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.
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Grant Recipient
AMERICAN INDIAN CENTER INC
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Grant Recipient
Urban Market Exchange
The Urban Market Exchange, LLC (UME), is seeking a pre-development resource grant in order to assist us with several projects needed before we can start the necessary build-out of a light/flexible co-manufacturing workspace in the Woodlawn community, in an underserved community on Chicago’s Southside. The pre-development funds will go to all qualified pre-development fees such as consulting, Phase I ESA, architect fees, etc. This grant would allow UME to satisfy certain requirements needed in order to continue to apply and receive other grants and opportunities including financing. This facility will allow our clients to focus on building their business, customers-base, and exploring capital opportunities.
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Grant Recipient
LYTE COLLECTIVE
LYTE Collective supports youth impacted by poverty and homelessness in Chicago with a focus on young adults between the ages of 18 and 30. We invest deeply in young people through an approach that is research driven where basic needs are met while we also provide the opportunities and relationships young people deserve to heal, to dream, and to explore themselves and the world around them. Through this grant request, LYTE Collective seeks general operating support to help us continue this work through our three core programs: our Mobile Support program, where we go directly to youth wherever they need us; Lytehouse Apartments, our transitional housing program; and the LYTE Lounge youth community center, located in Greater Grand Crossing.
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Grant Recipient
Rush University Medical Center
Just as many neighborhoods on the city’s South and West Sides were considered “testing deserts” during the spring and fall 2020 surges of the COVID-19 pandemic, the roll-out of vaccines has been disparate. To support efforts to get these communities at or above the Citywide vaccination rate, West Side United will create hyperlocal campaigns and increase local COVID-19 vaccination efforts in five targeted neighborhoods on the West Side. These campaigns will build off existing efforts of WSU and support those of community-based organizations to raise awareness, counter myths and provide vaccine access through door-to-door outreach, community town halls and vaccine distribution events.
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Grant Recipient
ARISE CHICAGO
Arise Chicago is focusing on pushing for government agency action. Rather than organizing for new legislation, we are pushing for agencies to utilize their full power, and/or increase their ability to create and enact policies, executive orders, improve inter-agency coordination, etc. We are at a critical juncture as all levels of government are working to improve systems going forward. Arise Chicago seeks to ensure low-wage worker voices are driving the decision-making regarding policies that impact their lives. Action at each level of government will decrease COVID’s impact on low-wage immigrants and communities of color in the short term, and improve the agencies’ practices for building the collective power of workers in the long term.
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Grant Recipient
Instituto del Progreso Latino
Instituto was founded by Latino immigrants and community activists in 1977 to address substantial inequities in education and employment. Today, more than 8000 low-income families depend on Instituto for support, including career pathways, citizenship services, education, and wraparound support delivered by 285 employees, most of whom come from the communities we serve. Through the redesign of our data systems, organizational strategic plan, and management tools, Instituto seeks to strengthen its existing services with the annual support of the Chicago Community Trust. By fortifying the organizational structures, Instituto will continue this Transformational Capacity Initiative, which began to modernize Instituto’s operations two years ago.
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Grant Recipient
AUSTIN COMING TOGETHER
Austin Coming Together (ACT) works with our 50+ member network and dozens of on-the-ground partners to carry out hyperlocal community-based engagement, building awareness and access to the vaccine for Austin residents. Since ACT began in 2010, we have grown to become the backbone support for Austin’s social service infrastructure, always focused on understanding community needs. We recently developed a response and recovery strategy that draws from our experience in identifying core issues and facilitating solutions through collaboration. We have operationalized a plan for advocacy, communication, resource development, and resource deployment. With this project, we will be able to expand our impact to more Austin residents.
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Grant Recipient
Brightpoint
Since 1972, El Hogar del Niño has proudly invested in developing our Pilsen community and the next generation of resilient leaders through our award-winning early learning programs and responsive family support services that promote stability & wellbeing so families can meet their full potential. Research supports what we know from nearly five decades of service: vulnerable families receive the strongest advantages from quality programs like ours - benefits that can improve life outcomes for generations. In partnership with the Trust, we will scale our impact to serve even more students experiencing trauma, open a Family Welcoming Center, and serve more families in need from a second location in McKinley Park.