$115.8 million distributed to communities in fiscal ’23
The Arizona Community Foundation and its donors and partners are pleased to announce grant, scholarship, small business relief, and loan distributions for its fiscal year ending March 31, 2023. A total of $115,797,418 was awarded from funds of the Arizona Community Foundation and its six statewide regional offices in Cochise, Flagstaff, the Gila Valley, Sedona, Yavapai County, and Yuma.
Excluding small business relief grants and impact loans, ACF and its donors distributed nearly $113.5 million across 7,606 grants. Both discretionary and advised grants and scholarships were awarded in five strategic priority areas: Health Innovations, Community Improvement & Development, Environment & Sustainability, Arts & Culture, and Quality Education.
In the area of Quality Education, the Arizona Community Foundation awarded grants and scholarships totaling nearly $27 million during the year, including nearly $5.3 million in college scholarships for the benefit of 1,556 Arizona students. The Arizona Community Foundation is the state’s largest independent provider of college scholarships.
At nearly $34 million, grants in the area of Health Innovations received the largest share of distributions, which were awarded to 2,729 organizations and programs in the areas of health, health care, medical research, and a variety of human services.
Nearly $18.5 million went to 629 programs in the category of Community Improvement & Development, which includes economic development, law, justice, public safety, housing, and neighborhood programs.
Nearly $7.5 million went to 473 organizations and programs in the areas of Environment & Sustainability, including environmental education, renewable resources, conservation, and animal welfare.
Nearly $8.5 million was awarded to 562 Arts & Culture organizations across Arizona, including artists, music, and cultural institutions.
In addition to these grants, 173 nonprofit organizations with dedicated agency endowments managed by the Arizona Community Foundation received their annual distributions, accounting for the remaining $11,078,487 distributed during the year.
ACF also granted over $7.3 million to 610 small businesses and nonprofit organizations impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, through its final year of partnerships with Maricopa County and the City of Phoenix.
ACF is a national leader in impact investing, through which the Arizona Community Foundation and partners USDA Rural Development and LISC invested an additional $2.3 million in below-market loan funding to seven organizations in fiscal year 2023.
These funds work alongside traditional grantmaking accomplishing two important goals: producing measurable social impact; and building resources for future investing. Working together with a variety of capital partners, grantmakers, and nonprofit leaders, ACF’s impact investing program produces capital solutions that are more robust than grants alone.
$29.7 million distributed during the fourth quarter.
During the fourth quarter of the 2023 fiscal year, the Arizona Community Foundation distributed $29,707,962 in grants and scholarships. These dollars were awarded between January 1 and March 31, 2023, in five strategic priority areas: Health Innovations, Community Improvement & Development, Environment & Sustainability, Arts & Culture, and Quality Education.
Health Innovations: A total of $8.9 million was awarded to 717 organizations and programs in the areas of health, health care, medical research and a variety of human services. Among the distributions for the quarter were: $1 million from the Reese Strategic Opportunities Fund to fund the Mayo Clinic Capital Expansion Project: Arizona. Bold. Forward.; $25,000 from the Minnie M. Ross Fund to the University of Arizona Foundation in support of Valley Fever human vaccine development at the College of Medicine; and $12,500 from the Byron and Coyladene McKean Charitable Fund for general support of the Payson Senior Center.
GRANTEE HIGHLIGHT:
University of Arizona Foundation College of Medicine
ACF provided $25,000 in discretionary funding from the Minnie M. Ross Fund to support further development of a human vaccine for Valley Fever at the University of Arizona College of Medicine. The university’s Valley Fever Center for Excellence recently discovered a vaccine that appears both safe and effective in animal models. It is currently in development in partnership with Anivive Lifesciences as a canine vaccine product that may be available to veterinarians early next year. Based on the science behind the veterinary product, there is strong evidence that it very likely would be equally safe and protective in people. The grant from ACF advances this exploration by helping to fund this important work.
Community Improvement & Development: A total of $11.4 million was awarded to 172 organizations and programs in this category, which includes housing, community and neighborhood development, financial literacy training, legal assistance and crime prevention programs. Among the distributions awarded this quarter were: $25,000 from the Ellis Center for Educational Excellence to Jobs for Arizona Graduates to add Career and College Readiness Programs in up to five new schools and communities and $25,000 from the Arizona Coyotes Foundation to Habitat for Humanity Central Arizona’s Access to Home Ownership program.
DONOR HIGHLIGHT:
Arizona Coyotes Foundation
The Arizona Coyotes Foundation provided $25,000 to Habitat for Humanity Central Arizona’s Access to Home Ownership program. The program plays an important role in improving financial security among underserved families by reducing overall housing costs and even stabilizing them over time so families are not exposed to volatile increases in living expenses, allowing Habitat families to build wealth. Habitat purchased 25 Single Family Lots in Alta Vista Ranch. In Spring 2023, the Arizona Coyotes Foundation support includes partnering with a family to begin building on the first six lots that will be available. In addition, volunteers from the Arizona Coyotes Foundation will contribute their time to Habitat for Humanity Central Arizona, nearly doubling the investment through volunteer hours. To learn more about the Arizona Coyotes Foundation visit arizonacoyotes.com/foundation.
Environment & Sustainability: A total of $708,038 was awarded to 85 organizations and programs in the areas of environmental education, renewable resources, conservation, and animal welfare. Among the distributions for the quarter was a $15,000 grant from the David E. Reese Family Fund, in memory of Thomas K. Hall, to Regenerating Sonora so the organization can purchase Leo’s.
Arts & Culture: A total of $2.1 million was awarded to 119 artistic and cultural organizations across Arizona. Among the grants were: $13,333.33 from the W’aki Grace fund to Sedona International Film Festival for their new projection studio; $6,000 from the Painted Vision Foundation to Prescott Frontier Days for the rodeo; and $500 from the Dilly Dally Fund to The Great Arizona Puppet Theater to fund their Imagine This project in collaboration with Kenilworth School.
Quality Education: During this quarter, a total of $5.8 million was awarded in scholarships and education-related grants. Among the grants were: $225,000 from the Lodestar Foundation Fund to the ASU Foundation Center for Constitutional Design at the Sandra Day O’Connor Law School; $90,000 from Peggy’s Arizona Flower Fund to the University of Arizona Foundation to fund the Norton School/fashion program; and $15,000 from the Ernest V. Athos Fund to the Southwest Technical Education District of Yuma (STEDY) for virtual reality technology for medical assisting.
College scholarships accounted for $178,952 awarded for the benefit of 73 students pursuing higher education in the final quarter of fiscal year 2023. College scholarships are awarded to Arizona students to attend a wide range of colleges, universities, and technical schools in Arizona and across the United States.
In addition to these grants, 17 nonprofit organizations with agency endowments managed by the Arizona Community Foundation received their annual distributions during the fourth quarter of ACF’s fiscal year, totaling $851,879 distributed during the quarter.
The $29.7 million awarded in the final quarter of FY23, across all categories, represents 1,485 grants and scholarships. Some grants are awarded at the discretion of the Arizona Community Foundation with input from board committees and diverse community panels, while others are awarded through donor advice. All grants are approved or ratified by ACF’s Donor & Community Engagement Committee whose members include ACF board representatives and other community leaders.