2025 Illinois General Assembly Recap
I came to The Chicago Community Trust in March after spending years as chief of staff to Illinois State Rep. Kelly Cassidy. I…
Community Wealth
Spotlights on community issues, the people, and the organizations who contribute to effective philanthropy as well as a stronger Chicago region and world.
Recent
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Trust Talks, The Podcast – Episode 19: Confronting Homeownership Barriers
While homeownership is often viewed as a pathway to building wealth, a range of challenges can hinder its effectiveness, particularly for specific groups.…
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Transforming the College Transfer Experience
In the Spring of 2006, my mother and I walked into a meeting with a public state university admissions counselor to discuss my…
“Community Wealth” Community Wealth
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Fast-Growing Food Enterprise Run by Entrepreneurs of Color Secures New Home
The founders of ChiFresh Kitchen never expected their worker-owned, commercial kitchen cooperative would launch early due to a pandemic-fueled demand for quality meals for people…
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Trust Talks, The Podcast - Episode 3: Catalyzing Neighborhood Investment
In this episode of the Trust Talks podcast, Michael Davidson, senior director of community impact leading the Trust’s Catalyzing Neighborhood Investment portfolio, sits down with Lennox Jackson;…
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2021 Q1 Grants Support Resilience, Equity, Recovery
In year two of its 10-year strategy to close metropolitan Chicago’s racial and ethnic wealth gap, the Trust is starting to see the fruits of…
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We Will Chicago: An Instrument for Equity
Can a city plan be an instrument for equity? We think it can. That is why we believe that the Lightfoot administration’s We Will Chicago…
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Winter 2021 Webinar Recap: Strategies to Close the Racial & Ethnic Wealth Gap
Over late fall 2020 and early winter 2021, The Chicago Community Trust co-hosted a series of webinars to explore its strategies to close the racial…
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2020 Grant Making: The Chicago Community Trust
In Fiscal Year 2020, The Chicago Community Trust made 293 discretionary grants totaling $20,477,287. Following are some highlights of how this year’s grant making embraced…
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Pre-Development Grants Available to Community-Based Developers
When people gather for the ribbon cutting at the neighborhood’s new grocery store, community center, or manufacturing facility, their excitement is justified. For the community…
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The New Flexible Funding Program Supports and Accelerates Community-Driven Investment
The Chicago Community Trust granted $1.2 million to community-driven investment-focused organizations to move forward on neighborhood opportunities that attract capital and leverage resources. We are…
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Creating a Sustainable Grain Hub
Illinois is known as a major producer of corn and soybeans for the world market. But if more grains like barley, wheat and oats were…
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Fueling Economic Growth in the South Suburbs
It takes a lot to revitalize a community. Beyond ambitious development plans and the right lenders and agencies, it requires a central player—the glue binding…
