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Just in time for the busy fall season, we are pleased to share an update that will streamline many of the services you can receive through the Community Foundation. Our team has been working for many months in close collaboration with West Cary Group to develop a refreshed web presence that is beautiful, functional and most important, designed with the community’s needs and interests in mind. While we are not ready for a full website launch, we have taken the first step in enhancing your experience with us.
What is the CFengage?
We are combining the best features of the former HandsOn Greater Richmond and ConnectVA websites into a single engagement site – CFengage.org Now there is one central place to match nonprofit needs with individual gifts of time, talent and treasure. This is where local nonprofits will post available volunteer opportunities, and in the coming months, job openings and other types of engagement opportunities for the public to find.
As a Foundation, we are firmly committed to local volunteerism and civic engagement. We are sunsetting HandsOn Greater Richmond as a separate brand because it has become an integrated part of the Community Foundation’s work, from donor education and engagement to community learning and nonprofit capacity building. Soon, our new website will offer a comprehensive dashboard for both nonprofits and individuals to see a regular summary of activity generated through the site. This may be helpful for nonprofit planning and board reporting, and useful to volunteers who need to track service hours.
The ConnectVA nonprofit job finder will move to CFengage.org in late September, which will offer a stable environment and enhanced user experience for both nonprofit employers and job seekers. This marks a permanent move away from the former ConnectVA website.
While initial changes are subtle, we anticipate that this hub with a single point of entry and new features will enhance the experience for nonprofits and individuals looking to engage in the community, as well as broaden public knowledge about how to give back.
JULY 9, 2019 — Made possible by donor established funds, the Community Foundation announces its 2019 Community Impact grant awards, totaling over $3 million to 83 organizations across the region. Community Impact grants are awarded through a competitive process and support local nonprofits whose strategies and outcomes align with the Foundation’s four focus areas: community vibrancy, economic prosperity, educational success, and health and wellness. Within these areas, the Community Foundation has adopted funding priorities in education, housing, and workforce development initiatives that will increase access and opportunity for low-income residents in Richmond.
Here are a few notable highlights from this years’ selection of grants:
“While we will always support program delivery,” Scott Blackwell, Chief Community Engagement Officer for the Community Foundation said, “we are growing our support for systems level and policy work. We need all three strategies to make lasting change for our community.”
Grants awarded in this category aim to ensure that community members enjoy good quality of life, with access to and an appreciation for the arts, cultural opportunities, and natural assets.
Art 180 - $35,000 To create and deliver innovative arts-based programs to youth in challenging circumstances.
CultureWorks - $60,000 To support CultureWorks service and leadership for the Richmond and Tri-Cities region. (third year of a three-year grant)
Richmond Ballet - $20,000 To support afterschool dance programs for students in Greater Richmond.
Richmond Symphony - $20,000 To fund the Big Tent Festival and ongoing music education programs.
SPARC - $30,000 To support out-of-school time arts programs that address the needs of low-wealth youth in Greater Richmond.
Science Museum of Virginia Foundation - $20,000 To support a year-round "applied STEM learning" pipeline for Richmond students in grades 5-8.
Virginia Museum of History and Culture - $40,000 To support the exhibition, "Determined: The 400-Year Struggle for Black Equality."
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Foundation - $20,000 To support the exhibition, "Working Together: Louis Draper and the Kamoinge Workshop."
Virginia Repertory Theatre - $25,000 To support live theater productions communicating to Greater Richmond youth about human trafficking.
Virginia Voice - $15,000 To support equitable access to information, culture and community for individuals with disabilities through technology and the human voice.
Visual Arts Center of Richmond - $20,000 To continue the growth of art education and youth mentoring programs.
Leadership Metro Richmond - $10,000 To support two Leadership Quest scholarships for community leaders in low-wealth communities.
Re-Establish Richmond - $10,000 To support programs that empower refugees and immigrants in Richmond to rebuild their networks and become self-sufficient.
Sports Backers - $50,000 To advocate for equity-based transportation infrastructure through the development of safe and accessible places for people to bike and walk in greater Richmond.
Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities - $30,000 To fund inclusion and equity workshops, retreats, and assemblies for students, educators, business leaders, law enforcement, elected officials, and citizens.
Blue Sky Fund - $20,000 To provide educator support and hands-on outdoor learning opportunities for elementary school students facing disadvantages.
Capital Trees - $15,000 To complete the Low Line and restore 2.5 historic acres of land between the 17th Street flood wall and Great Shiplock Park.
Enrichmond Foundation - $28,000 To provide landscaping- and horticulture-based job skills training for Richmond residents working to reclaim Evergreen, East End, and Paupers Cemeteries.
James River Association - $15,000 To protect the James River, improve water quality and connect people to the river for enhanced community vibrancy and individual health.
Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden - $30,000 To support a corps of community volunteers trained to lead urban greening initiatives in their own neighborhoods.
Maymont Foundation - $20,000 To implement the Maymont Explorers Program for Richmond youth.
Grants awarded in this category aim to ensure that the region’s resources are sustainable, and its residents are economically stable and secure.
Better Housing Coalition - $60,000 To support operations and fund consulting work to develop a business plan for resident services.
Habitat for Humanity Powhatan - $15,000 To support general operating costs and enable hiring of additional Habitat Store staff.
Housing Opportunities Made Equal of Virginia - $75,000 To support work with housing choice voucher clients to help them find affordable housing in high opportunity neighborhoods.
Partnership for Housing Affordability - $25,000 To support collaborative work among community members, nonprofit leaders and local government representatives to create the Regional Housing Framework.
project:HOMES - $50,000 To support the Immediate Response Fund that quickly addresses hazardous living conditions of low-income families.
Richmond Metropolitan Habitat for Humanity - $50,000 To revitalize homes in the Maymont and Randolph neighborhoods.
CARITAS - $35,000 To support case management and shelter staff in the CARITAS shelter.
HomeAgain - $20,000 To support general operations of emergency shelters and community housing programs.
Homeward - $50,000 To support Homeward’s collaborative work with over 30 public and nonprofit homeless service providers of the Greater Richmond Continuum of Care (third year of a three-year grant).
Housing Families First - $35,000 To support general operations, expand housing program capacity, and prepare for future rapid re-housing program expansions.
St. Joseph’s Villa - $40,000 To support families and individuals in Greater Richmond who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.
Virginia Supportive Housing - $35,000 To help our community end homelessness by providing permanent supportive housing services to ensure formerly homeless individuals remain stably housed.
Side by Side - $15,000 To support programs for LGBTQ+ youth ages 18-25 who are experiencing housing instability in the Richmond region.
HumanKind - $30,000 To support individuals as they build their financial well-being through employment, financial and benefits coaching or through facilitation of a fair-interest vehicle loan.
Neighborhood Resource Center - $30,000 To support NRC Works, Out-of-School-Time and Food Programs.
Richmond Opportunities, Inc. - $150,000 To support the Executive Director's salary, technology and data, and strategic communications.
Sacred Heart Center - $30,000 To support the general operating costs of the Sacred Heart Center, in providing educational and human service programs to adults, children, youth, and families.
Thriving Cities Group - $30,000 To support RVA Thrives' efforts to increase neighborhood leadership in the Jefferson Davis Corridor and disseminate the Community Voice Blueprint to improve how local organizations engage historically marginalized communities.
Virginia Local Initiatives Support Corporation - $20,000 To support continued work convening residents and partners to develop plans and actions that uplift the Northside neighborhood.
Center for Nonprofit Excellence - $15,000 To provide salary support for the consultant coordinating the Workforce Development Coalition.
Goodwill of Central and Coastal Virginia - $50,000 To support co-locating skill-building training, career advising, digital literacy and job placement and retention services at two pilot sites in coordination with the Work Access Collaborative.
IT4Causes - $20,000 To support programs that help low- to moderate-income technology students build on-the-job experience, soft skills and professional networks.
Reynolds Community College - $50,000 To support the new Kitchens at Reynolds facility located in the East End.
Grants awarded in this category aim to ensure that young people achieve in school, engage in their community and are prepared for the workforce.
FutureRVA - $50,000 To support FutureRVA’s three-year talent development and school-to-job strategies in high schools (third year of a three-year grant).
Partnership for the Future - $35,000 To support programming for low-income, college-bound students.
Boys & Girls Club of Metro Richmond - $50,000 To support high-quality staffing, learning programs and mentorship programs in Richmond and Petersburg.
Chesterfield Education Foundation - $25,000 To grow the operating capacity to support a growing school division.
Communities In Schools of Chesterfield - $25,000 To support expansion of programming to L.C. Bird High School.
Communities In Schools of Petersburg - $25,000 To support Integrated Student Support services in all Petersburg City Public Schools.
Communities In Schools of Richmond - $100,000 To deliver the Integrated Student Support model across 32 high-poverty Richmond Public School sites.
Henrico Education Foundation - $25,000 To support a Trauma-Informed Education Coordinator position at Glen Lea Elementary School.
Higher Achievement - $50,000 To support Summer and Afterschool Academies for underserved middle school students.
Junior Achievement of Central Virginia - $20,000 To provide financial literacy, workforce readiness, career discovery and entrepreneurship education for middle and high school students.
The Literacy Lab - $35,000 To support rigorously-trained, full-time tutors in high-need K-3 classrooms.
NextUp RVA - $200,000 To coordinate and deliver high-quality afterschool programs in four Richmond middle schools and expand services into Albert Hill Middle School.
Peter Paul Development Center - $50,000 To support afterschool and summer educational programs that help strengthen the academic performance of students in grades 2-12 in Richmond's East End.
The Podium Foundation - $15,000 To continue youth writing programs in Richmond, expand into Henrico County, and implement a trauma-informed care approach.
Richmond Public Schools Education Foundation - $25,000 To support general operations as the Foundation transitions its focus to fundraising in support of RPS' strategic goals.
Virginia Commonwealth University Foundation - $75,000 To continue the Richmond Teacher Residency - Petersburg program, creating a sustainable pipeline of highly effective teachers committed to the students of Petersburg City Public Schools for the long term.
Virginia Mentoring Partnership - $20,000 To support training, technical assistance, quality assurance and evaluation services for youth mentoring programs.
YMCA of Greater Richmond - $50,000 To support out-of-school time programs for low-wealth students in Richmond and Petersburg,
Family Lifeline - $25,000 To sustain the Early Childhood Home Visiting initiative serving vulnerable families in Richmond.
FRIENDS Association for Children - $25,000 To provide high-quality early childhood, preschool and school-age development programs.
Partnership for Families - $35,000 To implement programs that ensure Northside youth have the literacy skills necessary for kindergarten.
Smart Beginnings Greater Richmond - $100,000 To provide capacity building support (third year of a three-year grant).
Smart Beginnings Southeast - $25,000 To support quality and access to the early childhood system in Petersburg through Westview Early Learning Center.
SOAR365 - $25,000 To support services for children with disabilities by supporting therapists' travel to the child's natural environment and translation costs for non-English speaking families.
Virginia Early Childhood Foundation - $20,000 To support a Community Liaison position to work with families and service providers in the East End.
Virginia Literacy Foundation - $25,000 To support a project that helps achieve equity in kindergarten readiness and family literacy among children and families in Petersburg and Richmond's Southside.
YWCA of Richmond - $40,000 To provide operating support to create access to opportunities, strengthen resilience, and advance equitable systems for lifelong success.
Grants awarded in this category aim to ensure that community members are healthy and safe.
Central Virginia Health Services - $50,000 To establish a school-based health center at Petersburg High School.
Conexus - $25,000 To support mobile vision clinic services in Chesterfield, Petersburg, Henrico and Richmond schools.
Free Clinic of Powhatan - $15,000 To support operating expenses vital to patient care, including salary support, prescriptions, dental services, medical and office supplies and marketing resources.
Richmond City Health District - $75,000 To support the Community Health Worker program.
Feed More - $50,000 To deliver healthy meals to food-insecure and homebound seniors and disabled adults in Central Virginia.
Greater Richmond Fit4Kids - $15,000 To equip parents and amplify their voices to lead policy and systems change efforts to improve their children's health and wellness.
Shalom Farms - $25,000 To improve the health and increase self-sufficiency of low-income communities with limited access to healthy food, resources, and supports to improve health.
Tricycle Urban Ag - $20,000 To increase access to fresh fruits and vegetables in Richmond and Henrico.
ChildSavers - $50,000 To support quality early care and mental health care to help children overcome trauma through resilience.
Greater Richmond SCAN - $25,000 To reduce the effects of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), build community resilience, and reduce the prevalence of ACEs in the region.
The James House Intervention/Prevention Services - $25,000 To provide trauma informed care, safe shelter, and advocacy for children and adults in the Tri-Cities affected by sexual violence, domestic violence, stalking, and child abuse and neglect.
Senior Connections, The Capital Area Agency on Aging - $25,000 To support education and advocacy programs that increase equitable access to services, address the changing needs of our community, and enable more people to remain in their homes and communities.
The Community Foundation for a greater Richmond, together with its donors, is pleased to announce Community Impact grant awards for 2018, totaling $2.83 million to 78 organizations across the region. Community Impact grants support local nonprofits whose strategies and outcomes align with the Foundation’s four focus areas: community vibrancy, economic prosperity, educational success, and health and wellness. Over the past year, the Foundation has adopted funding priorities in education, housing, and workforce development initiatives that will increase access and opportunity for low-income residents in Richmond.
A significant number of grants were awarded in the City of Richmond, where economic challenges tend to be the highest, with a focus on the East End, Northside and Southside (including the Jefferson Davis Corridor) neighborhoods. Ten grants were also awarded in the Petersburg area, primarily in education. The awards support nonprofit partners who are focused on high quality programming, systems, and advocacy and policy.
Art 180 - $25,000 To create and deliver innovative arts-based programs to youth in challenging circumstances.
Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia - $30,000 To execute and expand Hands on History, the BHMVA's ongoing mission of providing invaluable opportunities to experience history and culture.
CultureWorks - $40,000 To support CultureWorks service and leadership for the Richmond and Tri-Cities region. (second year of a three-year grant)
Richmond Performing Arts Alliance - $25,000 To transform and expand Early Literacy Learning through the Arts programs to additional Pre-K classrooms.
Richmond Symphony - $20,000 To fund community-led Big Tent festivals and programming.
SPARC - $20,000 To support operating costs of SPARC’s outreach programs.
The Valentine - $30,000 To provide free access to interactive Richmond history programs in partnership with RPS and CIS.
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Foundation - $20,000 To expand and diversify its presence in the community through its Family and Community Outreach programs.
Virginia Repertory Theatre - $20,000 To support operations of the model access program.
Metropolitan Richmond Sports Backers - $50,000 To advocate for equity-based transportation infrastructure through the development of safe and accessible places for people to bike and walk in greater Richmond.
Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities - $25,000 To fund inclusion and equity workshops, retreats, and assemblies for students, educators, business leaders, law enforcement, elected officials, and citizens.
Capital Trees - $15,000 To restore and enhance Richmond's urban green spaces and to support agency infrastructure.
Maymont Foundation - $30,000 To support operations and Immersive STEM Summer Camp pilot in partnership with Peter Paul Development Center.
Children's Home Society of Virginia - $20,000 To support the Possibilities Project, a collaborative program providing youth who age out of foster care with housing and life skills.
Goodwill of Central and Coastal Virginia, Inc. - $40,000 To support planning for GCCVA to lead a consortium of partners to improve workforce development services for challenging populations.
RVA Rapid Transit - $20,000 To advance the work of educating, organizing, and advocating for regional public transportation.
The READ Center - $20,000 To support adult literacy programs that include reading, writing, math and digital skills to at least 250 adults in our community.
CARITAS - $40,000 To support case management staff in the CARITAS shelter.
HomeAgain - $20,000 To support general operations of emergency shelters, bridge housing for veterans, rapid rehousing, and permanent and supportive housing.
Homeward - $50,000 To support Homeward’s collaborative work with over 30 public and nonprofit homeless service providers of the greater Richmond Continuum of Care and the development of strategic cross-sector partnerships (second year of a three-year grant).
Housing Families First - $40,000 To support strategic plan implementation and operation of Hilliard House and Building Neighbors.
St. Joseph’s Villa - $40,000 To support general operations of the Flagler Housing and Homeless Services Program, and educational and mental health services.
Virginia Supportive Housing - $40,000 To help our community end homelessness by providing permanent supportive housing services to ensure formerly homeless individuals remain stably housed.
HumanKind - $40,000 To support individuals as they build their financial well-being through employment, financial and benefits coaching or through facilitation of a fair-interest vehicle loan.
Neighborhood Resource Center - $40,000 To serve 460 individuals through NRC Works and Case Management, Out-of-School-Time, gardening, and food programs.
Sacred Heart Center - $40,000 To support the general operating costs of the Sacred Heart Center, in providing educational and human service programs to adults, children, youth, and families.
Thriving Cities Group - $40,000 To further develop the RVA Thrives steering committee and the development of collaborative, community-rooted projects on the Jefferson Davis Corridor.
Virginia Local Initiatives Support Corporation - $20,000 To implementation neighborhood revitalization strategies in Highland Park.
Better Housing Coalition - $40,000 To support BHC’s operations as they address the affordable housing shortage in our community and work to empower their 2,100 residents.
Housing Opportunities Made Equal of Virginia - $75,000 To provide mobility counseling to deconcentrate poverty, integrate schools, and reduce barriers that prevent Housing Choice Voucher holders from living in neighborhoods of opportunity.
Project:HOMES - $40,000 To support the Immediate Response Fund that quickly addresses hazardous living conditions of low-income families.
Richmond Metropolitan Habitat for Humanity - $40,000 To revitalize 12 homes acquired from RRHA in the Maymont/Randolph neighborhood into safe, affordable, mixed-income housing for local individuals and families.
FutureRVA - $50,000 To support FutureRVA’s three-year talent development and talent attraction strategies (second year of a three-year grant).
Partnership for the Future - $40,000 To support programming for low-income, college bound students.
Blue Sky Fund - $20,000 To support the Explorers program to over 2,700 Richmond Public School students.
Chesterfield County Education Foundation - $25,000 To grow the operating capacity to support a growing school division.
Communities In Schools of Chesterfield - $25,000 To support expansion of programming to Meadowbrook High School.
Communities In Schools of Petersburg - $25,000 To support Integrated Student Support Program at the elementary level and develop and implement a Middle School Transition Program.
Communities In Schools of Richmond - $100,000 To support coordination services for students in RPS, including targeted services for Latino students in Southside Richmond.
Goochland Education Foundation - $25,000 To provide broadband devices for at-risk students to actively engage in learning outside the classroom.
Henrico Education Foundation - $25,000 To develop and implement trauma-informed care practices at Glen Lea Elementary School.
Junior Achievement of Central Virginia - $25,000 To provide financial literacy, workforce readiness and entrepreneurship education for 900 middle and high school students at JA Finance Park.
Richmond Public Schools Education Foundation - $25,000 To support general operations and the strategic needs of the RPS Superintendent and School Board.
The Literacy Lab - $25,000 To support 47 rigorously-trained, full-time tutors in high-need K-3 classrooms.
VCU Foundation - $100,000 To support the Richmond Teacher Residency program and a pilot in Petersburg to create a sustainable pipeline of highly-effective teachers committed to the students of RPS and PCPS for the long term.
Boys & Girls Club of Metro Richmond - $50,000 To support work in out-of-school time including creating and implementing trauma-informed systems within the five clubs and four neighborhoods they serve.
Higher Achievement Program, Inc. - $25,000 To support intensive program of expanded learning, mentorship, and opportunity for underserved middle school students.
NextUp RVA - $150,000 To expand a citywide afterschool network for Richmond’s youth through a unique model that multiplies the impact of investments by eliminating fragmented, duplicated services and removing cost and transportation barriers.
Peter Paul Development Center - $50,000 To support the after-school and summer educational program that helps strengthen the academic performance of students in grades 2-12 in Richmond's East End.
The Science Museum of Virginia Foundation - $25,000 To support the first-year programming and strategic audience development of a broad range of applied STEM skills and affiliated career pathways through project-based learning.
United Way of Greater Richmond & Petersburg - $50,000 To support delivery of continuous improvement process for up to 50 sites, improvement of Richmond YPQI, expansion of professional learning community to regional youth program providers, and design/delivery of advanced trainings for staff.
Virginia Excels - $15,000 To support pilot operations and programming of comprehensive advocacy training to parents and community members of Richmond Public Schools.
YMCA of Greater Richmond - $50,000 To support youth and teen programs in Richmond and Petersburg.
FRIENDS Association for Children - $25,000 To support early childhood, preschool, and school-age development programs.
Greater Richmond ARC- $20,000 To support services for children with disabilities by supporting therapists' travel to the child's natural environment and translation costs for non-English speaking families.
Partnership for Families - $40,000 To support a comprehensive planning process for a model that ensures child/parent success in early learning.
Smart Beginnings Greater Richmond - $100,000 To provide capacity building support (second year of a three-year grant).
Virginia Early Childhood Foundation - $20,000 To support Richmond Area Service Alliance (RASA) and steps to bolster two-generation supports for families in concentrated poverty.
Virginia Literacy Foundation - $40,000 To support a project that helps achieve equity in kindergarten readiness, and family and health literacy among Richmond’s Southside children and families.
YWCA of Richmond - $50,000 To provide operating support to create access to opportunities, strengthen resilience, and advance equitable systems for lifelong success.
Family Lifeline - $25,000 To support early childhood development initiatives.
ChildSavers - $50,000 To support general operations and programs in outpatient children’s mental health and child development services.
Side by Side - $20,000 To support transgender youth by increasing access to mental health services.
Central Virginia Health Services - $25,000 To give access to behavioral health services for underserved areas in the Petersburg region using interns in counseling and case management.
Daily Planet Health Services - $25,000 To provide specialized trauma-informed care.
Free Clinic of Powhatan - $25,000 To support various operating expenses vital to patient care.
Goochland Free Clinic and Family Services - $25,000 To support medical, dental, and mental health services.
Pathways - $40,000 To address otherwise untreated mental health issues for youth participants. (third year of a three-year grant)
Richmond City Health District - $75,000 To empower leadership and connectivity in public housing residents and providers through a collective impact model.
Virginia League for Planned Parenthood - $25,000 To support the operations for comprehensive, high-quality primary health care.
FeedMore - $50,000 To support Meals on Wheels and Senior Nutrition Programs.
Virginia Home for Boys and Girls - $20,000 To support the Group Care Services program to help children heal from trauma so they can transition to foster care, adoption or biological family.
Virginia Voice - $20,000 To give individuals with vision impairments equitable access to newspapers, magazines, and live theater performances.
JULY 27, 2021 — Made possible by donor established funds, the Community Foundation announces its 2021 Community Impact grant awards, totaling over $3.5 million to 111 organizations across the region. Sixteen new organizations received funding this year.