The New York Community Trust Awards Grants to 66 Nonprofits
(New York, NY) – October 20, 2022-The New York Community Trust has announced $11.5 million in grants to 66 nonprofits to improve the quality of life for all New Yorkers across a range of areas—from preventing homelessness to helping young women become leaders.
“The Trust is addressing some of the toughest challenges facing New York right now, such as helping the busloads of immigrants arriving from Texas,” said Shawn Morehead, the New York Community Trust’s vice president for grants. “Simultaneously, we are keeping an eye toward the future, supporting nonprofits that are mitigating the effects of climate change and building a thriving, more equitable city.”
Longer descriptions of the grants are available upon request.
Helping Thousands of New Migrants
Havens Relief Fund Society: $100,000 to create an emergency relief fund for the more than 14,000 migrants that have been arriving from the southern border, and to work with volunteers and nonprofit staff to help fill the gaps in the city’s safety net.
Addressing the Homelessness and Affordable Housing Crises
Even before the recent influx of asylum-seekers, New York City lacked affordable housing, which has led to a rise in homelessness. The Trust is supporting efforts to improve housing availability and help those without a long-term place to live.
Comunilife(opens in a new tab): $200,000 for an intensive case-management program for adults with complex health and behavioral health concerns who do not have housing.
Coordinated Behavioral Care(opens in a new tab): $400,000 to streamline the application process for supportive housing for adults with mental health and substance use disorders who are without a place to live.
JustFix(opens in a new tab): $100,000 to develop digital tools to help public-housing residents document needed maintenance and repairs.
Neighborhood Housing Services of New York City(opens in a new tab): $100,000 to make new loan options available to low-income homeowners and homebuyers struggling with the lingering economic effects of the pandemic.
Legal Aid Society(opens in a new tab): $500,000 to let families who are homeless benefit from market-rate rental subsidies. It also will help Legal Aid, Community Service Society, and Neighbors Together advocate for a better rental voucher application process and broader eligibility, while also working with tenants to avoid discrimination based on their source of income.
LiveOn NY(opens in a new tab): $200,000 for research and advocacy to reduce the risk of homelessness for the city’s older adults.
Public Policy Lab(opens in a new tab): $400,000 to work with the Department of Housing Preservation and Development and other city agencies to make their processes easier for low-income and homeless New Yorkers who need to access and use “Section 8” rental assistance vouchers.
Right to Counsel NYC Coalition(opens in a new tab): $75,000 to expand tenants’ right to counsel in eviction proceedings.
Streetlives(opens in a new tab): $300,000 to develop mobile technology to help young people experiencing homelessness find peer-reviewed housing and social services.
Young Women’s Activism and Youth Development
Adhikaar(opens in a new tab): $140,000 to help young women from the city’s Nepali and Tibetan communities advocate for their rights and improved access to healthcare.
Brotherhood/Sister Sol(opens in a new tab): $90,000 for a youth-led organizing program for Black and Latinx young people.
Arab-American Family Support Center(opens in a new tab): $140,000 to offer Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian girls training in community organizing and give them the opportunity to develop a public education campaign.
Center for Anti-Violence Education(opens in a new tab): $140,000 to prevent violence motivated by racism, sexism, xenophobia, and other forms of discrimination by providing instruction and teaching violence de-escalation techniques.
Citizens’ Committee for Children(opens in a new tab): $90,000 for a citywide youth organizing and leadership program.
Flanbwayan Haitian Literacy Project(opens in a new tab): $140,000 to help Haitian immigrant girls advocate for their interests and address gender-based barriers to higher education.
Girl Be Heard(opens in a new tab): $140,000 to train young women citywide to use theater and storytelling to advocate for social change.
Girls for Gender Equity(opens in a new tab): $140,000 to assist young women of color in making their voices heard on issues ranging from gender-based disparities in school discipline to the need for better sex education.
Urban Youth Alliance(opens in a new tab): $80,000 to prevent violence and provide alternatives to detention, primarily in the Bronx and upper Manhattan.
Strengthening Communities
Andromeda Community Initiative(opens in a new tab): $180,000 to expand a building-restoration training program for adult jobseekers.
Cause Effective(opens in a new tab): $125,000 to provide training courses to nonprofit leaders of color who are interested in improving their fundraising and leadership skills.
Center for Governmental Research(opens in a new tab): $90,000 to recommend improvements to nonprofit and philanthropic support for New York State’s redistricting process.
New Economy Project(opens in a new tab): $125,000 for legal services and advocacy to prevent predatory financial practices that exploit low-income New Yorkers.
North Star Fund(opens in a new tab): $150,000 for a grassroots advocacy campaign to end police violence against Black New Yorkers.
Project Guardianship(opens in a new tab): $300,000 to develop an information and referral helpline for family members and friends considering guardianship of older adults or people with disabilities who are unable to make decisions on their own.
Schuyler Center for Analysis and Advocacy(opens in a new tab): $1,000,000 to support the Empire State Campaign’s efforts to advocate for a more affordable, effective, and accessible child care system.
Surveillance Technology Oversight Project (STOP)(opens in a new tab): $80,000 to research and share information about government surveillance of city residents.
Volunteers of Legal Service(opens in a new tab): $200,000 to provide free legal services to older women, Spanish-speakers, and those who identify as LGBTQ.
Promoting Health
AsOne Healthcare IPA, LLC(opens in a new tab): $131,000 to help nonprofits serving families with complex behavioral health issues collect data so they can fight for reimbursement through managed care contracts.
Bronx Community Health Network(opens in a new tab): $125,000 to help a community clinic in the north Bronx become a state-licensed primary care health center.
Brooklyn Communities Collaborative(opens in a new tab): $200,000 to foster partnerships between healthcare providers and a network of Central Brooklyn nonprofits dedicated to improving residents’ health and well-being.
Center for Independence of the Disabled in New York(opens in a new tab): $200,000 to train mental health providers to offer more inclusive care for people with disabilities.
Chinese-American Planning Council(opens in a new tab): $150,000 to assist Asian families in advocating for their children with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Jewish Board(opens in a new tab): $300,000 to create the nation’s first residency program for social workers, combining clinical care hours, training, and mentoring for recently graduated master’s degree students.
Medicare Rights Center(opens in a new tab): $200,000 to enroll older adults who are newly eligible for Medicaid and the state’s Medicare financial assistance program.
Northeast Business Group on Health(opens in a new tab): $155,000 to improve behavioral health care access for New Yorkers with employer-sponsored health insurance.
Providing Opportunities to Young People
The Campaign Against Hunger(opens in a new tab): $160,000 to expand a leadership program for young people interested in urban farming in Brooklyn and Queens.
Futures and Options(opens in a new tab): $100,000 to provide paid internships for high-school students.
Opportunities for a Better Tomorrow(opens in a new tab): $100,000 to improve career prospects for unemployed young people in Brooklyn.
Phipps Neighborhoods(opens in a new tab): $100,000 to expand skills training programs in healthcare and building maintenance for unemployed young adults in the Bronx.
Supporting Education
Asian American Coalition for Children and Families(opens in a new tab): $160,000 to aid the city and state in using new data to meet the educational needs of Asian American students.
BronxWorks(opens in a new tab): $150,000 to support the educational progress of students living in shelters.
Literacy Academy Collective(opens in a new tab): $100,000 to prepare educators to open the city’s first public school for students with dyslexia.
New York Immigration Coalition(opens in a new tab): $200,000 to expand high school programs for immigrant students, including those from Ukraine, Afghanistan, Haiti, and Syria.
New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children(opens in a new tab): $125,000 to adapt a sexual abuse prevention program to meet the needs of children with disabilities and offer the program to elementary school students who would otherwise receive little to no guidance on the topic.
Unchained at Last(opens in a new tab): $150,000 for public education and research on sexual consent, healthy relationships, and bodily autonomy within arranged marriages while remaining sensitive to religious beliefs and practices.
Enhancing Arts and Culture
African Film Festival(opens in a new tab): $150,000 to develop an archive of African films and other moving-image media, digitize its film collection, and make these films available to more people.
ArteEast(opens in a new tab): $150,000 to strengthen marketing and communications to showcase the work of Middle Eastern and North African artists and promote cross-cultural understanding.
Calpulli Mexican Dance Company(opens in a new tab): $150,000 to hire an artistic director and engage in strategic planning to bring new vision to the company’s storytelling through Mexican folkloric dance and music.
New Music USA(opens in a new tab): $175,000 to build the capacity of small new-music groups in the city.
Roosevelt Institute(opens in a new tab): $50,000 for the Pare Lorentz Center, which develops and promotes educational videos and digital media about the Roosevelt era.
Combating Climate Change, Protecting the Environment
The Trust makes grants to a wide range of nonprofits addressing climate change, including those assisting low-income communities that are disproportionately impacted by this crisis. While The Trust typically funds regionally, its environmental grantmaking is national and international in scope as a result of a gift from a donor.
Columbia University (Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation)(opens in a new tab): $200,000 to study and develop alternatives to current funeral industry practices, which harm the environment by emitting pollutants and using large amounts of hardwoods.
Inclusiv(opens in a new tab): $150,000 to build a technology platform to connect homeowners, lenders, and contractors that facilitates clean energy adoption in low-income communities in Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas.
NYC Green Relief and Recovery Fund(opens in a new tab): $120,000 for a pooled fund that promotes the responsible use and stewardship of the city’s green spaces.
New York University’s Stern School of Business, the Center for Sustainable Business(opens in a new tab): $129,000 to attract private investment that will help the city implement global sustainable development goals.
Rain Garden Action in Neighborhoods (RAIN) Coalition: $150,000 to prepare the city to work with community groups for the maintenance of green infrastructure—which includes enhanced tree pits, vegetated medians, and rain gardens—to manage stormwater and prevent flooding.
RMI(opens in a new tab): $150,000 to provide training and technical assistance in countries across sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, and island regions on the transition to clean, renewable energy and to combat climate change.
Smart Growth America(opens in a new tab): $150,000 to recommend ways to integrate climate resilience into affordable housing and land use decisions.
Solar One(opens in a new tab): $400,000 to promote the building of solar installations and expand a solar-energy focused education and internship program for high school students.
Solid Waste Environmental Excellence Performance (SWEEP) Standard Initiative(opens in a new tab): $150,000 to advocate for a more efficient and effective approach to managing solid waste across New England.
Van Lier Fellowships: Advancing Young Artists
The New York Community Trust’s Edward and Sally Van Lier Fund supports gifted young people of limited financial means who are pursuing careers in the arts. Grants are distributed from the fund yearly to nonprofit arts groups providing two- or three-year fellowships. The program began in 1991 and has supported more than 2,000 young artists. This year’s grantees include:
Ballet Tech Foundation(opens in a new tab): $90,000 for six fellows, beginning in sixth grade, to study ballet, jazz, creative movement, and modern dance. Fellows will receive at least 300 hours of dance instruction, and attend workshops on nutrition and physical conditioning.
Bloomingdale School of Music(opens in a new tab): $90,000 for four young musicians to receive music instruction, including workshops on music theory and career exploration. Fellows will have mentors and get help with college applications.
Harlem School of the Arts(opens in a new tab): $150,000 to provide eight students with theater training during fellowships, including instruction in acting, speech and diction, improvisation, and musical theater.
International Center of Photography(opens in a new tab): $50,000 for ten high school students to study photography and develop a portfolio they can use to apply to fine arts colleges.
MOVE NYC Foundation(opens in a new tab): $100,000 so that three dancers ages 13-16 years old can receive training and work with faculty to prepare audition pieces for college dance programs.
Pratt Institute(opens in a new tab): $110,000 to provide four high-school sophomores with art and design instruction during their final three years of high school, and develop a portfolio for college admissions.
Young People’s Chorus of New York City(opens in a new tab): $90,000 for six young singers so they can perform at least 80 times and receive choral music instruction.
About The New York Community Trust
The New York Community Trust is a public charity and New York City’s largest community foundation. It connects generous people and institutions with high-impact nonprofits making the city and its suburbs a better place for all. It builds stronger communities, influences public policy, fosters innovation, improves lives, and protects our environment. For more information, visit nycommunitytrust.org.