Communityworks history

In 2003, Chicago-based Grand Victoria Foundation issued a path-breaking request for proposal to the state’s community foundations. The proposal to build community foundations went beyond well-known partnerships between large private foundations and community foundations in other Midwestern states and in California. Grand Victoria had learned that communities throughout the state faced challenges in the areas of early childhood education and childcare, workforce training and development, and land use and protection. These issues reflected Grand Victoria’s priorities in the areas of education, economic development, and the environment.

The foundations were challenged to explore intersections among the target issue areas and to determine how to address local challenges in ways that made sense for the community’s assets and key actors, the desires of community members, and the knowledge of its community foundation. The tools would include board willingness to support the effort, an engaged advisory committee, at least one staff person, a series of four public meetings, and development of a formal impact plan that would lead to at least $50,000 in awards prior to July 2008. Grand Victoria, for its part, would provide each foundation $280,000 to build operational capacity, and $250,000 to match contributions to endowment over the five-year period.
Each foundation developed its own local approach, aided by extraordinary field liaisons, conference calls with people from across the country who had done similar work, occasional workshops and annual meetings of the entire partnership—18 foundations initially, 16 of which have continued into phase three, beginning in 2008. Grand Victoria has built a network of foundations that has gain experience and momentum in thinking strategically about community philanthropy.
 
During phase three (2008-2011), Grand Victoria has encouraged community foundations to focus on implementing their impact plans, strengthening their networks and partnerships, and building their administrative and Communityworks endowments. Along with Grand Victoria, 16 foundations are working in action hubs centered on early childhood care and education, workforce development, and land use and protection. The hubs give community foundations time and space to learn from each other and collaborate on high impact strategies where collective action can make a bigger difference than any one foundation could achieve on their own.

To support growth, leadership and sustainability, Grand Victoria Foundation is providing three years of operating support, action hub facilitators, grants to Communityworks and administrative endowments and challenge grants. Anticipating potential joint efforts that go beyond geographical boundaries, phase three also includes an action hub fund to support regional or statewide solutions.