In early June, eleven of the nation’s leading philanthropies announced a plan of action to maximize the potential of the private sector to improve life outcomes boys and young men of color as part of President Obama’s My Brother’s Keeper initiative. The plan was bolstered by $194 million in initial investments in key areas, including programs to enhance school learning environments and reduce the growing populations of young people in the criminal justice system. The investments were intended to build upon existing efforts put forth by foundations to expand access to education, increase access to technology and build pathways to jobs and economic sustainability in underserved communities.
The eleven foundations included the Annie E. Casey Foundation, The Atlantic Philanthropies, Bloomberg Philanthropies, The California Endowment, Ford Foundation, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Kapor Center for Social Impact, Nathan Cummings Foundation, Open Society Foundations, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
“We cannot reach our full moral and economic potential as a country if we do not change the trajectory [for our boys and men of color],” reads the report titled, A Time for Action: Mobilizing Philanthropic Support for Boys and Young Men of Color. “To do so, we need not change our young people so much as change the way we engage and support them.”
A Time For Action details a vision to increase opportunity for boys and young men of color and benefit the entire country. While its focus is on systems, policies and the best practices to improve life outcomes for young men of color, the recommended actions are also intended to help create conditions for children and adults of any ethnicity or gender to thrive.
To help realize their vision and put these recommendation into action, various members of the aforementioned group of foundations will collaborate on several initiatives. The following initial investments are expected to take place over the next three years and mark the first steps in a long-term philanthropic commitment to invest in strategies that positively impact the lives of many young men.
- Making All Communities Places of Opportunity: Over $21 million to create a pool of matching funds to assist local communities in improving life outcomes.
- Creating Safe, Supportive and Engaging Learning Environments in All Schools: $55 million to increase efforts to reduce school suspensions and expulsions, as well as juvenile court referrals.
- Rethinking the Criminal Justice System for All Adults: Over $81 million to promote reforms within the Juvenile and Criminal Justice system.
- Creating New Narratives for Young Men of Color: Over $26 million to promote positive narratives that affirm the value of all young people.
- Investing in Leadership Development: Over $11 million to make the Campaign for Black Male Achievement (CBMA) an independent entity that can serve as a model for how to build capacity
Moving forward, the foundations plan to share more research and recommendations for how government, corporate leaders, nonprofit groups and philanthropic community can work together to secure a stronger, healthier future for boys and men of color. They will also continue pursuing additional partnerships in order to expand their impact. For more information, visit http://boysandmenofcolor.org.
To remain updated about how to get involved with philanthropy and the My Brother’s Keeper community challenge here in Gary, visit www.mbkGary.org, follow us on Twitter @mbkGary and become our fan on Facebook.
