United Hospital Fund (New York, NY)

A new United Hospital Fund initiative, Partnerships for Early Childhood Development, will engage 11 New York City hospitals and their community partners in a yearlong effort to initiate, expand, or improve on efforts by pediatric primary care practices to screen children zero to five years old for social and environmental risks, and connect them with services that can address those risks. A funding collaborative consisting of UHF, the Altman Foundation, and The New York Community Trust is supporting the initiative with grants totaling $703,062.

The initiative builds on UHF’s long-standing efforts to strengthen primary care capacity, which expanded to children in 2016 with the establishment of UHF’s Children’s Health Initiative. An integral part of the initiative is a learning collaborative led by UHF that will provide participating hospitals and community organizations with resources, training, technical assistance, and forums to share learning and best practices and address common challenges.

The hospitals in the initiative are Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center, Cohen Children’s Medical Center (part of Northwell Health), NYC Health + Hospitals/Coney Island, NYC Health + Hospitals/Gouverneur, Interfaith Medical Center, Montefiore Medical Center, Mount Sinai Health System/Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center, NewYork-Presbyterian/Queens, St. John’s Episcopal Hospital, and NYU Langone Health System/NYU Lutheran Family Health Centers.

To learn more about the grant initiative click here. To learn more about UHF’s Children’s Health Initiative click here.

Phone: 212.494.0733
Email: carnst@uhfnyc.org

The Kresge Foundation (Troy, MI)

The Kresge Foundation announced the 40 public health leaders who will work to transform the role of local public health departments in their communities as part of the second cohort of The Kresge Foundation’s Emerging Leaders in Public Health initiative.

The leaders participating in the second cohort are:

  • Nicole Alexander-Scott and Julian Drix, Rhode Island Department of Health
  • Karen Ayala and Lori Carnahan, DuPage County Health Department
  • Patricia Boswell and Laureen Husband, Department of Health, Volusia County
  • Gary Cox and Patrick McGough, Oklahoma City-County Health Department
  • Ying-Ying Goh and Michael Johnson, City of Pasadena Public Health Department
  • Diana Gomez and Gloria Coronado, Yuma County Public Health Services District
  • Esmeralda Guajardo and Jason Betancourt, Cameron County Department of Health and Human Services
  • Alton Hart and Tiffany Cox, Crater Health District, Virginia Department of Health
  • Patty Hayes and Carina Elsenboss, Public Health, Seattle and King County
  • Patrick Luedtke and Jocelyn Warren, Lane County Public Health
  • Gretchen Musicant and Mageen Caines, City of Minneapolis – Health
  • Dan Patridge and Charlie Bryan, Lawrence-Douglas County Health Department
  • Adi Pour and Andy Wessel, Douglas County Health Department
  • Jen Rombalski and Christine Gillespie, La Crosse County Health Department
  • Umair Shah and Rocaille Roberts, Harris County Public Health
  • Lloyd Torney Smith and Heleen Dewey, Spokane Regional Health District
  • Timothy Soucy and Anna Thomas, City of Manchester Health Department
  • Linda Vail and Sarah Bryant, Ingham County Health Department
  • Monica Valdes Lupi and Margaret Reid, Boston Public Health Commission
  • Nikole Zogg and Rachel Harris-Blanton, Southwest Health District

Collectively, the 20 health departments represented by cohort leaders serve nearly 14 million community members in cities across the country.

Contact: Christina Karas
Phone: 248.643.9630
Email: cmkaras@kresge.org

Obici Healthcare Foundation (Suffolk, VA)

The Obici Healthcare Foundation announced the awarding of more than $1.75 million in grants to 19 nonprofit organizations serving Western Tidewater. The foundation awarded a $30,000 grant to Remote Area Medical (RAM) of Virginia, a new grantee, to support the Southside RAM clinic by providing free primary medical care, mental health services, dental services, vision services, prescription assistance, and nutrition and health education to the community.

The other spring 2017 grantees are:

  • Catholic Charities of Eastern Virginia—$163,071 for Western Tidewater Dental Voucher Program.
  • Cover 3 Foundation—$50,000 for Expanding Meal Delivery to Defeat Childhood Hunger.
  • Eastern Virginia Medical School—$45,000 for EVMS Continuity of Care for Western Tidewater.
  • Girl Scout Council of the Colonial Coast—$15,000 for Capital Improvements to Camp Darden to Support Healthy and Active Lifestyles.
  • Hope Focus Center—$42,500 for Experience Center – Commercial Kitchen.
  • KaBOOM!, Inc.—$25,000 for City of Franklin Community-Build Playground Project.
  • Nursing CAP, Inc.—$26,750 for Encouraging Students to Choose Healthy Lifestyles and A Health-Related Career Path.
  • Sentara Obici Hospital—$90,681 for Bridging the Gap in Maternal Infant Home Visiting Services and $65,229 for Community Care Coordination Grant.
  • Southeastern Virginia Health System—$200,000 for Main Street Dental Program.
  • Suffolk Meals on Wheels—$46,975.50 for Emergency Meals for Need-Based Recipients.
  • Suffolk Partnership for a Healthy Community, Inc dba Healthy Suffolk—$164,298 for Planning the Partnership’s Future.
  • The Genieve Shelter—$65,000 for Victim’s Access to Transportation for Healthcare and Mental Health Services.
  • The Up Center—$100,000 for Western Tidewater Trauma Informed Counseling Collaborative Partnership.
  • United Way of South Hampton Roads – United for Children—$54,551 for Learning and Enrichment for Academic Progress.
  • VOLUNTEER Hampton Roads—$16,875 for 2017 Service Enterprise Initiative.
  • Western Tidewater Community Services Board—$61,885 for Whole Health Action Management.
  • Western Tidewater Community Services Board—$268,395.25 for Shared Psychiatric Service.
  • Western Tidewater Health District—$140,422 for Nurse-Family Partnership Program.
  • YMCA of South Hampton Roads—$50,000 for Creating a Healthier Community: through easier access to Chronic Disease Prevention & Restorative Health Programs in the New “Transitions” Expansion.
  • YMCA of South Hampton Roads—$37,237 for Diabetes Prevention Program.

Contact: Diane Nelms
Phone: 575.539.8810
Email: dnelms@obicihcf.org

The New York Community Trust (New York)

The New York Community Trust approved more than $5.6 million in grants to help 54 nonprofits. The grants will help some groups respond to federal policy changes, as well as support others to address longstanding problems such as unemployment, homelessness, and low voter turnout. The following is a list of health-related grants:

  • Callen-Lorde Community Health Center—$75,000 to help a leading community health center develop a shared-services model of care for gay, lesbian, and transgender patients.
  • Community Healthcare Network—$75,000 for a medical-legal partnership program with the Urban Justice Center to address veterans’ health, social service, and legal needs.
  • Medicare Rights Center—$150,000 to educate and engage consumers and policymakers about the impact of potential federal changes to Medicare on New York State.
  • National Association of Community Health Centers—$50,000 to expand a training program that recruits and trains people of color to advocate for New York’s health care safety net system.
  • National Medical Fellowships—$65,000 for scholarships in research and community health for minority medical students.
  • National Council for Behavioral Health—$50,000 to advocate to strengthen states’ behavioral health delivery systems.
  • Public Health Solutions—$200,000 to work with the Mayor’s Office of Food Policy to test a program that expands healthy food choices in low-income neighborhoods.
  • United Hospital Fund of New York—$150,000 to analyze the impact of federal health policy changes on New Yorkers and suggest options to protect affordable and comprehensive coverage.
  • Gerontological Society of America—$32,000 for the Maxwell A. Pollack Award, which is granted to an “individual who has made an outstanding contribution to increasing the human healthy life span.”
  • Griot Circle—$40,000 to expand a visiting program for homebound gay older adults of color.
  • Paraprofessional Healthcare Institute—$75,000 to develop and expand web-based training for home health aides to care for older adults and people with disabilities who have complex health conditions.
  • Services and Advocacy for GLBT Elders (SAGE)—$75,000 to help gay and lesbian older adults receive mental health care.
  • My Blind Spot—$60,000 to train blind adults to use an accessible format of QuickBooks accounting software.

Contact: Amy Wolf
Phone: 646.214.1004
Email: aw@nyct-cfi.org

Jewish Healthcare Foundation (Pittsburgh, PA)

The Jewish Healthcare Foundation (JHF) approved a $300,000 grant for an initiative to increase recreation and exercise opportunities for local seniors. The approach to help seniors engage in exercise and recreation will include:

  • launching a pilot project to allow seniors of varied abilities to engage in health-focused, guided outings in South Park and Frick Park;
  • developing a mobile-friendly, senior-friendly application that uses maps, text, and images to highlight curated walks, events, and other attractions focused on a senior audience of varied abilities;
  • engaging members of the medical community to hold guided walking tours with seniors and their families;
  • developing online exercise and recreation programming that seniors can use to stay active during the winter and during inclement weather, and if they are unable to attend in-person activities; and
  • creating communications materials that emphasize the importance of exercise and recreation on the health and well-being of older adults.

In 2016, JHF launched its Senior Connections initiative, which aims to strengthen a suite of service opportunities for older adults, including transportation and housing, exercise and recreation, geriatric‐friendly health care, and caregiver supports. JHF will serve as the convener for all Senior Connections recreation and exercise activities, and will also establish an advisory board of local experts to guide the initiative.

Contact: David Golebiewski
Phone: 412.594.2553
Email: golebiewski@jhf.org

George Family Foundation (Minneapolis, MN)

The George Family Foundation announced the recent publication of “Gender Norms and Youth Development: A Minnesota State Report from the George Family Foundation,” cofunded by the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota and produced by TrueChild.

This report emerges out of the George Family Foundation’s multiyear effort, beginning in 2014, to bring gender norms into the broader conversation among Minnesota’s youth-serving foundations and nonprofits. It details why philanthropies must include gender and gender norms in their intersectional approaches to research, grantmaking, and community conversations.

Emerging best practices in using a gender lens are already standard in many respected international organizations, including Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere, The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, United Nations Population Fund, and the World Health Organization. Their evaluations show that when young people learn to think critically about rigid gender norms, they are likelier to avoid teen pregnancy, bullying or being bullied, suffering from eating disorders, inflicting or feeling intimate partner violence, and self-selecting into and out of certain classes and career paths.

This report reminds us that communal beliefs and practices around gender and gender norms contribute to underlying systemic problems that prevent Minnesota’s young people from thriving.

Contact: Gayle Ober or Lee Roper-Batker
Phone: 317.696.7102
Email: gayle@GeorgeFamilyFoundation.org

Conrad N. Hilton Foundation (Agoura Hills, CA)

The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation approved 13 grants totaling $15 million during the first quarter of 2017, including $1 million for refugee-related work. The Hilton Foundation approved two grants for projects designed to provide relief for Syrian refugees: $500,000 to Save the Children for the education of the children of Syrian refugees in Lebanon and $500,000 to the International Rescue Committee for refugee resettlement assistance in the United States. Following is an overview of health-related grants awarded in the first quarter of 2017:

  • Aravind Eye Foundation—$1.9 million to strengthen and consolidate a social enterprise model aimed at improving access to high-quality cataract surgery at five eye health clinics in sub-Saharan Africa.
  • The Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America—$1 million to utilize the community coalition model to promote adoption of Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment to prevent and reduce adolescent substance use.
  • Community Catalyst—$2.2 million to expand and strengthen state-level advocacy campaigns to support adoption of youth SBIRT and reduce barriers to implementation. 
  • The Iowa State University Partnership in Prevention Science Institute—$800,000 to promote adolescent health and well-being in rural communities through prevention of substance use and related problem behaviors.

Contact: Julia Friedman
Phone: 818.851.3754

Learn More

The California Wellness Foundation (Woodland Hills)

The California Wellness Foundation (Cal Wellness) announced an initial round of more than $6 million in grants as part of a focused response to threats to the well-being of Californians in the nation’s rapidly changing political and social landscape. It also announced a mission-related investment initiative and a public affairs campaign to further its goals to protect and promote health and wellness.

To address immediate and emerging issues, Cal Wellness has prioritized four issues within its Advancing Wellness grantmaking strategy:

  • Addressing the needs of immigrants: To protect immigrant communities as a vital part of a healthy California.
  • Protecting access to health care: To protect access to care through the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid, Medicare, and other health coverage programs—and to maintain progress on access to health care in California.
  • Bolstering the safety net: To preserve access to health care services and other safety-net programs, grants will support organizations working on advocacy, community organizing, and public education at the local, state, and national levels.
  • Preventing hate-based violence:To address the alarming rise in hate-based violence in California’s communities, grants will provide funds to organizations using legal services, trainings, and public education to make timely responses to emerging opportunities or threats.

The foundation has accelerated its grantmaking process so that grantees receive dollars more quickly.

The complete list of grants can be found here.

In addition to grantmaking, Cal Wellness will leverage $50 million of its endowment for program- and mission-related investments over the next five years. The foundation also will continue to use its voice and public affairs capacity to advocate for health as a human right. The foundation’s bold statement titled “Together, We Advance and Defend Wellness,” issued in January 2017, affirms its values and current priorities in response to the current environment.

Contact: Richard Tate
Phone: 415.908.3021

Clinic Leadership Institute, a Project of Blue Shield of California Foundation (San Francisco)

Recognized for their commitment to California’s underserved, six leaders from safety net organizations across the state have been selected to participate in the Clinic Leadership Institute’s New Executive Transitions program (nEXt). This unique program aims to ensure their success within the critical first year of their new role and helps all participants and their organizations emerge stronger and more effective. This year’s nEXt participants are:

  • Judy Appel, Executive Director, California School-Based Health Alliance
  • Jane Fall, Executive Director, Cleaver Family Wellness Center
  • Lori Holeman, CEO, Community Health Systems, Inc.
  • Elisa Orona, Executive Director, Health Improvement Partnership of Santa Cruz County
  • Christy Ward, CEO, Cares Community Health
  • Andrea Williams, Executive Director, Southside Coalition of Community Health Centers

Email: bscfpublicaffairs@blueshieldcafoundation.org

The Center at Sierra Health Foundation (Sacramento and Merced, CA)

The Center at Sierra Health Foundation announced nearly $3 million for 69 organizations working on policy and systems change to improve health outcomes in the San Joaquin Valley. These San Joaquin Valley Health Fund partners are working in the counties of Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, and Tulare that comprise the Valley.

This third round of funding includes 54 individual grants and four cluster grants, a grant category added for the first time, supported by 16 organizations. Individual grants will fund organizations working to address health disparities and factors that impact health, such as food security, air quality, clean drinking water, housing, health care, education, employment, immigrant rights, domestic violence, open space, neighborhood safety, and other drivers of health outcomes.

Cluster grants will complement the individual grant program by connecting groups of nonprofit partners committed to accelerating policy and systems changes to improve the health and well-being of vulnerable children and to advance racial and health equity. Cluster grants will focus on protecting children from pesticides, and providing support to immigrant communities, with running themes of environmental justice and community mobilization.

Contact: Kari Ida
Phone: 913.591.1615
Email: kida@sierrahealth.org

Mary Black Foundation (Spartanburg, NC)

The Mary Black Foundation recently awarded $1,126,600 in grants to 10 nonprofit organizations serving Spartanburg County. Click below to learn more about the grants and the organizations funded.

Phone: 864.573.9500
Email: info@maryblackfoundation.org

Learn More

Austin-Bailey Health and Wellness Foundation (Canton, OH)

The Austin-Bailey Health and Wellness Foundation approved grants totaling $181,720 to 12 nonprofit organizations and eight schools. The foundation supports programs that promote the physical and mental well-being of the people residing in Holmes, Stark, Tuscarawas, and Wayne Counties in Ohio.

The foundation provides $40,000 in scholarships to students engaged in health-related studies at Aultman College, Kent State University Stark, Kent State University Tuscarawas, Malone University, Stark State College, University of Mount Union, Walsh University, and Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Those organizations receiving grants include:

  • Boys and Girls Club of Massillon–$10,000 to support their KidStop Summer Program, which teaches children healthy habits, good nutrition, and physical fitness.
  • Children’s Dyslexia Center—$5,000 to provide one-on-one tutoring to academically at-risk students who are dyslexic.
  • CommQuest Services–$22,000 to upgrade a treatment facility for women recovering from opioid addiction.
  • Community Action Wayne/Medina–$10,000 to provide transportation services to out-of-county health specialists for the underserved and for those with disabilities.
  • Love Center Food Pantry–$5,000 to support a food pantry that serves families in Holmes County who are facing difficulty meeting the basic needs of their households.
  • Meals on Wheels–$25,000 to supplement the purchase of two refrigerated trucks.
  • Orrville Area Boys and Girls Club–$5,000 for clinic exam rooms, appliances, and café tables.
  • Philomatheon Society of the Blind–$5,000 to provide eye exams and glasses for those unable to afford care.
  • The Salvation Army–$5,500 to support for their food pantry.
  • Stark County Board of Developmental Disabilities–$26,720 for amplification systems for each classroom to enhance the learning process.
  • Tuscarawas Clinic for the Working Uninsured–$10,000 to supplement the salary of a part-time physician assistant.
  • Viola Startzman Clinic–$12,500 to supplement the salary of a nurse practitioner to enable low-income patients to receive health care.

The deadline for submitting requests for the next cycle is June 15, 2017.

Contact: Don Sultzbach
Phone: 330.580.2380
Email: abfdn@sbcglobal.net

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