Application Process Opens to Provide Community-Based Youth Development Services

Los Angeles, March 19, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- California Community Foundation - A new grant opportunity to support and expand local youth development services and programs centered on healing, learning and opportunity in high-need areas across Los Angeles County opened today. This collaboration will expand opportunities and resources for programs that keep youth out of the criminal justice system and help those in the system successfully transition back into the community.

This funding opportunity signals an innovative partnership between the California Community Foundation, Liberty Hill Foundation and the Los Angeles County Department of Probation. The grant program is made possible through funding from the Juvenile Justice Crime Prevention Act (JJCPA).

Grantees will receive funding for critical work advancing education, mental health, cultural and workforce programs. The partnership is looking at the full spectrum of service provision—a whole child approach—while recognizing nonprofits can also benefit from training and support that will build their own organizational effectiveness. All grantees of this program will receive capacity building support, including coaching and cohort-based training.

“We are building a bridge between the nonprofits and the County,” said President and CEO of the California Community Foundation, Antonia Hernández. “Foundations have long been a driver of resources for innovative, evidence-based programs, but when it’s time to go to scale these programs benefit from local government funding.”

An effective community-based model focused on prevention and treatment not only decreases the number of youth incarcerated, but also improves chances for more youth to earn their high school diplomas, become gainfully employed, and decrease the likelihood of being incarcerated as an adult.

“Our youth need support and encouragement to fulfill their potential. We know that the solutions to support youth who have experienced trauma and other challenging circumstances have always been grown and nurtured in communities,” said Liberty Hill President & CEO Shane Murphy Goldsmith. “This program invests in prevention rather than punishment and will build the capacity of community organizations to do the work they do best, drawing on the strengths young people already possess.”

For more information on the Request for Proposal, including eligibility requirements and frequently asked questions, and to apply please visit this link. Informational webinars will also take place on March 26th and April 3rd, click here for more information.

Applicants must register an online account and provide program service area information by April 12, 2019. Complete application responses are requested by August 30, 2019.