3C Community Profile: Humboldt Park
Take a stroll down the Paseo Boricua corridor on Division Street and it’s easy to see why Humboldt Park is one of Chicago’s most vibrant…
Grants
Featured
Our Grantmaking Strategy
For more than 100 years, The Chicago Community Trust has convened, supported, funded, and accelerated the work of community members and changemakers committed to strengthening the Chicago region. From building up our civic infrastructure to spearheading our response to the Great Recession, the Trust has brought our community together to face pressing challenges and seize our greatest opportunities. Today, that means confronting the racial and ethnic wealth gap.
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Grant Recipient
Small Business Advocacy Council
Thriving commercial corridors support local communities across Chicago and Cook County. However, many commercial corridors in disadvantaged communities continue to struggle and are often plagued by vacancies and a lack of economic activity. This application seeks funding to support efforts to formulate and advocate for policies that will revitalize and empower disadvantaged commercial corridors. This application seeks funding to support the efforts with a robust coalition of stakeholders focused on formulating and advocating for policies that will revitalize and, in some cases, reinvent corridors and neighborhood business districts. This application seeks funding to connect chambers and community organizations, expand the Neighborhood Revitalization Coalition and amplify the collective voice of chambers and community organizations focused on the enactment of policies and initiatives to revitalize and empower commercial corridors.
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Grant Recipient
UNITED WAY OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO
Funding is requested to support the general operations of the Corporate Coalition of Chicago, an alliance of companies working to reduce racial and economic inequities through the power of their business practices. Members of the Corporate Coalition challenge business as usual and identify and implement new ways to deploy their capital, capabilities, and employee enthusiasm to help build a thriving Chicago region where assets and opportunities are more equitably shared. Members of the Corporate Coalition share a vision of a corporate culture in Chicago where leaders understand that reducing inequities is essential to their business success and to a thriving regional economy, leading them to challenge business as usual in the way they invest, operate, and govern. Funding will support the Corporate Coalition in its three main areas of work: 1. Developing and supporting joint initiatives (e.g., the Corporate Connector, EPIC Fund, second chance hiring) where companies work together to change business practices 2. Public communications, to catalyze a conversation about challenging business as usual to create a more equitable region 3. Sharing of innovative practices across firms Funding will also support the Coalition in retention of an impact assessment and learning partner, an important step in the Coalition’s maturation.
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Grant Recipient
THRIVE SCHOLARS
Thrive Scholars' mission is to help high-achieving students of color from low-income communities get into and graduate from top colleges equipped to reach their full career potential. Thrive Scholars addresses the racial wealth gap disparities with our signature Summer Academy program and our Career Development Program. We respectfully request a grant of $200,000 to continue scaling our Summer Academy and Career Development Programs for our growing number of Chicago Thrive Scholars.
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Grant Recipient
The Chicago Community Foundation/Community Desk Chicago
Funding request to support a real estate development project for the South Shore Chamber of Commerce/CDC as part of the Neighborhood Developers Initiative (NDI).
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Grant Recipient
QUAD COMMUNITIES DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION NFP
QCDC is appreciative to have been invited to renew the third and final year of the Flexible Funding grant with CCT. QCDC's grant renewal and subsequent funding for the final $100,000 will continue to support the outcomes established in the initial application in 2020. Outcomes related to but are not limited to the agency's overall administrative requirements, execution of charitable programming and stakeholder engagement, compliance and monitoring requirements of funders, and the general agency infrastructure as QCDC continues the pursuit of its mission in its 19th year, "… driving equitable community revitalization, improving the quality of life for all residence, expanding the local ecosystem to be assessable to all. In this third year, our goals will be to achieve 100% completion of the original outcomes, further strengthen the agency's base to assure it is on firm ground to expand its programming and impact, secure additional funding as well as establish a current strategic development and fundraising plan.
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Grant Recipient
UNITED WAY OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO
The Corporate Coalition is applying for a grant that will allow us to formalize the operations of 5/25 Move to Action (5/25 MTA), including locating and staffing the work at the Corporate Coalition. The initiative is focused on the outsized impact corporations have on equity in Black and Latinx communities. As part of this work, the Corporate Coalition will secure, coordinate, and report commitments to 5/25 Move to Action that address economic opportunity in disinvested communities across the region. A joint initiative between the Corporate Coalition and Together We Rise for an Equitable and Just Recovery, in formalizing operations of 5/25 MTA the Corporate Coalition will specifically: - Facilitate shared learning: The Corporate Coalition will support the convening of the participants to share practices and create a learning community - Document and share leading practices: Provide the outcomes of the convenings to participating companies. - Bring visibility to those doing the work: Leverage the leadership of The Chicago Community Trust and the Corporate Coalition’s recently appointed three Co-Chairs to create a public voice, and to inspire more companies to challenge business as usual as a way to address longstanding inequities - Recruit new participants in MTA
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Grant Recipient
Sisters in Cinema
With support of the Catalyzing Neighborhood Investment, Sisters in Cinema will work to develop and advance a set of targeted capacity building efforts to strengthen our ability to advance our mission and to further a shared vision for a thriving South Side. We will work with the Community Programs Accelerator (CPA) who will provide formal capacity building counsel to assist us in driving forward the development and advancement of key priorities. Sisters in Cinema will build on the work completed in the first year of the program with the CPA. In year one we focused on Operational Plan Design including policies and procedures necessary to effectively run the new Media Arts Center. In year two we will shift to Operational Plan Implementation. We will also conduction an evaluation of the policies and procedures created in year one that were theoretical in nature because the Media Arts Center was still under construction. We will work toward effectively fine-tuning policies and procedures based upon what we learn from practical application. In year one our goal was to work on Program Design and implementation created in collaboration with community members to create new and strengthen current programs serving needs determined by the community. We hosted focus groups with creative organizations, businesses, artists and activists and also implemented a community survey. Since the Media Arts Center is still under construction we have not been able to implement what we have learned from the community. In year two we will begin the Implementation process working with the community in terms of creating community inspired programming at the Media Arts Center.
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Grant Recipient
RESIDENT ASSOCIATION OF GREATER ENGLEWOOD
Resident Association of Greater Englewood (R.A.G.E.) was founded in November 2010 and our overarching mission is to empower residents to strategize and devise concrete solutions for the betterment of Englewood while actively serving as a credible information resource for the community at-large. R.A.G.E launched the Buy the Block Englewood Housing Program back in 2018, to organize a campaign targeting renters to become first time homebuyers. The goal is to engage & educate residents about the homeowner opportunities in Englewood and work to increase the number of owner-occupied homes. We collect and track data regarding their interest to invest in a home, financial capacity and follow up accordingly to ensure they are on a pathway to homeownership. We want to develop 10-15 new home owners and/or residents who enroll in financial literacy or a credit building program so that they will eventually become a homeowner soon in Englewood. Our goal is to expand this program to reach more renters and strengthen our partnerships.