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
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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
TAPROOTS INC
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Grant Recipient
The Chicago Community Trust
TRHT seeks to plan, develop, and implement a series of healing and solidarity circles for key communities and civic leaders in Chicago. The intended short-term goal of this work is for program participants to gain a deeper understanding of how racism has impacted the health and economic vitality of Chicago communities and to feel a greater sense of solidarity with those who live there. From this heightened level of awareness and understanding, the intended long-term goal is for participants to leverage their political, financial, and institutional power to increase investments (both corporate and philanthropic) in impacted neighborhoods, thereby strengthening equity-driven policies, institutions, and opportunities.
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Grant Recipient
Better Future Forward
Better Future Forward (BFF) is dedicated to providing accessible, protective, and sustainable financial support to address the unmet financial needs of City Colleges of Chicago (CCC) students and alumni. The two-fold goals of this project are 1) to continue to innovate and improve BFF’s unique ISA model to best serve community college students and 2) to position BFF’s program to attract larger-scale sources of capital—both philanthropic and impact investing. By achieving both objectives, BFF will enable a much larger number of CCC students and alumni to have access to protective financial support through BFF’s program, as well as develop a blueprint for how best to equitably, accessibly, and sustainably address the financial challenges facing students across Chicago.
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Grant Recipient
Economic Awareness Council
The proposed project, Expansion of Applied Financial Capability Supports for Students at the City Colleges of Chicago, will build upon the successful initial project implementation in 2023-24 by the Economic Awareness Council (“EAC”) as well as partners, the City Colleges of Chicago (“CCC”), the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (“ISAC”), and Working Credit (“WC”). The successful 2023-2024 project addressed 4 key areas of need: understanding & management of the student financial aid process; budgeting for emergencies; credit building; and planning for students’ financial future. These four areas were addressed using the following strategies: inclusion of an expanded financial capability discussion in the financial aid process; increased opportunities for education related to financial aid, credit building, identity protection, saving and investing; one on one mentoring with peer financial educators (money mentors), Working Credit team members and ISAC Student Corp members; hands on behavioral objectives such as checking ones credit, banking, or creating a budget; referrals to ongoing financial coaching & other financial resources within the community as needed; and concrete student incentives (either saving or credit building incentives). This pilot will be supported by the continued growth and work of the financial capability planning team at City Colleges of Chicago.
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Grant Recipient
REVOLUTION WORKSHOP
Revolution Workshop’s Construction Pre-Apprenticeship Programs (our Fieldwork Pre-Apprenticeship and our new Construction Professional Pre-Apprenticeship) provide best-in-class, hands-on training to individuals from disinvested Black and Brown communities across the city. Trainees earn middle-skills certifications and are then placed into jobs and career pathways like carpenter, plumber, and electrician (Fieldwork) as well as project coordinator, assistant project engineer, estimators, and entry-level CAD drafter (Construction Professional). Yet we know that landing a job is only the first step of their journey to living-wage, family-sustaining careers. RW’s Career Growth Services is a multi-pronged approach to engaging graduates in ongoing educational, network-building, and transitional employment opportunities that will help them grow in the construction field and break cycles of poverty for themselves and their families. Through this proposal, we are requesting funding to support both our Career Growth Services initiative as well as our newest program—our Construction Professional Pre-Apprenticeship—which places graduates directly into $25/hr+ careers.
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Grant Recipient
Hire360
HIRE360 proposes support for its Training, Mentorship, & Alumni Services program to improve placement and retention in construction industry, living wage unionized apprenticeships for residents of historically under-represented communities. HIRE360 will enroll 330 individuals as candidates yearly into its pre-apprenticeship programs, and graduate (transition) 150 candidates yearly into construction industry programs. Of these 25-35 new apprentices will participate in our monthly mentorship program events. Of candidates transitioned into registered apprenticeships, 100 yearly will participate in one or more Alumni Services: Resume and Job Readiness Workshops; acquiring or renewing CPR certification; attending our annual hiring event; and/or using HIRE360’s job board. Enrolled participants (330) will average 51% Black/African American; 30% Hispanic/Latino/a; 12% White/Caucasian; 6% Multi-Racial. 1% will not disclose their racial/ethnic status.
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Grant Recipient
The Chicago Community Foundation/The Fund for Equitable Business Growth
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Grant Recipient
Chicago Community Foundation