Current Grant Projects:
Continued Learning Grantees

The 2011 Continued Learning Grants awarded by the  Inclusion Initiative are providing financial support to help grantees implement a significant aspect of an earlier diversity and inclusion project. The new grant maximizes and/or leverages that work toward a stated objective or goal.

Family Equality Council               $25,000
Family Equality Council advocates for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) families by acknowledging the incredible amount of diversity within the LGBT family community and advancing social justice. The organization envisions a future where all will be able to live in communities that recognize, respect, protect, and celebrate a diversity of family constellations.

Family Equality Council will assess its internal structure to identify barriers and challenges to inclusion of its broad constituent base.

The Food Project                           $15,000
The Food Project creates a productive community of youth and adults from diverse backgrounds who work together to build a sustainable food system supplying healthy food for residents of the city and suburbs, providing youth leadership opportunities, and inspiring and supporting others to create change in their own communities. The Food Project is a leader in youth development and sustainable agriculture and through its programming brings people together and contributes to the health of the community.

The Food Project will use results of an organizational assessment to map a plan for new institutional protocols and ongoing learning that will be sustained by internal skill-building.

Homes for Families                        $20,000
Homes for Families is a statewide membership organization of homeless and formerly homeless individuals. The organization engages formerly and currently homeless people in leadership development in public policy advocacy campaigns at the state level. These campaigns aim to secure additional resources and changes in policies and regulations that would improve the quality of life and access to housing for the homeless.

Members are primarily women who are also heads of household, homeless services provider staff and advocates. Women of color are overrepresented in the family shelter and “shelter-poor” population. Yet, they are underrepresented in positions of management and as identified leaders in advocacy, program and policy work.

HFF seeks to be a catalyst to address diversity issues and increase cultural competency in the family homelessness field. HFF will formalize an internal understanding, vision and commitment to inclusion and diversity, including identifying barriers, differences and strengths.

NARAL Pro-Choice Mass.               $15,000
NARAL uses the political process to guarantee every woman the right to make personal decisions regarding the full range of reproductive health choices. NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts, in collaboration with its sister organization, the Pro-Choice Massachusetts Foundation, is working to promote greater diversity on an organization-wide level, to form collaborations with communities of color, and to represent the needs of our diverse constituency more fully.

The organization will implement/institutionalize the initial phase of the organizational inclusion plan: engagement with communities of color in authentic collaboration to enhance its capacity to represent all women. 

RFK Children’s Action Corps            $25,000
RFK is a statewide child welfare agency dedicated to core values and beliefs defined by the legacy of Robert F. Kennedy. It embodies the belief that society has a responsibility to the poor and disadvantaged. The nonprofit strives to promote respect for the dignity and individuality of every human being, the right of all children to grow up in a safe and nurturing environment, and the right of every person to reach his or her full potential.

The organization will build upon differences and develop a workforce at all levels of the organization that reflects the populations served. In addition, they seek to institutionalize policies, practices and standards to allow and encourage the delivery of culturally competent services to those populations.