Seven Foundations Band Together to Fight Poverty in Rural America

Seven U.S. foundations have joined forces to combat rural poverty through a new organization called the National Rural Funders Collaborative.

The funds plan to increase the investment capital available to residents of rural areas, support the creation of so-called living-wage jobs, and improve social services for families in rural areas.

The National Rural Funders Collaborative, in Dallas, received initial commitments totaling $2.5-million from the Mary Reynolds Babcock, Annie E. Casey, Fannie Mae, William Randolph Hearst, F.B. Heron, William and Flora Hewlett, and W.K. Kellogg Foundations.

Money from the foundations is seed capital that officials of the collaborative say they hope will lead to additional giving. They hope to raise $100-million over 10 years from individuals; local, state, and federal governments; corporations; and foundations other than the original seven.

The collaborative will make grants to regional coalitions made up of foundations, corporate and government supporters, and grass-roots organizations. The grants — $75,000 to $250,000 each over three years, or one-time disbursements of $25,000 to $50,000 — will support programs run or financed by members of each coalition.

James A. Richardson, executive director of the collaborative, said the grants also would be used for efforts “to broaden the leadership base and overcome the divisions of class and race that exist within many rural communities.”

The first round of grants — five in all — is scheduled to be made in January. Groups planning to apply must notify the collaborative by September 30.

More information may be obtained by calling (214) 946-2456 or visiting the collaborative’s Web site at http://www.nrfc.org.