FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Blue Shield of California Foundation, Brooklyn Community Foundation, Needmor Fund, New York Foundation and Open Society Foundations to Receive 2015 NCRP Impact Awards
Philanthropy watchdog recognizes grantmakers that have shown leadership, innovation and commitment to solving the country’s toughest problems
Washington, D.C. (4/7/15) – Today, the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP) announced the recipients of the 2015 NCRP Impact Awards, which honors foundations that have made a visible commitment to exemplary grantmaking, diversity and inclusion, and empowering and strengthening communities throughout the United States.
“This year’s 2015 NCRP Impact Awardees represent the best of philanthropy today. These five foundations put underserved communities front and center in addressing critical issues such as civil rights, health care and domestic violence,” said Aaron Dorfman, executive director of NCRP. “This year we’re especially excited to honor two foundations in our midsized private foundation category, demonstrating the strides this field of philanthropy has made in effecting change.”
As the country’s only independent watchdog of foundations, NCRP inaugurated the NCRP Impact Awards in 2013 to honor foundations that embody the ideals of high-impact philanthropy. The awardees will be celebrated at a reception during the Center for Effective Philanthropy’s 2015 National Conference, held in San Francisco on May 19.
Meet the 2015 NCRP Impact Awardees:
- Blue Shield of California Foundation, Awardee for Corporate Foundation
The state’s largest private funder of domestic violence prevention and services, Blue Shield of California Foundation is also known for its work to make health care accessible for underserved communities in the state of California. In 2014, the foundation launched its Domestic Violence and Health Care Partnerships Initiative, to break the silo between these two often unconnected issues by pairing domestic violence organizations and community health centers. The ultimate goal is to bring about an effective, integrated system of care to families and individuals at risk of experiencing domestic violence.
- Brooklyn Community Foundation, Awardee for Community Foundation
Brooklyn Community Foundation is notable for “Brooklyn Insights,” its 2014 strategic planning process that extensively engaged grantees and community members to identify the best direction for the foundation to take. In response to the feedback the foundation received, Brooklyn Community Foundation drastically changed its operations and grantmaking strategy. It identified five major issue areas of greatest importance to the communities it serves: Neighborhood Cohesion, Youth, Criminal Justice, Immigrant Communities and Racial Justice.
- Needmor Fund, Awardee for Small/Midsized Private Foundation
This small family foundation in Toledo, Ohio is widely recognized in the world of social justice philanthropy. The Needmor Fund invests in multi-issue, membership-based, direct action community organizations that assist low-income communities in fully participating in the democratic process and make decisions affecting their lives. One of its grantees is Communities Creating Opportunities, which ran the Dignity Votes 2014 campaign that engaged thousands of disenfranchised voters in Kansas and Missouri during last year’s elections. The fund is also known for its pioneering adoption of mission-related investing by screening its holdings, participating in shareholder activism and investing in community development funds.
- New York Foundation, Awardee for Small/Midsized Private Foundation
One of the oldest foundations in the country, the New York Foundation has a long history of building the strength of New York’s community organizing groups. It is known for its risk-taking, issuing “start-up grants” to “unproven” organizations before the practice was commonplace. The foundation’s grantees have advocated for engaging citizens in public spending, education reform, low-income housing and workers’ rights in New York City. One example is Community Action for Safe Apartments, which ran a successful campaign that forced the Rent Guidelines Board to hold its public hearings in each outer borough, increasing tenant participation in determining annual rent increases for rent-stabilized apartments.
- Open Society Foundations, Awardee for Large Private Foundation
The Open Society Foundations, a family of offices and foundations created by George Soros, seek to build vibrant and tolerant democracies in which governments are accountable to their citizens. Working with local communities in more than 100 countries, the Open Society Foundations support justice and human rights, freedom of expression and access to health care and education. Open Society Foundations have long been a major funder of criminal justice reform in the U.S., and reducing mass incarceration is a major goal. Its 501c4 arm funded Vote Safe, which directed the campaign for Proposition 47, a successful California ballot initiative to reclassify many low-level nonviolent and drug offenses from felonies to misdemeanors.
2015 NCRP Impact Award Reception:
WHAT
2015 NCRP Impact Awards
Honoring Blue Shield of California Foundation, Open Society Foundations, New York Foundation, Needmor Fund and Brooklyn Community Foundation
WHO
Philanthropists, foundation and nonprofit leaders, with:
Cecilia Clarke, President & CEO, Brooklyn Community Foundation
Aaron Dorfman, Executive Director, NCRP
Peter Long, President & CEO, Blue Shield of California Foundation
Maria Mottola, Executive Director, New York Foundation
Leonard Noisette, Open Society Foundations
Frank Sanchez, Executive Director, Needmor Fund
Sherece West-Scantlebury, Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation
And the Host Committee:
Yolanda Alindor, San Francisco Foundation
Surina Kahn, Women’s Foundation
Kate Kroeger, Urgent Action Fund
Ellen LaPointe, Northern California Grantmakers
Daniel Lee, Levi Strauss Foundation
Thomas Peters, Marin Community Foundation
Catalina Ruiz-Healy, Rappaport Family Foundation
Tim Silard, Rosenberg Foundation
Amelia Wu, Global Fund for Women
WHERE
The InterContinental Hotel
888 Howard Street, San Francisco, CA 94103
WHEN
May 19, 2015, 7 pm – 8 pm PDT
In Conjunction with The Center for Effective Philanthropy 2015 National Conference
This event is open to the media.
Since 1976, the NCRP has served as the voice of nonprofits and the communities they serve in philanthropy. Through research and advocacy, NCRP works to ensure that philanthropy contributes in meaningful ways to the creation of a fair, just and equitable world. Visit www.ncrp.org for more information.
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Contact: Yna Moore at (202) 557-1381
(202) 557-1381 or ymoore@ncrp.org.
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