CCF’s Housing program combines grantmaking, lending and advocacy to support effective housing with services for our homeless neighbors, more affordable housing and better jobs for working L.A. families. Since 2000, we have granted almost $30 million to ensure Angelenos have safe, supportive and stable homes and the economic opportunities they need to thrive.
Since 2000, we have awarded almost $50 million to support children’s health insurance programs, physical and mental healthcare access, substance use prevention, advocacy and community clinics that often serve as one of the only options for Angelenos without health insurance. Through the Centinela Valley Medical and Community Funds, we grant more than $3 million annually to hospitals and other organizations providing healthcare services, outreach and education in the Centinela Valley.
Partnering with community leaders and networks of educational institutions, CCF helps our most vulnerable students access the educational resources they need to succeed from cradle to college. These groups include preschool-age children, English language learners and students of color, particularly young men. We support efforts to encourage the fair and transparent funding for all schools regardless of zip code and want students to learn in innovative environments that put their needs at the center.
Civic engagement holds the key to making lasting, systemic change that is driven by communities. It empowers people to make their voices heard, gain a role in policy decisions and affect institutions that influence their futures and those of their families. By supporting civic engagement in Los Angeles County, CCF is ensuring that everyone has a voice to call for policy changes that improve their personal and communities’ wellbeing.
The Kresge Foundation’s investment boosts pool of funding to accelerate development of permanent supportive housing, a cost-effective measure to address homelessness. EDITOR’S NOTE: Interviews are available upon request with residents of permanent supportive housing LOS ANGELES – September 22, 2016 – The Kresge Foundation is the latest funding partner in an unprecedented, multi-sector effort to annually triple the number of permanent supportive housing units in the City of Los Angeles. Kresge’s $1 million three-year grant and $6 million low-interest loan will help homeless Angelenos facing complex challenges to live with stability, autonomy and dignity. The Accelerating Permanent Supportive Housing Initiative is a partnership with the California Community Foundation (CCF), Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, Weingart Foundation, the City of Los Angeles and nonprofit lenders and developers. Partners have committed $63 million in a revolving fund to launch 1,000 units each year. Initiative partners have already seen how thousands of formerly homeless L.A. residents have found a place to call home in permanent supportive housing, where they can also get the mental health and substance abuse treatment they may need. Over the past 25-30 years, nonprofit housing developers have built nearly 10,000 units of permanent supportive housing in Los Angeles. But more needs to be done – and at a faster rate – to address our growing crisis. “This initiative demonstrates the power in coordinating a multi-stakeholder response around an innovative model that improves outcomes and reduces costs,” said David Fukuzawa, managing director of Kresge’s Health and Human Services Programs. “By blending the work of health and human services, permanent supportive housing provides services while also working to address the systematic challenges that lead to homelessness. We hope that other cities experiencing similar pressures will be able to learn from this collaborative.” To triple the number of units created, this effort is asking nonprofit developers to collectively start 10 to 15 new developments each year. Loans for developers will be managed by CSH, also known as the Corporation for Supportive Housing, through their Supportive Housing Loan Fund. Kresge’s $6 million loan will support the fund as well as CCF’s efforts to raise additional resources through donor advised funds (DAFs) for deployment as charitable investments. “Making low-interest loans from DAFs is an approved use of those funds, but today the vast majority of DAFs are used as grant capital,” said Kimberlee Cornett, managing director of Kresge’s Social Investment Practice. “We know donors want to do the most good with their money and their dollars can potentially go further and be more impactful in the form of low-interest loans. We’re excited to work with CCF to help bring that opportunity to its donors and to direct more money into efforts to end homelessness in Los Angeles.” A group of experienced nonprofit housing developers has been involved in identifying ways to streamline the system and accelerate production, including A Community of Friends, Clifford Beers Housing, LINC Housing, Los Angeles Family Housing, Mercy Housing California, New Directions for Veterans, PATH Ventures, Skid Row Housing Trust and SRO Housing Corporation. These and others may apply through CSH for loan funds, and through United Way’s Home for Good Collaborative for grant support, to cover the early costs of buying sites, developing plans and securing City approvals. The approval process will also be streamlined through the City’s Planning and Housing departments. After securing approvals, developments will need long-term funding from private and public sources including state, federal and local sources. This November, the City of Los Angeles will also give voters the chance to approve a $1.2 billion bond measure – Proposition HHH – to finance new apartments for the homeless. The California Community Foundation is committed to improving the quality of life for all Los Angeles County residents by addressing the root causes of the county’s most urgent problems. The foundation has served as a public, charitable organization since 1915. For more information, please visit www.calfund.org. The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation is a family foundation established in 1944 by the man who started Hilton Hotels. The Hilton Foundation provides funds to nonprofit organizations working to improve the lives of disadvantaged and vulnerable people throughout the world. From its inception, the Foundation has awarded more than $1.5 billion in grants, distributing $107 million in the U.S. and around the world in 2015. For more information, please visit hiltonfoundation.org. The Kresge Foundation is a $3.6 billion private, national foundation that works to expand opportunities in America’s cities through grantmaking and social investing in arts and culture, education, environment, health, human services and community development in Detroit. In 2015, the Board of Trustees approved 370 grants totaling $125.2 million, and nine social investment commitments totaling $20.3 million. For more information, visit kresge.org. The Weingart Foundation is committed to advancing social and economic equity by providing grants and other support designed to improve the capacity and effectiveness of nonprofit organizations working with people and communities who currently face the greatest obstacles to opportunity. Founded in 1951, the Foundation’s mission is to build a better Southern California by supporting nonprofit organizations to more effectively serve the underserved. For more information, please visit weingartfnd.org. Download a PDF. CONTACT Taleen Ananian [cryptx]tananian@www.calfund.org [/cryptx] (213) 452-6203 Related: Local Foundations Partner to Provide $16 Million for Housing Plan to Help Combat Homelessness in Los Angeles Statement from Mayor Garcetti: Philanthropic Contribution Will Help Advance L.A.’s Housing Solutions for the Homeless
This letter to the editor originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times. To the editor: Permanent housing with services is a proven, cost-effective approach to moving people from homelessness to stability, and opposing Proposition H will only let this crisis continue to worsen. (“The wrong way to fix homelessness in L.A.,” Opinion, Aug. 24) The nonprofit affordable housing community already builds 300 such apartments each year; with Proposition H, we can triple that to 1,000. Nearly $70 million in grants and loans has already been pledged by community groups to ramp up production, and they are working with the city of Los Angeles to shorten pre-production timelines. But whether it takes three years, as the authors claim, or one, we should start now. We cannot waste any more time. A purchaser of a $1 million home this year would pay $95 in tax each year. As a homeowner and a concerned resident of Los Angeles, I think that $95 is well worth it to be able to feel that my community is doing something positive to move people from my street corners to decent apartments. Ann Sewill, Los Angeles The writer is vice president of housing and economic opportunity at the California Community Foundation.
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The Palevsky Center is available for use by organizations whose work is aligned the California Community Foundation’s mission of strengthening Los Angeles communities through effective philanthropy and civic engagement. The space in intended to host cross-sectoral convenings that advance issues related to this mission.
When Jeffrey steps across the stage and takes his degree in a few short years, he won’t be the only one who benefits. Every graduate is a million dollar victory for the future of Los Angeles County. Every South Central Scholar who leaves high school college-ready, who has the services and support to succeed, makes our region stronger and more prosperous. Investors in L.A. and around the country have taken notice of LASIF's impact and are coming together to realize the potential of our children.
Jeffrey Castro’s parents instilled in him a drive to attend college. But just as he entered high school, tragedy struck. His father passed away, leaving his mother to provide for him and his two older brothers. College seemed further away than ever. Then he discovered LASIF partner Upward Bound.
So much attention is placed on college admission, but what happens next? That’s the question South Central Scholars staff found themselves asking as their students began their journeys into higher education.