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Foundation Updates
JULY 2021
 

GRANT OPPORTUNITY

Preliminary grant requests are due by August 18, 2021 for the second of two grant funding cycles in 2021. Interested applicants can choose from three portfolios: Programs & Services, Strengthening Partner Capacity, and Community Change. This will be the last grant cycle in 2021.


Please go to the Apply for a Grant page on our website for more information about this grant opportunity. If you would like to schedule a call with a Tower Foundation team member to discuss a possible submission click here.

NEW AWARD ANNOUNCEMENTS

In responding to the demands of COVID-19,
the Tower Foundation suspended our traditional ann
ual cycles for 2020. A significant share of that year’s grants allocation was directed to a number of local emergency funds that were able to get dollars out the door quickly and target pressing short-term needs. When the Board of Trustees approved a new slate of grant awards in June 2021, it represented the first new, programmatic grants in about a year and a half.  We are pleased to announce the following grants:

  • ACCESS of WNY for a High Fidelity Wraparound Program, providing mental health services in Lackawanna, New York.
  • Cape Cod Community College Educational Foundation for a mental health awareness initiative and system of supports at the Barnstable County, MA campus.
  • Learning Disabilities Association of Western New York for LEAD716, a program addressing the needs of children exposed to lead in Erie County NY.
  • Massachusetts Audubon Society for a program providing internships for young people with intellectual and learning disabilities at three wildlife centers in Eastern Massachusetts.
  • Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center for Recovery Express, a program connecting people in recovery to needed services in Niagara County, NY.
  • People Against Trafficking Humans, Inc. for making primary and behavioral health services available to clients at their Enrichment Center in Buffalo, NY.
  • Tapestry Charter School for a specialized classroom to meet the needs of diverse learners on its Buffalo, NY campus.

POLICY SERIES PROMOTES MENTAL HEALTH

The Tower Foundation has joined forces
with the Thomas Scattergood Foundation, Peg’s Foundation, and the Patrick P. Lee Foundation to commission the ‘Think Bigger Do Good Policy Series.” The intent of the series is to produce timely and well-researched papers (available to the public at no cost) that address crucial behavioral health issues and promote effective advocacy. Each paper in the series identifies the problem and recommends clear strategies to advance the delivery of mental health and substance use disorder care.

All of these papers are original and thought-provoking.  A recent examination of COVID-19, structural racism, and inequality in the mental health system offers syndemic theory as a framework to understand “how diseases and social conditions form, interact, and cluster to produce worse outcomes for certain populations.”

Links to the three most recent papers are provided here.
  1. COVID-19, Structural Racism, and Mental Health Inequities: Policy Implications for an Emerging Syndemic
     
  2. Policy Recommendations to Address Housing Shortages for People with Severe Mental Illness
     
  3. Systemic, Racial Justice-Informed Solutions to Shift “Care” from the Criminal Legal System to the Mental Health Care System

For more information about the series, visit https://thinkbiggerdogood.org/.

GUEST BLOG: Center for Self Advocacy

This July, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), turns thirty-one. To observe this milestone, we invited these reflections from Samuel Mattle, Executive Director for the Center for Self Advocacy, based in Buffalo, NY.
Read the Blog

PERIODICAL READING
News from our four focus areas

Intellectual Disabilities
Many students with disabilities experienced a backward slide of academic and social skills during the pandemic. 
Learning Disabilities
Virtual schooling, less individual time with teachers.
ARTICLE: The Pandemic Made it Harder to Spot Students With Disabilities. Now Schools Must Catch Up from Education Week.



Mental Health
Discussions about a national infrastructure plan have omitted mental health from the conversation.
ARTICLE:  Ignoring Mental Health Infrastructure will be a Costly Mistake from Stat News.

 
Substance Use Disorders
During the pandemic, the country set records for the most drug overdose deaths in a year, including the most from opioid overdoses.
ARTICLE:  'It's Huge, It's Historic, It's Unheard-of': Drug Overdose Deaths Spike from the New York Times.

DIVERSITY, EQUITY and INCLUSION

In this space, we will share what we learn, what inspires us, and - in the spirit of transparency - what new actions we take in pursuit of a more equitable approach to our role as grantmaker both internally and externally.
 
What we are reading: 
While not new, we wanted to share a resource this month that continues to guide and inspire our team, Power Moves from the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy. This philanthropy-focused resource and assessment has helped us to think about the ways that we build, share, and wield power in service of equity, and to identify the places where we need improvement.
 
What we are doing: 
This month we had our first in-office full-day staff gathering since the start of the pandemic. The day was focused on operationalizing our equity work. Some of the first things we plan to tackle include equity improvements to our 2022 grant guidelines, deeper/more authentic listening to people with lived expertise in our areas of focus, and clarifying our vision and goals for this work in partnership with our Board of Trustees. 
 
What are we doing that is working?
What should we change?

We are always open to hearing your feedback on Grant Advisor.

    CONTACT US

Do you have a question or want to share an idea? We invite you to reach out.
Click here for our staff directory or click here to schedule a call with a Tower Foundation team member.
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Peter & Elizabeth Tower Foundation · 2351 North Forest Rd · Getzville, NY 14068 · USA

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