Local nonprofits can apply for $94,000 in grants

The Rhode Island Foundation is offering $94,000 in grants to nonprofit organizations that serve the state’s Black community.

“Our aim is to support work that strengthens and empowers this community. We’re targeting organizations that focus on the unique needs of Rhode Island’s Black community, including those nonprofits that have a tradition of serving the community,” said Adrian Bonéy, the Foundation’s program officer for special programs.

The grants will support community-based organizations that uplift low-income Black Rhode Islanders through programs that create pathways to financial stability and achievement, provide youth development and mentoring opportunities to urban Black youth and support and promote the history, culture and achievements of Blacks in Rhode Island. The deadline to apply for assistance from the Foundation’s Black Philanthropy Bannister Fund is Sept. 13.

Last year’s recipients include the Boys and Girls Clubs of Newport County, which received $5,000 to send Black children to its after-school program; the YWCA Rhode Island in Woonsocket, which won $6,100 to support the YWCA’s Girls Circle programming; and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cranston, which was awarded $5,000 to support its community-based mentoring program that pairs at-risk youth age 7 to 15 with adult volunteers.

“Since the beginning, our goal has been to support positive and systemic change for the Black community. By funding work that encourages equity and promotes access, we can create pathways to achievement and accomplishment,” said Linda Newton, co-chair of the fund’s advisory committee.

In addition to the grant program, the fund also offers scholarship assistance for Black students who are pursuing or advancing a career in health care at an accredited institution and are Rhode Island residents who demonstrate financial need.

This year’s scholarship recipients include Olanrewaju Sanni, who is pursuing his MBA in Health Management at Rhode Island College; and Wenricka Griffith, who attends the University of Rhode Island.

The fund has awarded $330,000 in grants and scholarships in the past seven years. Members of the public can support the fund’s work by donating online on the Foundation’s website.

The Rhode Island Foundation is the largest and most comprehensive funder of nonprofit organizations in Rhode Island. Working with generous and visionary donors, the Foundation raised $38 million and awarded $43 million in grants to organizations addressing the state’s most pressing issues and needs of diverse communities in 2017. Through leadership, fundraising and grantmaking activities, often in partnership with individuals and organizations, the Foundation is helping Rhode Island reach its true potential. For more information, visit rifoundation.org.