Paving the Path to Homeownership for Housing Choice Voucher Holders
Since the mid-20th century, homeownership has been one of the most important vehicles for building wealth in the United States. According to research from the…
Grants
Featured
Our Grantmaking Strategy
For more than 100 years, The Chicago Community Trust has convened, supported, funded, and accelerated the work of community members and changemakers committed to strengthening the Chicago region. From building up our civic infrastructure to spearheading our response to the Great Recession, the Trust has brought our community together to face pressing challenges and seize our greatest opportunities. Today, that means confronting the racial and ethnic wealth gap.
Explore Our Discretionary Grants
Showing 5421–5428 of 4418 results
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Grant Recipient
Chicago Humanities Festival
Chicago Humanities will present “Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson on Abundance” on Tuesday, April 1, 2025, at the UIC Forum as part of our annual Spring Festival.
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Grant Recipient
Disability Lead
An annual conference to support the leadership and advancement of disabled professionals in the workplace
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Grant Recipient
Ignite
The Ignite & Shine Gala raises funds to prevent and end youth homelessness through a holistic model and program design that includes support services, emergency housing, transitional housing, and community housing for young people ages 10 - 26.
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Grant Recipient
North Lawndale Employment Network
Sweet Beginnings Tea is our annual fundraising event, celebrating NLEN's 25th anniversary, aimed at raising essential funds to support our programs and services.
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Grant Recipient
DEPAUL UNIVERSITY
The Institute for Housing Studies at DePaul University and Rudd Resources will co-chair Elevated Chicago’s Knowledge Sharing Working Group.
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Grant Recipient
Here To Stay CLT Inc
The Here to Stay Community Land trust provides affordable homeownership opportunities to those at risk of displacement due to gentrification. We saw housing costs skyrocket during the pandemic, impacting residents of our target area who were unable to purchase homes due to rising costs and the lasting effects of systemic racism in the real estate industry. To combat this, HTS was awarded a $5 million ARPA grant by the state of Illinois, administered by the Dept of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. The uses were heavily restricted and none of the funds could be used for operating support. While we were absolutely thrilled to receive the grant, it's been a real struggle to maintain operations and we had to resort to taking out a loan to cover personnel and operating costs. This grant would be extremely impactful as we begin to pay down that loan and ensure we can continue our work of providing stable, affordable homes.
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Grant Recipient
OAI INC
1. Name of the government grant for which you are applying to receive matching funds? Opportunity Works ARPA Program 2. What government agency awarded this grant? Include the government level that houses the agency. Cook County Bureau of Economic Development through The Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership 3. What is the total awarded amount for this grant? $300,000 4. When was the grant awarded? Originally January 1, 2024 – November 30, 2024; renewed for December 1, 2024 – November 30, 2025. 5. When does this grant expire? November 30, 2025 6. From which appropriation source is this grant funded? E.g., ARPA, CDBG, City Corporate Funds, State general revenue, etc. You may write “unknown” if you do not know. ARPA 7. Does your organization have a negotiated indirect cost rate? If so, what is it? We do not have a negotiated indirect cost rate with the State of Illinois and use de minmis rate. In addition, two of our direct federal grants do not negotiate for a NICRA and only allow for 5% and 8% indirect cost rates per statutory requirements. 8. Briefly describe the challenges your organization faces in managing and complying with government grants. (max 100 words). OAI encounters numerous challenges managing and complying with government grants including 1) complexity of reporting systems, at times requiring the same data be entered into multiple databases, 2) lack of coordination, communication between each government agency involved within the same grant, 3) cost of retraining staff as reporting requirements shift 4) cumbersome documentation, 5) delay in contract execution and reimbursement payments. Each grant has unique rules and deadlines. Financial tracking necessitates strong systems for accurate reporting and accountability, requiring ongoing subscriptions to financial and CRM platforms. These challenges demand careful coordination and vigilance to ensure compliance and avoid potential penalties. 9. What impact do you anticipate this general operating support will have on your organization’s overall financial health and sustainability? (max 100 words). These general operating funds will allow OAI to support the operating costs not supported by government grants but functions that are critical to administering complex government grants. This flexibility will improve staff capacity to better serve program participants and improve overall service delivery. It will enable us to streamline operational efficiencies and maximize the impact of every dollar spent. It will strengthen OAI’s ability to deliver high-quality workforce development training and services while ensuring long-term organizational growth and financial resilience. 10. Are there specific policies or requirements associated with your government grant that your organization finds particularly challenging or restrictive? If so, please explain. (Max 100 words) Data tracking for Opportunity Works ARPA requires data entry in multiple systems including external and internal systems which require ongoing training for existing and new staff. Indirect costs are calculated from the Modified Total Direct Cost base which disallows all training, support services, and internship wages as part of the base. This creates a much smaller level of indirect funding for things like fiscal support staff. Barrier reduction and internship wages require high levels of fiscal accountability and support, but these costs are not fully included in the indirect cost base. 11. Optional: Please provide additional information or context you would like to share that was not addressed in previous questions. (Max 100 words) Over the past few years, government agencies have experienced many personnel changes and restructuring. This has created a longer onramp than anticipated for new ARPA programs. In addition, many community organizations experienced staffing changes and shortages which created a delay in programs starting.
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Grant Recipient
Sunshine Gospel Ministries
For over a century, Sunshine Gospel Ministries (SGM), a 501(c)(3) organization, has been a steadfast presence in Chicago’s most challenging communities. Established in 1905, SGM has weathered the storms of history, including two pandemics (1919 and 2020), numerous political shifts, and evolving urban landscapes. Through it all, our faith has carried and guided us through pivotal moments such as the race riots of 1919, the Civil Rights Movement, urban renewal efforts, and multiple relocations and transformations of our ministry in Chicago’s inner city. In 1974, responding to the growing need for community renewal, SGM shifted its focus to support low-income youth in the Cabrini-Green housing projects. As the North Side’s public housing began to be demolished in the early 2000s, many families moved to Chicago’s South Side. In 2004, SGM followed this migration, purchasing and renovating buildings in the Woodlawn community. Now celebrating 21 years in Woodlawn, we remain deeply committed to serving the youth and families of this vibrant but under-resourced area. Throughout our 120-year history, much has changed, but three core principles have remained constant: 1. Our love for discipleship 2. Pursuing the renewal of the city 3. Serving the most under-resourced communities of Chicago As we reflect on our past and look to the future, we are grateful for the opportunity to continue our mission of bringing hope, transformation, and empowerment to the communities we serve. ORGANIZATIONAL OVERVIEW A Legacy of Faith and Service: This Our 120th Year of Sunshine Gospel Ministries MISSION AND PURPOSE - With a presence in the most challenging communities of Chicago, Sunshine Gospel Ministries’ (SGM) mission is to seek the renewal of the city through ministries of discipleship, mercy, and justice. To achieve this, SGM engages and empowers youth and families to thrive and lead fruitful, healthy lives through faith, connectedness, and opportunity. SGM uses a place-based approach/strategies which respects the right of community members to be heard in voicing their needs and concerns and for Sunshine to seek to understand the issues, interconnections, and relationships in our community; along with being involved in coordinating action and investment to improve the quality of life for the greater good of the community and those that reside. We carry out these strategies currently through five programs: 1. Youth Outreach - Serves elementary, middle, and high school ages with a structured after-school environment that fosters a commitment to learning, and positive values that help develop a moral compass and well roundedness that promotes positive self identity and capability to make ethical decisions in life. Youth also participate in various academic, creative, and recreational activities and field trips. 2. Familyhood - Provides practical training, support and intervention where necessary and facilitates spaces where parents/guardians and children can come together to abound in love, reconcile, and grow as a family unit. The goal is to restore hope in families and renew hurting communities by embracing and embodying wholeness for the family to thrive. 3. Flourishing Community Initiative - Provides organizing and collaborative support to gunshot wound survivors and their family through three core services: trauma intervention; case management for victims and their families after release from hospital or criminal system; and coalition-building among community, violence intervention partners, hospital-based institutions, and the Chicago Police Department of the Third District. 4. Housing Equity Initiative - Addresses housing-related disparities within the Woodlawn and Washington Park communities in three areas: retention, ownership, and revitalization aimed at supporting our neighbors in building assets and wealth creation for their families and investments in their community. 5. Bridgebuilders - An experiential service-learning program that invites participants from all over the country ranging from high school age through adulthood. It connects people from different backgrounds to promote a shared understanding of the challenges facing inner-city communities. We believe the giftedness of the community is more clearly seen through fostering healthy, meaningful experiences and conversation that combine learning with active engagement. The Justice Advisory Council grant has been instrumental in sustaining our existing programs and expanding our capacity by enabling the hiring of additional staff to support and grow these two critical initiatives/programs - Flourishing Community Initiative and Youth Outreach. This general operating gap funding grant would be of assistance in continuing the services provided through both. Flourishing Community Initiative (FCI) works with victims of gun violence to serve and support them throughout their recovery to wholeness. FCI’s clients are primarily between the ages of 13-66. The project is staffed with a Director, a Violence Intervention Specialist and a Case Manager. FCI serves about 30 families per year. For our FCI program the total process of care can last 12-24 months based on the needs of the clients. The first 8-12 month period is directly after the client is discharged from the hospital. FCI staff focuses on getting the client involved in counseling, reestablishing safety through relocation, addressing any desires for retaliation, and completing necessary paperwork to secure financial victims compensation. Clients are under the care of our intervention specialist and case manager, and the ultimate goal is to work towards the individual feeling safe once again. The second phase addresses the needs of employment, ongoing health care, legal matters and education. During this timeframe, the Case Manager works with clients to identify meaningful goals that will give individuals a hope for the future. The final phase is the process of follow up and implementation of any additional needed services. This phase includes reincorporating the client into positive relationships within their community. Ultimately, the clients’ needs are FCI’s main priority. If they need more time with FCI, the staff will extend their time individually and in certain cohorts based on the progression of their healing. Also, clients can continue to engage with our organization through workshops, and events. FCI has collaborative relationships - University of Chicago Medical Trauma Center, 3rd District CPD Victim Crimes Advocate, Advocate Trauma Center, P.O.A.H.(Preservation to Deliver Affordable Housing, licensed therapists, employment partners and more. Sunshine Gospel Ministries Youth Outreach has three core programs: elementary youth,1st-5th grade; middle school youth - 6th-8th grade; and high school teens - 9th-12th grade. Each program has their own dedicated staff members. Ideally, each grade level has 2 full-time staff, and 2 part-time program assistants have two youth outreach volunteer leaders, and one Director who oversees the whole team. Youth Outreach programming serves over 200 youth on a year-round annual basis. The Youth Outreach Staff engages youth through afterschool programming, day summer camp program, and a week long summer sleepover. During the school year, our staff provides a program Monday through Friday between the hours of 3:30 and 8:00 pm. Over the summer months of July and August, Youth Outreach provides a day camp Monday through Friday from 9-3 PM. On Fridays during Summer programming, youth are taken on a field trip. Our Youth Outreach programming has Summer youth employment for ages 16 through 24 through One Summer Chicago, and we are implementing the expansion of this program to be year round for those ages 18 to 24. Sunshine tracks the progress of youth in developing positive character assets through the Search Institute's 40 Developmental Assets Survey. Youth participants take this survey yearly which helps our youth outreach staff to identify areas to build programming around to positively impact growth in character development and social emotional learning for the youth. The 40 Developmental Framework provides Youth Outreach with a framework of support systems and strengths that youth need in order to live healthy, whole lives. This sets our youth up for success in all that they do which positively affects youth long term, preventing negative interactions with police, courts, and other systems. Youth Outreach has strong partnerships for enrichment and other programming needs.