Six projects that rely on collaboration among Springfield-area organizations are the recipients of a total of $120,000 in grant money.
The Community Foundation of the Ozarks awarded the grants -- part of the Jewell Schweitzer Collective Impact Grant Program -- on Tuesday.
Generations Village, in partnership with FosterAdopt Connect and Missouri State University’s Center for Ozarks Poverty Research, received $30,000 to support a portion of the first-year operating costs at the new neighborhood being built on Willard’s southern edge.
Greg Williams just recently began his job as executive director of Generations Village.
"We're a village of intergenerational people," he said, "serving foster kids, foster families as well as senior adults who will live in the same neighborhood development that will be comprised of single-family homes, townhomes as well as an apartment complex with a community center."
Another project receiving $30,000 is United Community Change, in partnership with Central High School and Study Alternative Center, MU Extension, Hamra Enterprises, the USDA and several urban farms, for the Microgreens Farm, Agricultural Practices Program and BLACC Ag Academy. The money will be used to address health and nutrition disparities and provide entrepreneur education.
Mia Jones, founder and director of the BLACC Ag Academy, said they want to rewrite the meaning of the word “Black.” They’ve done a pilot project at Study where students learned about the history of Black people in farming and were taught how to grow microgreens.
She said the goal is to one day have their own farm, "so that we can cultivate more farmers in our local community as well get them learning more about health disparities, which is one of our flags in this community and that they can go on to be a doctor or be a mentor, be someone who's knowledgeable about what's going on in our community."
The projects given funding Tuesday address Blue Ribbon and Red Flag issues identified in the Community Focus Report for Springfield and Greene County.
Other projects receiving funding Tuesday were:
- CASA of Southwest Missouri, in partnership with the Greene County Juvenile Office and Missouri Department of Social Services' Children's Division: $30,000 for the CASA Clubhouse, designed to ensure a positive foster care experience for children and their families.
- League of Women Voters of Southwest Missouri, in partnership with Leadership Springfield and the Springfield Chapter of the NAACP: $9,600 for the "Get Out the Voter" Bus Wrap Project, which is designed to promote participation in the 2024 elections.
- PFLAG Springfield, in partnership with the GLO Center and Sarah Fry Counseling: $11,000 for the LGBTQ+ Mental Health Support Project, intended to maintain and improve existing mental health services for the LGBTQ+ community.
- Springfield Center for Dyslexia and Learning, in partnership wtih CoxHealth and Springfield Public Schools: $9,400 for the Tutor Training & Student Scholarship Project, aimed at helping more children gain access to evidence-based dyslexia intervention programs.
