Fiscal Year 2011 Community Partnership Fund grants

(May 1, 2010-April 30, 2010)

Initiating long-term change

These grants, awarded through the Grants & Initiatives program, support projects designed to bring about lasting improvements to our community

Memphis City Schools Foundation - $50,000
This five-year, $250,000 grant is part of the local matching funds for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s $90 million grant for the Teacher Effectiveness Initiative.
Strengthening Communities - $40,000
Now in its fourth year, this program pairs University of Memphis faculty with neighborhood organizations and residents to improve communities.
Mid-South AIDS Fund - $25,000
For 10 years, this fund has made grants to organizations working to prevent the spread of HIV and AIDS. Local contributions are matched by the Elton John AIDS Foundation and AIDS United.
RISE Foundation - $25,000
This grant helped create a loan fund housed at Hope Community Credit Union that provides short-term loans of up to $200 as an alternative to payday loans. The RISE Foundation provides financial counseling and training for loan recipients.
GiVE 365 - $20,000
A matching grant helped launch GiVE 365, an innovative giving community that encourages Memphians of all ages to give a dollar a day. Members pool their gifts and give away half each year. The remaining half builds an endowment to support future grants to nonprofits.

Strengthening Nonprofits

Through this program, our donors help nonprofit organizations become more effective in fulfilling their missions.

Capacity Building Grants

Each capacity building grant is awarded to a strong, established nonprofit organization that is working to become more effective by improving operations and increasing efficiency. Each recipient listed below was required to provide dollar-for-dollar matching funds.

Memphis Brooks Museum of Art - $25,000
The museum used this grant as part of the purchase and implementation of an upgraded collections management database system. Ultimately, collection information will be made accessible to museum staff, scholars, and the general public through the museum’s website.
Friends for Life - $22,000
The Friends for Life information technology system was already stretched when Shelby County was reclassified as being at higher risk for the spread of HIV and AIDS. The change in status brought increased federal funds and a greater need for a new system funded by this grant.
Greater Memphis Greenline - $20,000
The goal of the Greater Memphis Greenline is to develop a regional network of hiking and biking trails, which incorporates existing roads and trails, as well as new construction. The grant will help pay for two project coordinators.
Mid-South Peace and Justice Center - $20,000
Mid-South Peace 2.0 is a two-year comprehensive project with four areas: information technology upgrades, strategic business and fundraising planning, program evaluation and development, and the development of the GrowMemphis program into an independent nonprofit organization.
Crittenden Arts Council (DeltaArts) - $15,000
This grant supports quality arts education using the philosophy of Lincoln Center Imaginative Learning Program, one of two national recognized arts education programs available through DeltaArts.
Girl Scouts Heart of the South - $15,000
With a 59-county service area, the Girls Scouts developed a comprehensive technology plan to improve efficiency and allow staff to spend more time on programs for girls. This grant funded part of the phone system for the plan, which included hardware and software improvements for phones, computers, servers, video conferencing and website.
Memphis Area Legal Services - $10,000
Attorneys for low-income clients of Memphis Area Legal Services often have fewer resources than attorneys in private practice. They took a step toward parity by using this grant for INDEX, an advanced document management system to digitize client records.
Shelby Farms Park Conservancy - $10,000
With 13 park gates and only one official visitors center, Shelby Farms Park needs a way to share information with the thousands of annual park visitors. A new interactive website funded by this grant will make it easier for visitors to learn about and use the park, as well as to make donations to support its operation.
Wolf River Conservancy - $10,000
The protection and preservation of the Wolf River is a long-term mission and one requiring consistent advocacy and work. This grant will pay for a consultant to work with the organization’s leadership to create a development plan to ensure the future stability of the organization
Memphis Child Advocacy Center - $7,500
Child victims of alleged sexual abuse find support at the Child Advocacy Center where police, court and social services are housed under one roof. This grant funded a plan that made it possible to expand those services to provide forensic interview and medical services 24 hours a day, seven days a week at the center. Previously, those services were provided at the Le Bonheur Emergency Department after regular Child Advocacy hours.
Workers Interfaith Network - $5,500
Workers Interfaith supports low-wage workers who face unfair and illegal working conditions.
The grant allowed the organization to replace outdated computers and to create a network to back up critical information and to allow staff to work more efficiently.

Intermediary Grants

These grants are awarded to organizations that support the work of other nonprofits.

Alliance for Nonprofit Excellence - $15,000
The mission of the Alliance is to help nonprofit organizations become more effective. The Alliance provides training, networking opportunities, and help in obtaining grant funds.
Community Development Council of Greater Memphis - $25,000
The Community Development Council helps community development corporations become more effective in revitalizing low- and moderate-income Memphis neighborhoods.
Mid-South American Humanics Collaborative - $10,000
American Humanics recruits and prepares college students to become future nonprofit leaders. The collaborative, based at the University of Memphis, certifies students in nonprofit management and is led by a board of nonprofit executives.
Community Alliance for the Homeless - $15,000
Community Alliance for the Homeless works to develop a more comprehensive and effective system to help homeless people break the cycle of streets, shelters, jails, hospitals and mental institutions.
Volunteer Mid-South - $12,500
Volunteer Mid-South develops, promotes, and supports volunteerism. The agency, which serves about 250 nonprofits each year, recruits and refers volunteers and helps nonprofit organizations use volunteers more effectively.

Special Projects Grants

Deserving projects that do not qualify for other grant program may receive Special Projects Grants.

Memphis College of Art - $2,000
This grant paid for classroom materials and a presentation to Memphis teachers about the Heidelberg Project, an innovative, internationally recognized community art program in Detroit.
Beat the Heat - $1,180
Volunteers received T-shirts and water for their work installing air conditioners in the homes of elderly and disabled Memphians.
West Tennessee Sustainable Neighborhoods Conference - $1,000
The conference provided information to help participants develop effective partnerships among local, state and federal organizations.
Funders’ Network for Smart Growth and Livable Communities - $500
The River Partnership of Community Foundations works to improve the environmental, economic, and cultural vitality of the communities along the Mississippi River and its tributaries.
American Red Cross, Mid-South Chapter - $10,000
The grant supported flood relief efforts in West and Middle Tennessee.