The Rhode Island Foundation awarded a record $89 million in grants last year, a reflection of the tremendous need in the state and 'the extraordinary generosity of Rhode Islanders.'
Jack Perry
Providence Journal
PROVIDENCE − The Rhode Island Foundation awarded a record $89 million in grants last year, a reflection of the tremendous need in the state and "the extraordinary generosity of Rhode Islanders," said David N. Cicilline, the agency's president and chief executive officer.
Among the roughly 2,500 nonprofit organizations receiving grants last year was Westbay Community Action, a charitable organization that helps residents of Kent County with food, housing, utilities and other needs.
Westbay's CEO and President Paul Salera, who has worked for the agency since 2003, says the need now is greater than he's ever seen as people struggle to pay bills, their paychecks battered by inflation.
"I can honestly say since the pandemic there's been a huge increase in basic needs across Kent County," Salera said. "People are living paycheck to paycheck."
The $150,000 grant helped Westbay stock its food pantry, which is open five days a week, and also helped pay housing costs for people who'd fallen behind.
Addressing immediate needs and finding long-term solutions
Cicilline said the Rhode Island Foundation helps Rhode Islanders in immediate need with problems like paying for food or rent and also addresses long-term solutions by providing access to education and training.
"We have to do both," Cicilline said in a telephone interview.
Started in 1916, the foundation identifies itself as "the largest and most comprehensive funder of nonprofit organizations in Rhode Island." At the end of 2023, the foundation's total assets were about $1.4 billion. Total fund investment return for the year was 14.2%. The foundation raised $46 million in gifts last year.
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The foundation's previous record award was $87 million in 2020. Last year, it awarded $84 million in grants.
The foundation said many of the grants fit the organization's three strategic priorities: educational success, healthy lives and economic security. "Aid brought relief to Rhode Islanders coping with hunger, surging housing prices and rising behavioral health problems," the foundation said.
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Cicilline said, “Together with determined nonprofit partners and key community stakeholders, our work helped reduce achievement gaps in education, addressed health disparities across diverse populations and boosted true economic opportunity for all Rhode Islanders."
About two-thirds of the grants were directed by the foundation’s donors; only about a third of the grants can be made at the sole discretion of the foundation.
Teaching job skills in key areas of the workforce
The Genesis Center in Providence received a $150,000 grant to support its workforce training programs for medical assistants, dental assistants, pharmacy technicians, certified nursing assistants and culinary workers.
Started in 1982 to assist refugees from Southeast Asia with English and life skills, the Genesis Center has expanded its services over the years and now works with immigrants from 40 countries, as well as native Rhode Islanders, according to Shannon Carroll, executive director.
The agency works with employers to ensure they're providing the right training and their students are prepared for fields that need employees, Carroll said.
"We've really expanded and part of that expansion has been responding to community needs," Carroll said.
"These are jobs that are critical to our functioning society," she said.
Carroll said that many of the students are adults in their late 20s to early 40s who can receive training for free or for much less than the thousands it would cost in other settings.