Grants
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Highlights
Over the years the Foundation has made significant grants at important points in the growth and development of charitable organizations and agencies. We are particularly proud of the success of some of the early entrepreneurial grant efforts, including:
- Greensboro Urban Ministry (1992, 1999, 2001, 2002)
- Piedmont Land Conservancy (1996, 2000)
- Self-Help (1996)
- Habitat for Humanity (1998)
- Weaver Parks Fund (1996)
- Welfare Reform Liaison Project
Other grants of a traditional nature are important to the Foundation and to the community. In many cases these grants stimulate programs and activities and help meet critical community needs. In other cases they may further particular interests of the Weaver Foundation Board.
In 1999 the Foundation’s Board of Directors designated three emphasis areas within its grantmaking interests. These areas were designated to:
- develop program thrusts in leadership development and community planning/visioning in the greater Greensboro area
- solicit program proposals, from pre-selected organizations, that affect the lives and support of children in our community
- seek ways to support the arrival and inclusion of new citizens and populations in our community
Supporting community leadership and development:
Support for development of the McKinsey Report on the economic future of the community and the subsequent formation and work of Action Greensboro represents a major commitment of well over $2 million to the emphasis on leadership development and community planning/visioning. Action Greensboro is a focused, time-limited effort that is designed to end by mid-2005.
Supporting children and youth:
An approach that differed from the Foundation’s usual practice of not soliciting grant applications was undertaken to develop programs that affect the lives and support of children in our community. After investigating the myriad programs offered by agencies and organizations to meet the needs of children and youth in Greensboro, it was decided to solicit ideas and proposals from those agencies. Also recognizing that many organizations served similar populations with differing programs or served different populations with similar programs, we decided that the proposals put forward should represent the collaborative efforts to two or more nonprofit organizations.
A two-part grant process was established that sought initial proposals for a planning grant that would then result in a program proposal from the collaborating organizations. Nine planning grants, of up to $25,000, each were selected and a planning horizons of some six months was established. During this period the participants were asked to design their collaboration, using the funds to examine best practices in other communities, carry out needs assessment activities, conduct focus groups and other research, visit programs in other areas, and seek consultation as necessary.
Four of the nine resulting proposals were selected for implementation and, in the fall of 2001, each received a three-year grant of up to $125,000 per year to carry out the program. The goal of the grants at the end of the three-year period is that the programs will be self-sufficient, having proved their worth and value to the collaborating organizations and the larger community.
The four programs are:
Supporting new citizens in our community:
Of particular concern to Greensboro is the arrival and inclusion of new citizens from around the world. In many cases the new arrivals are refugees from troubled countries such as Bosnia, Serbia, Laos, Thailand, and Sudan. In other cases people come to Greensboro from the Latin American countries and particularly Mexico. Through a special grant to UNC Greensboro the programs of UNCG’s Center for New North Carolinians work to extend access to health care, social services, and other community activities for our new arrivals.
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