California

The Silicon Valley Community Foundation has announced the launch of a new center that will bring together research, leadership, advocacy, and innovative program strategies to improve the systems of early learning and care in Silicon Valley. One of the center's first priorities will be the release of a recently completed study of the beliefs, practices, and challenges faced by parents in the region with young children.

The San Diego Foundation's Center for Civic Engagement has announced grants totaling $182,412 to six organizations in the areas of land restoration and acquisition. Awarded through the center's Conservation Catalyst Fund, the grants will provide support to the Earth Discovery Institute, the Endangered Habitats Conservancy, the Escondido Creek Conservancy, the Living Coast Discovery Center, Preserve Calavera, and the San Elijo Lagoon Conservancy.

Michigan

The Community Foundation of the Holland/Zeeland Area has named Mike Goorhouse as its new president and CEO. Goorhouse, who has been involved with the foundation since 2001, when he served on its youth advisory committee as a high school student, has served as its vice president of donor development since 2012.

New York

The Brooklyn Community Foundation has announced that it will move to Crown Heights during the summer. The new office, to be located in the recently renovated Studebaker Service Station, will house the foundation's daily operations and serve as a convening hub and incubator for nonprofits and civic organizations from across the borough.

Ohio

The Richland County Foundation in Mansfield has announced that it is sponsoring an elder law education seminar for attorneys, accountants, insurance agents, and other professional advisors on May 15. The seminar will cover a variety of topics, with a focus on Medicaid planning (for nursing home expenses), special needs trusts, Ohio estate recovery, Medicaid planning strategies, and veterans' benefits.

The Columbus Foundation has announced that its J. Floyd Dixon Memorial Fund, which awards grants to nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations located in Jackson County, with a focus on education or health issues, is accepting applications for its 2014 grant program. Since 1997, the fund has distributed more than $585,000 in grants to twenty-three organizations. The deadline to apply is Friday, May 30.

Vermont

The Vermont Community Foundation in Middlebury has announced that it awarded more than a hundred grants totaling $197,521 in support of local organizations and projects in 2013. Listed in the foundation's recently released 2013 Community Fund Grants Report (16 pages, PDF), the grants include an award of $1,500 to Big Heavy World to get teens involved in rebuilding the organization’s Vermont music Web site and developing an iPad app.