2011 website.

The CNN Heroes show never ceases to amaze and provide proof that everyday people can do extraordinary things. It also shows the importance of others getting involved. When you look a bit closer at the work that the heroes are doing, you can see that partnerships play a big role in furthering their work. Therefore, the show not only highlights everyday people but everyday partnerships.

Chase honors charities with $2 million in grants

On Saturday, December 10 at 8pm EST, Chase's first-ever "celebrity tribute" to community heroes, the American Giving Awards, airs on NBC. What's at stake is a total of $2 million to be shared among five featured charities - 1st place: $1 million, 2nd place: $500,000, 3rd place: $250,000, and 4th & 5th place: $125,000. Chase is allowing the public to participate in the voting process in two ways - by liking the Chase Community Giving Facebook page or voting at Chase.com. Voting is from December 1, 2011 through December 8, 2011. Visit the American Giving Awards website for more information.

Despite whatever opinion you have of Chase, credit should go to whom credit is due. Chase has taken it upon themselves to give back to communities in a big way and they should be commended for that.  

Collaboration between the philanthropic, business, and government sectors leads to $30 million in aid in Connecticut

A collaboration of state officials, the business community, and the nonprofit sector resulted in a whopping $30 million in aid. The collaboration sought this funding for economic development efforts in Connecticut's urban areas which have suffered as a result of the recession. For more on this story, which was featured in the Hartford Business Journal Online, click here.

This is one example of how collaborations truly pay off. There is strength in numbers - well in this case expertise and resources.  If you have a goal and you are able to gather everything (e.g. resources, expertise) that you need to accomplish that goal, then you are more likely to succeed because you have everything that you need.

The results are in on Microsoft's "Elevate America" state voucher program

From February 2009 to August 2010, Microsoft partnered with states and the District of Columbia to provide free computer skills training to help the unemployed get the training they need to get back to work and under-skilled workers get more training as part of their Elevate America Initiative. In the end, Microsoft distributed more than 800,000 training and certification vouchers to the states and the District of Columbia who then distributed the vouchers to these individuals.

Overall this program had many successes and helped many people across the nation. Like all great things, there's always room for improvement and  Microsoft details their lessons learned, including the policy implications of the program, in their report titled Elevate America’s State Voucher Strategy to Promote Employability Lessons Learned.

ABC's "A Better Community" partners with Feeding America

How can you provide for a family in need in a few clicks? If you "like" ABC's "A Better Community" on Facebook, they'll donate two meals to a family in need through Feeding America.

This partnership is simple and made easy for the people already using social media sites like Facebook. Now you can help someone anywhere you are without putting hardly any effort. Who doesn't love that.

Dannon and the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc. have teamed up to support women in communities

Up until December 31, 2011, people can take part in funding early cancer detection and post-diagnosis support efforts through a partnership between Dannon® and the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc. (NBCF). Anyone may participate by purchasing a qualifying Dannon® or Stonyfield Activia product and entering the code (found under the lid) at cupsofhope.com.

This collaboration is for a great cause and can potentially benefit the lives of many women living in our communities.

Molina Foundation partners with literacy programs and 501(c)3 organizations to promote literacy

The Molina Foundation was established in 2004 to reduce disparities in healthcare and education. If the name sounds familiar, that’s because it was started by Dr. Martha Bernadett, daughter of Molina Healthcare, Inc. founder, Dr. C. David Molina. Since 2003, the Book Buddies™program has been working to increase literacy in children and adults by partnering with other organizations and literacy programs nationally. Through the Book Buddies™ program, the foundation has distributed hundreds of thousands of books and started book clubs at elementary schools.

Molina Foundation’s work through the Book Buddies™ program is a great example of how the health and education sectors can collaborate. What this means for a community and for a healthcare organization is not only less illiterate residents but a decrease in poverty. Literacy status effects a persons life much like the domino effect. Literacy determines our ability to move through the education system and hence our educational attainment (e.g. high school, college degree, graduate degree), what jobs we can get (high or low paying), and ultimately the quality of life we have.