Arizona

The Community Foundation for Southern Arizona in Tucson has announced the launch of the Comunidad (Community) Grants Program, which will provide unrestricted grants to area nonprofits with operating budgets of less than $100,000. Comunidad Grants will support organizations working at the local level with their communities to address emerging or systemic issues. Applications for Comunidad Grants 2024 will open on November 6.

Connecticut

The Hartford Foundation for Public Giving has announced its third round of grants supporting state and/or municipal advocacy aimed at addressing homelessness and creating access to more affordable, stable, and higher quality housing for residents of color, low-income residents, and/or residents experiencing other housing barriers (such as returning citizens). Grants totaling $175,000 were awarded to seven nonprofits, including the Arc of Connecticut, Connecticut Tenants Union, Make the Road Connecticut, and Once INCarcerated Anonymous.

Delaware

Penn Medicine, the health system based at the University of Pennsylvania, has announced a $5 million grant from the Delaware Community Foundation in support of Penn Institute on Aging’s (IOA) work to develop the next generation of therapies for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD). Led by David Wolk and Edward Lee, IOA will collaborate with teams that have identified and validated potential therapeutic targets to translate basic science research into treatments that address the root causes of ADRD. Specifically, the funds will support development and translation of novel therapeutics and approaches for more effective targeting and enhanced efficacy of therapies that change how ADRD develops over time. The grant also will support expansion of tissue and biofluid repositories, DNA sequencing, and biomarker testing.

Maine

In the wake of the October 25 mass shootings in Lewiston, the Maine Community Foundation has announced the launch of the Lewiston-Auburn Area Response Fund to address current and emerging needs associated with the tragedy. A hundred percent of every dollar donated will be allocated to people impacted and the organizations that will help guide Lewiston-Auburn through the process of healing.

Minnesota

The Minneapolis Foundation has announced the promotions of Jo-Anne Stately and Patrice Relerford to new roles, as its impact department adopts a new leadership structure to advance the mission of cultivating change together. Stately, who has been with the foundation since 2009, has been named senior vice president of impact. Relerford, who joined the foundation in 2015, will serve in a newly created position, vice president of collective impact and giving.

Pennsylvania

The Thoroughbred Education and Research Foundation, a program of the Chester County Community Foundation, has announced a $7,500 grant to the Retired Racehorse Project and a $5,000 grant to MidAtlantic Horse Rescue Inc. Both grants will be used for educational purposes.

Rhode Island

The Rhode Island Foundation has announced a $90,000 grant to help the Social Enterprise Greenhouse (SEG) expand its programs for entrepreneurs from historically marginalized communities. SEG will use the funding to subsidize program participation costs, increase outreach within historically marginalized communities, and formalize its approach to referrals. The business incubator expects to serve more than 200 entrepreneurs with the grant, with a focus on startups in Central Falls, Newport, Pawtucket, Providence, and Woonsocket.

Texas

The San Antonio Area Foundation (SAAF) has announced grants totaling $3 million in support of nearly 100 local nonprofits in its latest three-year funding cycle (2023-25), making in total a $9 million investment in the community. Grants will be disbursed to nonprofits working in SAAF’s four main impact areas: Cultural Vibrancy, Successful Aging, Youth Success, and Livable and Resilient Communities. Of the grantees, 26 percent are first-time recipients and 84 percent work in one of the city’s 17 ZIP codes with the highest poverty rates. Nearly one-third have annual budgets below $250,000.

Communities Foundation of Texas (CFT) has announced that more than 60 social-sector leaders from across the metroplex gathered recently last month to launch the Social Entrepreneurship Certificate for Social Sector Leaders program at the Southern Methodist University Cox School of Business. At the end of the seven-month, 11-session certificate program, they will be better equipped to tackle the community’s most challenging social issues.