Community Initiatives

Initiative for Nonprofit Excellence

• The Initiative for Nonprofit Excellence (INE) has been serving Rhode Island nonprofits since 2008. More than 1,300 board members and executive leaders representing more than 600 organizations have attended our programs in the areas of board governance, leadership, organizational development, human resources management, fiscal literacy, and donor relations.
  

  Rebekah Greenwald Speck, executive director, RiverzEdge Arts Project, shares her personal stories of leadership with “next generation leaders” in the Initiative for Nonprofit Excellence’s Emerging Leaders program.

  
  
• INE workshops and extended training programs have demonstrated a positive impact in the nonprofit community, with participating organizations reporting that they gained increased knowledge about financial sustainability, governance, and organizational structures. INE programs are intended to strengthen leadership at the board and executive levels, with a special emphasis on building a cohort of early career leaders through our emerging leaders program. We also provide a unique set of on-line resources for nonprofits, including a complete directory of the state’s nonprofits and a resource guide to nonprofit consultants.
  
  
• All our programs and services are designed to strengthen and build the capacity of the Rhode Island nonprofit sector so that it may effectively meet community needs.

Newport County Fund

• The Newport County Fund (NCF) was established in 2002 by the Foundation as a permanent endowment to benefit the six communities of Newport County: Jamestown, Little Compton, Middletown, Newport, Portsmouth, and Tiverton. The mission is simple: To improve the lives of Newport County residents. And the vision of NCF is based on the power of regional philanthropy – local people working together on local issues to improve the quality of life throughout the County.
  

  Senate President Teresa Paiva Weed, D-Newport, speaks during the 7th Annual Newport County Legislative Breakfast, co-sponsored by the Newport County Fund and the Newport Daily News. (Photo: Jacqueline Marque, Newport Daily News)

  
  
• Since 2002, NCF has awarded more than $2 million in grants. In 2010, NCF launched the Common Ground Grants program, an initiative to support creative collaborative projects that cross institutional boundaries and city/town borders.
  
  
• NCF also addresses regional issues through community convenings in partnership with the Newport Daily News. The 2010 program, 2020 Vision, challenged the community and local leaders to address issues concerning education, the economy, and the environment.
  
  
• We are grateful to the many volunteers, led by the dedicated Advisory Committee (members are recognized here), who are making this work possible.

Equity Action

• In 2002, the Foundation accepted a challenge from the National Lesbian and Gay Community Funding Partnership (now known as Funders for Lesbian and Gay Issues) to create Equity Action, a permanent philanthropic resource for Rhode Island’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ) communities.
  

  Honorees at the Julie Pell Awards Gala in November 2010 were (l to r) U.S. Congressman Barney Frank, Julie Pell Award for National & Regional Advocacy; Lise Iwon, Peter Hocking, and Jenn Steinfeld, Empowerment Award for Social Change & Civic Engagement; and Rhode Island ACLU (Steven Brown, executive director, accepting), Julie Pell Justice Award for Community Leadership. The late Julie Pell was a founding member of Equity Action and one of its most generous donors.

  
  
• Efforts have focused on generating new philanthropic resources and financial support for LGBTQ issues, increasing awareness about LGBTQ concerns, and investing in programs and projects that support and promote justice for LGBTQ Rhode Islanders. On the latter front, Equity Action has – since making its first grants in 2004 - awarded more than $500,000 to nonprofit organizations working to advance the equitable treatment and improve the quality of life of LGBTQ Rhode Islanders.
  
  
• Two integral groups of volunteers have supported the fund’s growth and impact – the campaign committee and the advisory council. Thank you to these extraordinary committee and council members (see a full list here) and the hundreds of individuals who have supported the cause through the years.

Black Philanthropy Initiative

• In 2005, a group of Black leaders met with the Foundation to discuss their vision for a thriving Black community in Rhode Island. Acknowledging that the challenges facing Black Rhode Islanders were both formidable and well-entrenched over many decades, they sought a solution that would be responsive to changing and emerging needs well into the future. Thus was born the Black Philanthropy Initiative (BPI), a field of interest fund at the Foundation.
  

  Among the leadership of the Black Philanthropy Initiative are (l to r) Walter R. Stone, co-chair, campaign committee; Linda Newton, co-chair, campaign and steering committees; and the Hon. Edward Clifton, co-chair, steering committee.

  
  
• The mission of BPI is to advance equity and social justice for Blacks in Rhode Island. Through strategic grantmaking, BPI will support organizations and initiatives that: measurably improve the status of Blacks in Rhode Island; pursue equality, opportunity, and prosperity in the economic, cultural, social, educational, health, and public policy spheres; and galvanize Black leadership, nurture public/private partnerships, and leverage additional community resources.
  
  
• A dedicated group of volunteers has worked tirelessly to launch an initial fundraising campaign, determine strategic priorities, and recruit community support. We thank these many volunteers (listed here) for their vision and commitment.