Tamara Washington, Director of Adult Basic Education, Coahoma Community College
Zach Scruggs, Executive Director – 2nd Chance MS
With the mission of economic security for women, the Women’s Foundation of Mississippi (WFM) is awarding a total of $670,000 in grants to non-profit organizations and community colleges across the state for the 2017 funding cycle. The sixteen recipients of the grants stretch across the state and provide programs to women in the areas of access to opportunity/community college, planned pregnancy, and two-generation/better futures.
A WFM grant will support a program of 2nd Chance Mississippi to provide a pathway to Certified Nursing Assistant and EMT jobs that are in high demand in the area. The High School Equivalency & Nursing Certification Support program will pay for the equivalency exam and community college classes for women who do not have a high school diploma.
The Exchange Club Family Center is receiving a grant for their Raising Mothers to Rise program that will serve Oxford and Lafayette County as well as the seven surrounding counties of Marshall, Union, Pontotoc, Calhoun, Panola, and Tate. The program will provide parenting skills and contraception education to pregnant teens and teen mothers to reduce additional unplanned pregnancies.
“We know that when women thrive, so does our state,” noted Tracy DeVries, Executive Director of WFM. “That’s why we award grants to programs that drive social change and have a lasting impact on women and their families.”
“Through the support of national foundations, corporate sponsors, and our generous individual donors, the Women’s Foundation has grown from awarding $68,000 in grants in its first year of funding to the current annual level that is close to $700,000,” DeVries continued. “With the 2017 funding cycle, we have awarded $2.8 million since 2012 and have impacted more than 4,000 women across the state.”
“Our grantmaking focus aligns with our belief that all women should have the opportunity to obtain degrees or credentials, good jobs with benefits, and to plan their pregnancies,” noted Latisha Latiker, Director of Grant Programming at WFM. “The range of programs we explored through the grantmaking process was enlightening,” noted Latiker. “Throughout the application and review process and the 2,000 miles of in-state travel for site visits, it was inspiring to see the programs that are focused on social change, despite the shortage of funds and resources. We are thrilled to support a broad range of programs that will help women and their families on their path to economic security.”
Grantees operate programs from the Delta through northwest Mississippi, across to Oxford and the northeast area of the state, down through Meridian/Lauderdale County and Jones County, to the Gulf Coast, and back up to the Jackson/Hinds County area, with work of the grantees impacting women from all areas of Mississippi. The 2017 Women’s Foundation of Mississippi grantees and projects are listed below:
| Organization Name | Project Name |
| 2nd Chance Mississippi | High School Equivalency & Nursing Certification Support Program |
| Coahoma Community College | Workforce Women’s Emergency Fund |
| Delta Health Center | #ProjectRAD (Reaching Adolescents in the Delta) |
| Disability Rights Mississippi | Improving Opportunities Across Generations |
| East Central Community College | Women’s Emergency Assistance Fund |
| East Mississippi Community College | EMPOWR – Mayhew and Scooba |
| Ecumenical Coalition for Women and Families | Cultivating Faith Leaders as Sex Ed Advocates and Teachers |
| Exchange Club Family Center | Raising Mothers to Rise |
| Jackson State University – School of Public Health | Determinants of Pregnancy Prevention Among Older African American Teens at HBCU’s |
| Jones County Junior College | Women’s Emergency Fund II |
| Magnolia Medical Foundation | Encouraging Responsible and Informed Choices: Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program |
| Mississippi Center for Justice | Community College Legal Clinic |
| Mississippi State University Social Science Research Center | EMPOWR – Hinds-Jackson and Meridian |
| Mississippi University for Women | Professional Development for Sexual Health Educators |
| Northwest Mississippi Community College | Project Gateway: From Community College to Careers |
| Single Stop | Mississippi Community Colleges – A Holistic Approach to Student Success (Phase 1) |
For more information on the 2017 WFM grantees and projects, visit womensfoundationms.org/grants.
About the Women’s Foundation of Mississippi:
The mission of the Women’s Foundation of Mississippi is economic security for women. The Foundation is committed to helping Mississippi’s women and girls transcend our state’s dire social and economic barriers. By cultivating social change, we create long-term opportunity for economic security for women. In doing so, the Women’s Foundation fosters greater success for our entire state. The WFM creates social change via grantmaking, advocacy, and action in the areas of planned pregnancy, education, and careers. When women thrive, Mississippi thrives. More at womensfoundationms.org.
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