Key issues are access to health care, environment/conservation,child and family advocacy, and economic development.

Head Start students in Cranston will learn about nutrition and healthy eating.  Large family farms will be preserved on Conanicut Island.  Low-income residents of Pawtucket, Central Falls and West Warwick will have fresh produce delivered to their neighborhoods. 

These are just some of the goals of the 101 projects that received $3,905,501 from The Rhode Island Foundation in the final days of 2006, bringing to $23.4 million the total amount awarded by the statewide foundation throughout the year.

“These 101 just-approved projects cap off a very good year at the Foundation, where we awarded approximately 2,500 grants to more than a thousand organizations and individuals,” reported Foundation President and CEO Ronald V. Gallo, Ed.D.

Gallo said the awards fall into two main categories – funds to organizations designated or advised by donors which account for $15.8 million of the total awarded in 2006, and grants left fully to the discretion of the Foundation which account for the remaining $7.6 million.

“These final 101 projects are from the most competitive category, our Strategy Grants program,” Gallo explained. “Many of these grants are for new projects which offer promising approaches to challenges faced by Rhode Islanders in every part of our state, challenges around such basic needs as health care, housing, and education.

“We’re equally excited about projects for which we’re awarding continuing funding.  The challenges that these projects seek to remedy are not easy ones that have a quick fix.  We’re committed to organizations for the long haul when significant progress is evident,” Gallo stated.

Through its Strategy Grants program, now in its fourth year, the Foundation awards funds through one of three ‘strategies’: policy, advocacy, and systems reform; organizational and leadership development; and innovative models and proven programs. 

The just-awarded Strategy Grants include:

Child and Family Support and Advocacy

• Day One, Providence, $50,000, for continued development of the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner Program that will provide throughout the state a pool of registered nurses specifically trained to conduct examinations of sexual assault victims in hospitals.
• Family Resources Community Action, Woonsocket, $30,000, to evaluate the Community Based Systems Support initiative, an effort to restructure the Department of Children, Youth and Families’ services provided to at-risk families.
• Family Service of Rhode Island, Providence, $35,500, for possible collaboration or merger of Family Services and the Capital City Community Center.
• Homestead Group (formerly ARC of Northern Rhode Island), Woonsocket, $40,000, to create a master plan for Homestead Gardens, a North Smithfield property acquired by the group earlier this year.
• Rhode Island Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Warwick, $75,000, for the Domestic Violence/Anti-Racism Project.
• Rhode Island College Foundation/Poverty Institute, Providence, $135,000, for continued support of the Institute’s policy and advocacy work on behalf of low- and moderate-income Rhode Islanders.
• Rhode Island Community Food Bank, Providence, $40,000, for continued support of the Neighborhood Pantry Express, which will expand its delivery of fresh produce to sites in Pawtucket, Central Falls and West Warwick.
• Salvation Army - Rhode Island, Providence, $10,000, to bring the organization’s Commercial Street building in Cranston, where food is prepared for emergency responders, up to new fire codes.
• Tides Family Services, West Warwick, $25,000, to support renovation and construction at its West Warwick facility where a comprehensive array of youth and family services is provided.
• Urban League of Rhode Island, Providence, $20,000, to provide matching funds to a $400,000 federal grant for the League’s programs for homeless young adults.
• VNS Home Health Services, Narragansett, $25,000, for continued support of the Washington County Coalition for Children, a collaboration that works to fill gaps in services to children and their families in this region.
• Westbay Community Action, Warwick, $16,680, for continued support of the Westbay Market Place, a food distribution system that allows low-income Kent County families to select their own groceries based on nutritional value and family size.
• Westerly Area Rest Meals (WARM), Westerly, $20,000, to further support this organization’s fundraising capacity to enable it to better serve the homeless and needy in Westerly.

Community Development and Affordable Housing

• Brown University Center for Environmental Studies, Providence, $35,000, for continued support of Farm Fresh Rhode Island and its new Farm-to-School program, which will bring fresh locally grown produce to schools across the state.
• Church Community Housing Corporation, Newport, $60,000, for continued support of this countywide organization’s efforts to further develop its housing development capacity.
• Corporation for Supportive Housing, Providence, $40,000, for continued support of the statewide organization’s efforts to develop permanent solutions for individuals and families experiencing chronic homelessness.
• Family Housing Development Corporation, Providence, $30,000, to support the Rhode Island HUD Tenant Project that works to organize tenants in HUD-subsidized properties.
• House of Hope Community Development Corporation, Warwick, $39,640, for on-site case management services for previously homeless individuals living in one of the organization’s supportive housing apartment buildings in Warwick.
• Housing Network of Rhode Island, Providence, $30,000, for continued support of the statewide Network’s work in affordable housing and community reinvestment.
• Providence Preservation Society Revolving Fund, Providence, $25,000, for start-up costs of the Providence Architectural Resource Center, a source of advice and technical assistance on issues related to historic preservation, architecture, and design.
• Rhode Island Center for Agricultural Promotion and Education, Providence, $50,000, to broaden and reinforce the Center’s technical assistance and professional development services to Rhode Island farms, and to increase the number of farms served.
• Rhode Island Rural Development Council, North Kingstown, $35,000, to develop the RI Raised Meat Cooperative which will sell locally-produced meat.
• St. Antoine’s Residence, North Smithfield, $60,000, to create a master plan for a new development that combines affordable housing for the elderly and for staff.
• Town of South Kingstown, South Kingstown, $40,000, for continued support of the Washington County Community Development Corporation.
• University of Rhode Island Foundation/Washington County Regional Planning Council, Kingston, $30,000, for continued support of the Council’s work in open space, affordable housing, transportation, and economic development.

Elderly Issues

• CareLink, Providence, $63,000, for staff training across the CareLink network and to explore the development of the Green House model, a new type of nursing home.
• Cornerstone Adult Services, Warwick, $50,000, to promote adult day services that enable caregivers to continue to work and elderly family members to remain in their homes and community.
• Gray Panthers of Rhode Island, Pawtucket, $30,000, for continued support of the Senior Agenda Consortium’s organizing and advocacy activities for low-income senior residents of Rhode Island.
• Homefront Health Care, Providence, $25,000, to support this statewide organization’s efforts to deliver a greater array of skilled nursing services to the frail, elderly population.
• NRI Community Services, Woonsocket, $17,500, for training and technical assistance to assisted living residences and staff across the state.
• Rhode Island Senior Center Directors Association, North Kingstown, $22,880, to allow 18 senior centers across the state to pursue national acreditation.
• Seniors Helping Others, Wakefield, $30,743, to increase the organization’s capacity in the areas of sustainability, volunteerism, and services.
• United Methodist Elder Care, East Providence, $50,000, for implementation, including staff training, of a more intensive ‘person-centered’ model of care.
• West Warwick Senior Citizens Center, West Warwick, $25,000, to support the organization’s capital campaign for a new facility in the Arctic section of West Warwick.

Environmental Protection and Conservation

• Apeiron Institute for Environmental Living, Coventry, $40,000, to support the Sustainable Rhode Island Initiative, which seeks to integrate sustainable development principles in such matters as energy, air, water, transportation, and land use.
• Conanicut Island Land Trust, Jamestown, $38,000, to support the group’s efforts to secure the development rights of the last three large family farms on the island and complete its open space “trail” for public use.
• Conservation Law Foundation, Boston, MA, $25,000, for continued support of the Blackstone River Initiative, an effort to address runoff and industrial pollution of the River.
• Energy Consumers Alliance of New England (doing business as People's Power and Light), Boston, $25,000, to help apply in Rhode Island the success this Massachusetts alliance has experienced in making affordable housing energy efficient.
• Environment Council of Rhode Island Education Fund, Providence, $80,000, for continued support of the Coalition for Water Security as it addresses urgent water supply and use issues in Rhode Island.
• Environment Northeast, Rockport, ME, $45,000, for the Rhode Island HEET (Heating and Energy Efficiency for Tomorrow) Campaign to enact statewide energy policy reforms.
• Grow Smart Rhode Island, Providence, $75,000, for continued support of this statewide group’s work in such areas as affordable housing, property tax reform, and land conservation.
• Nature Conservancy, Providence, $30,000, to develop policies, procedures, and systems to protect the state’s open spaces.
• Rhode Island Natural History Survey, Kingston, $29,000, for continued support of the Ecological Inventory, Monitoring, and Stewardship Program which provides data and environmental management expertise to assist with land stewardship and management.
• Rhode Island Natural History Survey, Kingston, $35,000, for continued support of the RI Rivers Council’s work to improve state rivers and to improve the capacity of watershed councils.
• Rhode Island Public Interest Research Group, Providence, $35,000, for Clean Energy Solutions, including recommendations for long-term policy solutions.
• Save the Bay, Providence, $40,000, for an organizational restructuring.
• Toxics Action Center, Boston, MA, $20,000, for continued support of the Rhode Island Neighborhood Assistance Project which urges public policy reforms and action against toxic hazards.
• Westerly Land Trust, Westerly, $75,000, for Operation Build Out, an effort to create a more formalized organization with paid staff, an established office, and a focused governance structure.
• Wood-Pawcatuck Watershed Association, Hope Valley, $20,000, for continued support of the Rhode Island Rivers Council and Rhode Island Land Trust Council’s Infrastructure Collaborative to bring land and water nonprofits together to share administrative services.

Adult Education/Employment Support

• Amos House, Providence, $120,000, for continued support of the Amos Culinary Education (ACE) Program and of Amos House Works, a for-profit food preparation and delivery enterprise employing ACE Program graduates.
• Applied Research Center, Oakland, CA, $40,000, for a Rhode Island site of the Transnational Institute for Grassroots Research and Action project that promotes financial justice through the economic power of immigrants.
• Dorcas Place Learning Center, Providence, $29,000, for continued support of the Career Academies Program, an employment-centered workforce development program for Providence residents with low literacy levels.
• Family Resources Community Action, Woonsocket, $49,850, for the Northern Rhode Island Skill Up Transportation Project, an effort to develop new transportation options for newly-trained workers.
• ICA Group, Brookline, MA, $40,000, to establish the Cooperative Development Project, a strategic effort to combine organizational effectiveness with intensive skills development among the Rhode Island’s Temporary Labor Cooperative’s low-wage earning members. 
• International Institute of Rhode Island, Providence, $40,000, for continued support of a fundraising and marketing campaign for Rhode Island’s largest resettlement agency for new immigrants and refugees.
• International Yacht Restoration School, Newport, $25,000, for continued support of education programs to provide training in the marine trades to Rhode Islanders who are entry-level employees at local shipyards and/or transitioning from welfare to work.
• Rhode Island Hospital Health Care Education Trust, Providence, $45,000, for Mentors Work, which pairs experienced employees with promising employees seeking to move up the career ladder, in an effort to fill vacancies in the nursing and allied technical professions.

Out of School Time/Youth Development

• Camp JORI, Wakefield, $38,800, for personnel and other operating costs of launching Rhode Island’s only residential co-ed summer program for special needs children and youth.
• Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Center, Newport, $25,000, for continued support of the agency’s Teen Center and its youth development programs in Newport.
• Institute for the Study and Practice of Nonviolence, Providence, $35,000, for expansion of this six-year-old school and community nonviolence training program.
• Little Compton Community Center Corporation, Little Compton, $6,000, for continued support of this youth initiative to plan recreational, arts, community service, and cultural activities for local teens.
• Music School of the RI Philharmonic, Providence, $18,000, for support of Capitol City Bands, a model music education program in three Providence schools.
• New Urban Arts, Providence, $30,000, for a marketing strategy for the Providence Youth Arts Collaborative, a joint effort of numerous arts organizations to provide instruction and performance opportunities to young people.
• San Miguel School, Providence, $22,000, for enhancement of the afterschool program at this middle school for boys.
• Youth Pride, Providence, $38,000, to continue to support fundraising efforts of this LGBT youth-serving organization.
• YWCA of Northern Rhode Island, Woonsocket, $68,000, for Recruiting for the Information Age, a project to develop new employment opportunities and training for young mothers.

K – 12 Education

• Bradford L. Dunn Institute for Learning Differences, Providence, $50,000, to establish a high school to educate youth with learning differences such as dyslexia and ADHD.
• Brown University - Urban Education Policy Program, Providence, $60,000, for a research study into the high school drop-out situation in three public school districts: Portsmouth, Providence, and Central Falls.
• Chamber Education Foundation, Warwick, $24,412, to expand and strengthen the Rhode Island Mentoring Partnership’s one-to-one, school-based mentoring program in Newport in collaboration with the Newport Public Schools.
• International Charter School, Pawtucket, $50,000, for the five-year-old school’s capacity building efforts in the areas of fund development, communications, and marketing as it prepares to develop a middle school.
• Newport Partnership for Families, Newport, $10,000, for Reading Reaps Rewards, a citywide summer reading program that aims to maintain or improve elementary student reading skills.
• Rhode Island Children’s Crusade for Higher Education, Providence, $50,000, for continued support of a strategic marketing and communications plan for this organization which works to keep children from the state’s low-income communities in school and on a path to post-secondary education.
• Tomaquag Indian Memorial Museum, Exeter, $20,000, for continued support of the enrollment, marketing, and fundraisng goals of the Museum’s Nuweetooun School which, since 2003, has provided culture-based learning to help Native American children succeed. 
• Urban Collaborative Accelerated Program, Providence, $25,000, for continued support of fundraising for this school for at-risk middle school students.

Access to Quality Health Care

• Big Picture Company, Providence, $30,000, for continued support of the Teen Health Clinic at the Met School in Providence which provides a full range of primary and mental health care to the school’s 800 adolescent students.
• Comprehensive Community Action Program, Cranston, $25,000, to implement the Healthy Start Program, a structured nutrition, healthy eating, and exercise program, into three Head Start classrooms in Cranston.
• East Bay Community Action Program, Newport, $15,000, for a capital campaign to renovate the facilities of this organization which serves the East Bay from East Providence through Newport County.
• Family Service of Rhode Island, Providence, $30,000, for continued support of a school-based mental health program in the North Kingstown schools that includes individual and group therapy for students and families, as well as training for teachers and counselors.
• Family Service of Rhode Island, Providence, $58,799, to create a mental health services office at Westerly High School which will be part of the already-established Westerly Integrated Social Services Program.
• IN-SIGHT, Warwick, $40,000, to support the statewide organization’s efforts to deliver, and then evaluate, client-centered services.
• Kids First, Providence, $40,000, for continued support of Transforming School Nutrition, a program that results in healthier food for students in the Pawtucket public schools.
• Landmark Medical Center, Woonsocket, $25,000, to help the hospital complete a capital campaign for its Chemotherapy Infusion Center.
• Meeting Street Center, East Providence, $76,780, to establish a low vision clinic at the organization’s center in South Providence that will address complex cases, such as when vision problems occur in combination with other disabilities and communication disorders.
• Newport Hospital Foundation, Newport, $25,000, for a capital campaign to renovate the hospital’s pediatric unit. 
• NRI Community Services, Woonsocket, $10,145, for continued support of the Community Crisis Management Training Project which trains members of police departments how to work with mentally ill citizens.
• Planned Parenthood of Rhode Island, Providence, $70,000, to support the implementation of a marketing and communications plan to increase awareness and fundraising capacity.
• Rhode Island Free Clinic, Providence, $57,465, for “Right Here, Right Now”, the clinic’s campaign to expand its services.
• South County Hospital Healthcare System, Wakefield, $30,550, for the new Behavioral Health Program at the hospital which will help address a documented void in behavioral health/psychiatric services in Washington County.
• St. Joseph Health Services of Rhode Island, North Providence, $35,000, for the Diabetes Resource Center which provides care, medications, and education in diabetes management to low-income and uninsured adults.
• University of Massachusetts Foundation, Boston, $40,757, for development of the Northeast Regional Center for Vision Education’s E-Mentorship Vision Network, a program to provide professional development and support to teachers of the visually-impaired.
• Women & Infants Hospital, Providence, $50,000, to support the Integrative Care Program in Women’s Oncology which provides a wide array of support services to cancer patients and their families.

Community Arts and Culture

• Festival Ballet, Providence, $20,000, for continued implementation of a marketing plan to increase tickets sales and unearned income, expand performances, and explore/develop collaborations. 
• Little Compton Historical Society, Little Compton, $30,000, for documentation of its collection which provides a study of New England rural life from the 17th century to today.
• Providence Singers, Providence, $25,000, to support the New England Choral Festival, which will be hosted by the Providence Singers on March 3 and 4, 2007.
• Rhode Island Council for the Humanities, Providence, $24,000, for development of a Digital Humanities Resource Center, which will offer online grant applications, Humanities calendar of events and activities, an online discussion forum, and more.
• Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, $60,000, to establish a Center for Public Engagement which will support curricular and extracurricular service activities of students and faculty in communities throughout the state.
• Sandra Feinstein-Gamm Theatre, Pawtucket, $30,000, for continued support of the organization’s financial and audience diversification goals.

Civil Rights and Justice

• Ocean State Action Fund, Cranston, $50,000, for continued support of Marriage Equality Rhode Island, an effort to bring same-sex marriage to the state.
• Olneyville Neighborhood Association, Providence, $30,000, for continued support of efforts to empower residents as advocates, community leaders, and decision-makers.
• Rhode Island for Community & Justice, Providence, $20,000, for community screenings of Traces of the Trade: Story from the Deep North, a documentary detailing the journey of ten descendants of the DeWolf family from their hometown of Bristol, to the slave forts in Ghana, and the family plantation in Cuba.
• Roger Williams University, Bristol, $75,000, for continued support of the Pro Bono Collaborative which provides legal services to the state’s low-income community through the combined efforts of three large law firms in the state, several local community-based organizations, and Roger Williams law students.