Tellligen Community Initiative (TCI) announced today it has awarded Strengthening Families and Communities – Social Determinants of Health grants to 18 nonprofit organizations totaling $1,017,252. The grantee organizations are located across Iowa, Illinois, Oklahoma and Colorado.
Since 2014, TCI has funded more than $15.9 million in community-based support to nearly 400 projects in Iowa, Illinois, Oklahoma and Colorado, which are among the states served by Telligen.
“In this cycle of the grant program, TCI focused on supporting nonprofits who are working to decrease health disparities and create innovative solutions to increase physical, mental and social health and well-being for families as well as youth,” said Matt McGarvey, executive director of Telligen Community Initiative. “We are proud to fund these important and timely projects addressing significant challenges, and are hopeful they will result in long-term, positive outcomes.”
The grants will support a wide variety of projects, including addressing maternal and infant health, unique issues facing older youth, children’s mental health, parent education and more, particularly among historically marginalized communities. The Strengthening Families and Communities – Social Determinants of Health grant allocations include:
COLORADO
Child Advocates – Denver CASA | $50,000 Address the gap in individual services for older youth preparing to age out of the child welfare system by providing a CASA volunteer/mentor to youth in the Older Youth Program.
Colorado Perinatal Care Quality Collaborative | $74,568Support the collaborative’s Family Integration to ReStore Trust (FIRST) program that strives to address root causes of material mortality and increase access to culturally relevant, safe and equitable care.
Envision: You | $69,875Provide workshops encouraging adult caregivers of LGBTQ+ youth to create affirming environments and advocate for their safety and inclusion, which are critical to mental health, suicide prevention, well-being and healthy relationships.
The Gyedi Project | $75,000Address the growing inequity in maternal health outcomes through community and individualized education of Black women through use of an interdisciplinary team of Black professionals and community leaders.
ILLINOIS
Brightpoint (formerly Children’s Home and Aid) | $75,000 Through its Doula Program, provide support to high-risk young women before, during and after pregnancy to reduce child abuse/neglect and develop strong parent-child attachments and healthy futures for families.
Elyssa’s Mission | $51,215Help prevent youth suicide and unify Illinois schools in support by expanding its Hope Squad program, which organizes peer-nominated, advisor-trained support teams to identify and reach out to youth showing warning signs.
Shawnee Health Service and Development Corporation | $75,000By expanding its OBGYN clinic doula services, provide education and support to 200 expectant mothers, positively affecting maternal and infant health outcomes.
SIHF Healthcare | $50,000 Establish sustainable medical and mental health services at schools in low-income areas where children struggle due to a lack of medical access created by low social determinants of health.
Youth Crossroads, Inc. | $30,000 Through its workforce development program, provide community health work and youth mental health services training - to first- and second-generation Latina/o/x high school students and young adults.
IOWA
Catherine McAuley Center | $28,810Provide refugee children and families with programming to support physical, social and mental health, including prenatal classes for Afghan women, parent ed classes and middle/high school youth supports.FAMILY, Inc. | $75,000Through its Healthy Pregnancy Program, provide education and support to low-income pregnant individuals to ensure healthy babies and reduce maternal mortality in the maternity care desert.
Iowa Black Doula Collective | $63,200Improve Black maternal/child health outcomes through doula support for prenatal care, birth, breastfeeding and postpartum; and culturally responsive parenting group support.
Lutheran Services in Iowa | $25,000Through its Early Childhood Home Visitation program, provide family support and parent education for at-risk pregnant women and families with children ages 0-5 to promote positive development and safe, healthy families.
Visiting Nurse Association of Pottawattamie County | $20,505Through its home- and shelter-based Parenting Support programs, which strengthen children and families through a multigenerational focus on maternal and child health, prevention of abuse and neglect, child development and school readiness, parenting skills and family self-sufficiency.
OKLAHOMA
Community Action Project of Tulsa County | $75,000Through its home visit program, train parent educators who meet one-on-one with parents and children. Home visits focus on parent-child interaction, development-centered parenting, and family well-being.
Domestic Violence Intervention Services, Inc. | $75,000Establish Caring Dads program for fathers who have perpetrated violence in their families. This will change its current counseling practices to more effectively include fathers and increase children's safety and well-being.
HopeHouse OKC | $30,000Support families facing homelessness with housing, case management and family-centered programs. Through its hopeKIDS program, offer after-school activities, parent-child classes, mentoring, group counseling and trauma-informed training.
United Keetoowah Band (UKB) of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma | $74,079 Through its PACE Advocate Initiative, serve approximately 150 tribal members within the 14-county tribal jurisdictional boundaries, coordinating tribal and external services to address adverse childhood experiences among UKB children and families.