CY&F Grants 2012-2017

Grants awarded in 2017

ACCEPT Education Collaborative, Natick, MA, $19,200
For a marketing/communications consultation.

Bethany Hill Place, Framingham, MA, $5,000
For a strategic planning consultation.

Birthday Wishes, Newton, MA, $5,000
For a fund development consultation.

Big Brothers Sisters of Central MA/ MetroWest, Worcester, MA $25,000
For a branding consultation.

Doc Wayne Youth Services, Boston, MA, $25,000
For a program evaluation consultation.

Family Promise Metrowest, Natick, MA, $10,000
For a strategic planning consultation.

Hoops and Homework, Framingham, MA, $16,500
For board develop and strategic planning consultations.

Jeff’s Place, Framingham, MA, $20,500
For a board development consultation.

Jewish Family Service of Metrowest, Framingham, MA, $8,500
For a board development consultation.

MetroWest College Planning Center, Framingham, MA, $22,000
For strategic business plan consultation.

Middlesex Partnerships for Youth, Wakefield, MA $5,000
For a strategic planning consultation.

One Can Help, Newton, MA, $4,250
For a fund development consultation.

OUT MetroWest, Framingham, MA, $18,500
For a strategic planning consultation.

Partnerships for a Skilled Workforce, Marlborough, MA, $25,000
For a fund development consultation.

REACH Beyond Domestic Violence, Waltham, MA $7,470
For board and staff social justice training.

SPARK Kindness, Natick, MA, $24,000
For a fund development consultation.

Taly Foundation, Framingham, MA, $20,000
For a brand and marketing consultation.

The Discovery Museums, Acton, MA, $4,000
For staff training.

Thrive Support and Advocacy, Marlborough, MA, $10,950
For a strategic planning consultation.

Wildflower, Inc., Lexington, MA, $10,950
For fund development support

Wayside Youth & Family Support Network, Framingham, MA, $9,665
For staff development.

CY&F Invitation & Discretionary Grants:
Boys and Girls Clubs of MetroWest, Marlborough, MA $100,000
For general support.

John Andrew Mazie Memorial Foundation, Worcester, MA, $25,000
For general support.

Framingham Police Department, Framingham, MA $25,000
To support a community-wide opioid prevention initiative.

Lovelane Special Needs Horseback Riding Program, Lincoln, MA, $18,200
To strategize and pilot a new way of managing herd transition.

MetroWest Legal Services, Framingham, MA, $25,000
To provide legal representation to undocumented immigrant youth in Framingham schools.

Grants awarded in 2016

Big Brothers Sisters of Central MA/ MetroWest, Worcester, MA $25,000
For a series of fundraising consultations and enhancements.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of CM/MW, Worcester, MA, $25,000
For a series of fundraising consultations/enhancements.

Birthday Wishes, Inc., Newton, MA, $4,750
To build a Volunteer Party Coordinator portal on the website.

The Discovery Museums, Acton, MA, $6,200
For strategic planning related to the new Discovery Woods outdoor play space.

Doc Wayne Youth Services, Inc., Boston, MA, $25,000
For development support.

The Learning Center for the Deaf, Framingham, MA, $10,000
For a fundraising/board training consultation.

OUT MetroWest, Framingham, MA, $10,000
For a board development consultation.

Resiliency for Life, Framingham, MA, $10,000
For a staff training consultation.

SPARK Kindness, Natick, MA, $20,600
For a two-phase strategic planning consultation.

Wayside Youth & Family Support Network, Framingham, MA, $5,000
For a staff development project.

Communities for Restorative Justice, Concord MA, $22,500
For a marketing consultation.

Employment Options, Marlborough, MA, $15,000
For a consultation to develop a computer training program for young adult clients.

Massachusetts Audubon Society/Drumlin Farm, Lincoln, MA, $19,975
An evaluation consultation to develop assessment instruments for three programs and to train staff in program evaluation best practices.

One Can Help, Newton, MA. $5,870
For a social media consultation.

Taly Foundation, Framingham, MA $13,100
For a strategic planning consultation.

Wildflower Camp Foundation, Wellesley, MA $25,000
For communications, rebranding and website consultations.

2016 CY&F Invitation Grants

John Andrew Mazie Memorial Foundation, Framingham, MA, $20,000
General support during a time of transition.

Boys & Girls Clubs of MetroWest, Marlborough, MA $100,000
A combination grant to support professional development and other projects.

Grants awarded in 2015

Bethany Hill School, Framingham, MA, $5,000
To produce a new organizational video as part of the agency’s larger strategic re-branding effort.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Mass/MetroWest, Worcester, MA $16,400
To purchase new customer relationship management software and ancillary hardware.

Danny’s Place Youth Services, Acton, MA, $14,600
To fund a communications and marketing consultation.

Discovery Museums, Acton MA, $22,000
To fund the redesign and content redevelopment of the Museums’ website, with a focus on accessibility.

Doc Wayne Youth Services, Boston, MA, $24,000
To fund a development consultation.

Employment Options, Marlborough, MA, $8,000
To fund a communications consultation geared toward the agency’s hard-to-reach young adult population.

First Connections, a program of JRI, Acton, MA, $19,820
To fund a consultation to streamline, enhance and pilot a program evaluation process.

Framingham State University Foundation/MetroWest College Planning Center, Framingham, MA $25,000
In partnership with MassBay Community College, to fund the development of strategic and marketing plans for the new MetroWest College Planning Center in Framingham and to evaluate the program after one year.

Jeff’s Place Children’s Bereavement Center, Framingham, MA, $21,000
To fund a branding and communications consultation.

Jewish Family Service of MetroWest, Framingham, MA, $9,000
To develop and install a customer relationship management database to support new performance management strategies for the fundraising department.

Massachusetts Audubon/Drumlin Farm, Lincoln, MA, $13,675
To develop a business plan to replicate and expand after-school programming in high-need communities and to pilot a program in Hudson, MA.

Minute Man Arc, Concord, MA, $5,000
To fund a strategic planning consultation.

Nature Connection, Concord, MA, $23,900
To fund a major gifts program consultation.

Framingham Police Department, Framingham, MA, $25,200
To train staff to work more effectively with teens by sending 10 patrol sergeants to the highly-regarded Policing the Teen Brain training.

One Can Help, Newton, MA, $6,600
To fund an outcomes measurement consultation.

OUT MetroWest, Framingham, MA, $15,000
To fund a fundraising consultation.

Performing Arts Center of MetroWest, Framingham, MA, $25,000
To fund a marketing consultation.

2015 CY&F Invitation Grants

Boys and Girls Clubs of MetroWest, Marlborough, MA, $60,000
To fund a series of professional development trainings for staff, and other projects.

Friends of Resiliency for Life, Framingham, MA, $25,000
To help pilot the expansion of the RFL program into Framingham middle schools.

John Andrew Mazie Memorial Foundation, Wayland, MA, $45,000 over three years
In support of an executive transition.

Lovelane Special Needs Horseback Riding Program, Lincoln, MA, $20,000
To support a major herd planning and re-building effort.

2015 CY&F Program Small Capital Grants
The following grant partners received grants of up to $5,000 to purchase new equipment, replace aging furnishings or complete a needed repair.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central MA/MetroWest, Boys & Girls Club of Assabet Valley, Boys and Girls Clubs of Metrowest, Communities for Restorative Justice, Employment Options, Inc., First Connections/JRI, Jeff’s Place Children’s Bereavement Center, Kids Connect, Inc., Lovelane Special Needs Horseback Riding Program, Framingham State U/MetroWest College Planning Center, Natick Community Organic Farm, The Nature Connection, OUT MetroWest, REACH Beyond Domestic Violence, The Food Project, and Wayside Youth & Family Support Network/TEMPO Young Adult Resource Center.

Grants awarded in 2014

After School Matters

Appalachian Mountain Club, Boston, MA, $25,000
To develop a strategic business plan for the new Outdoors Rx program recently piloted in Framingham and Waltham designed to get families outdoors and enjoying nature. Learn more…

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central MA/MW, Worcester, MA, $25,000
For temporary development support for this mentoring agency.

Communities for Restorative Justice, Concord, MA $14,500
For a strategic planning consultation.

Danforth Art, Framingham, MA, $24,500
For a series of planning and feasibility studies in preparation for the Museum’s move to a new facility and to advance the museum’s engagement with children, youth and families.

Jeff’s Place, Framingham, MA, $25,000
For development support.

Nature Connection, Concord, MA, $25,000
For a series of capacity-building enhancements including a website update, new IT systems and the development of a social media plan for this agency which brings therapeutic nature-based programs to children and seniors with limited access to the natural world.

One Can Help, Inc., Newton, MA, $6,000
For a communications consultation for this agency which supports court-involved youth.

Start Strong: Early Learning

Infant and Toddler Children’s Center, Acton, MA $10,000
To create and launch an alumni and community outreach program designed to strengthen the agency’s scholarship program for low-income families, designed, in part, to strengthen supports for young children impacted by domestic abuse.

REACH Beyond Domestic Violence, Waltham, MA $17,480
To fund a two-part project that includes development and strategic planning consultations,

The Learning Center for the Deaf, Framingham, MA $20,000
To fund an organizational marketing and rebranding initiative designed, in part, to strengthen early childhood programs.

Wayside Youth and Family Support Network, Framingham, MA $18,000
To enable staff to attend the Parenting Journey facilitators training and to research and develop a support system for grandparents raising grandchildren.

Framingham Public Library/ECAF, Framingham, MA, $15,000
To renovate space in the Framingham Children’s Library to accommodate the administrative and programming needs of the Early Childhood Alliance of Framingham.

Transitional Youth

Employment Options, Inc., Marlborough, MA $20,000
To fund two consultations to improve recruitment and program assessment for the Cooking Up a Career program.

MassBay Community College, Framingham, MA $25,000
To fund a needs assessment and market study to determine best approaches for developing a “Youth in Transition” college success model and establishing a “Gateway to College” program.

Partnerships for a Skilled Workforce, Inc., Marlborough, MA $25,000
For a marketing and communications consultation to help build awareness of the new YouthWorkingForward.org website, designed to support at-risk youth and young adults in their search for employment.

Invitation Program Grants

Assabet Valley Collaborative/Family Success Partnership, Marlborough, MA, $24,750
For a data audit, wraparound case law research study, and marketing consultation for this wraparound program that supports children with borderline mental health issues.

Boys and Girls Clubs of MetroWest, Marlborough, MA, $53,825
To upgrade technology at the Marlborough administrative headquarters and conduct a study on the future of the Computer Labs at each club location. Learn more…

Discovery Museums, Acton, MA, $150,000
Over three-years, to develop, design and construct the Brain Building Zone exhibit and gallery, geared to children and families age 0-5. Learn more.

Boys & Girls Club of Assabet Valley, Maynard, MA $20,000
For a facilities study.

Grants awarded in June 2013

Youth & the Environment: Building Skills, Leadership & Self-Esteem by Connecting Youth to the Outdoors

Christa McAuliffe Regional Public Charter School, Framingham, MA $22,200
To fund a series of professional development consultations and activities to improve staff facilitation skills around expeditionary learning.

Land’s Sake, Inc., Weston, MA, $15,000
To support the design, development and implementation of a CRM system to improve relationship management, resource development, and communications with stakeholders.

Mass. Audubon/Drumlin Farm, Lincoln, MA, $23,500
For a series of capacity-building activities designed to enhance Drumlin Farm’s ability to serve young people with special needs.

MetroWest YMCA, Framingham, MA $19,350
To fund a strategic plan processing and fund development plan for High Flight, an outdoor adventure-based program for at-risk teens.

The Nature Connection, Concord, MA, $11,000
To support a fund development consultation for this agency which brings educational and therapeutic nature-based programs to children (and adults) with limited access to the natural world.

Youth & the Arts: Building Skills & Self-Esteem by Encouraging Creative Expression & Independent Thinking

Danforth Art, Framingham, MA $25,000
In support of a project to strengthen database capacity and program evaluation in order to improve program delivery, staff performance, and outreach, especially to at-risk youth and family populations.

Performing Arts Center of MetroWest, Framingham, MA $12,000
To support a grantwriting consultation.

Other CY&F Grants

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central MA/MetroWest, Worcester, MA $19,000
To fund a strategic planning process.

Jeff’s Place, Framingham, MA $20,000
To engage a New Sector Alliance AmeriCorps volunteer to help the agency with program research and planning.

Grants awarded in December 2012

After School Matters: Supporting At-Risk Youth During Out-of-School Time
Studies show that youth involved in after-school programming do better than their non-participating peers leading to higher school attendance and graduation rates, better academic performance, fewer risky behaviors (including criminal involvement), and overall improvements in personal relationships, social skills and self-esteem. Experts also believe the most impactful programs feature an extended time commitment and an opportunity for children and adult staff to develop strong bonds.

For this track, the Foundation sought programs designed to provide a safe haven and enriching environment for low-income children between Kindergarten and Grade 12 after school or during the summer. Programs were expected to address the social skills and positive self-esteem children need to succeed now and in the future and could focus on academic enrichment and supports; leadership development, healthy life style choices; civic responsibility, and career exploration, or a combination of all.

Autism Alliance of MetroWest, Natick, MA/$10,300
To fund staff training through the Kids Included Together program that will enable AA staff to develop a Train the Trainer curriculum for area after-school programs which will help program staff adapt their activities to support children with autism spectrum disorders.

Boys & Girls Club of Assabet Valley, Maynard, MA/$23,200
A combination grant that includes staff training, community outreach and a pilot program aimed in increasing understanding of and services to special needs children participating in the Beyond the Bell after-school program.

Discovery Museums, Acton, MA/$12,710
To pilot a multi-session, after-school program with Maynard’s Excel program, focusing on nature and the outdoors, the first step in the agency’s long-term strategy to become an outdoor nature center.

The Food Project, Lincoln, MA/$25,000
For a consultation designed to enhance the Youth Programs’ leadership model and curriculum, with a focus on the practice of “adaptive leadership.”

Friends of Resiliency for Life, Framingham, MA/$5,175
To fund a strategic planning consultation.

John Andrew Mazie Memorial Foundation, Wayland, MA/$12,000
To support a fund development consultation.

Let’s Get Ready, Boston, MA/$5,000
To fund two sessions of the LGR program at Framingham High School as local agency staff builds its funding base.

Metrowest YMCA, Framingham, MA, $7,580
To help purchase the Seer Analytics BaseMetrics survey analysis tool to better evaluate program and activities at the Framingham and Hopkinton locations.

Rediscovery/JRI, Waltham, MA/$10,000
To expand Rediscovery’s Financial Literacy Program to three local communities and pilot a “train the trainer” program delivery model while seeking potential sponsors in MetroWest.

United Way of Tri-County, Framingham, MA/$6,000
To create an Emerging Leaders affinity group of young, successful professionals who will support the UWTC’s Youth Venture program as mentors, fundraisers and financial contributors.

Transitional Youth: Pathways to Career or Secondary Education
In Massachusetts, the cohort of young people age 16-24 who are both out-of-school and out-of-work is on the rise. Largely ignored, this population of disengaged, idle young people is on a path to perpetual unemployment, underemployment, criminal behavior and poverty. Many have no parental supports and many are young parents themselves. As the job market tightens, these unprepared young adults face a bleak future.

For this track, we wanted to support capacity building projects for programs that seek out and support this vulnerable population with programming that provides a pathway to productive employment and skill development and/or secondary education while providing the emotional guidance and support they need to stay on track. Programs could provide career exploration, job skills development and placement, or access to high quality education, family supports, mentoring and mental health services.

The Bridge of Central Massachusetts, Worcester, MA/$20,000
In partnership with Employment Options, to pilot a Supported Education and Employment Program for 20 young adults with mental health challenges.

Partnership for a Skilled Workforce, Marlborough, MA/$25,000
To fund a consultation to consider creation of an online workforce development information center for young adults who are unable to access the agency’s services in-person.

Wayside Youth & Family Support Network, Framingham, MA/$17,300
To fund a series of enhancements to the Tempo Young Adult Resource Center’s Green House Graphics pilot program. Green House Graphics is an art-making micro enterprise that will provide paid employment training for young adults.

Discretionary Funding

One Can Help, Newton, MA/$4,500
Start-up support to enable the executive director to focus on fundraising activities for this agency which supports court-involved youth in Middlesex Court.

Grants awarded in June 2012

Start Strong: Supporting Parents of Young Children

Employment Options, Marlborough, MA/$7,500
To support development of a Young Adult Parent Network to enhance the community’s awareness of the needs and challenges of young parents coping with mental health issues while raising families of their own.

Framingham Public Schools/21^st Century After School Program, Framingham, MA/$23,000
For a consultation to survey parents of program participants and then develop and pilot strategies to increase family involvement in the 21st Century Afterschool program as a means to enhance students’ academic progress.

Framingham Public Schools/Early Childhood Alliance of Framingham, Framingham, MA/$6,200
For a series of capacity building trainings to strengthen the skills of the Alliance’s Leadership Council and staff as they work to strengthen early learning opportunities and awareness in Framingham.

Jewish Family & Children Services, Waltham, MA/$15,000
For a consultation to refine and strengthen the evaluation tool used for the Visiting Moms Program, which provides free weekly support visits to new mothers.

South Middlesex Opportunity Council, Inc., Framingham, MA/$20,000
For a consultation to evaluate the needs of young parents participating in the Joan Brack Adult Learning Center’s ESL, GED, and Young Parent programs as a means of improving program retention and completion.

United Way of Tri-County, Framingham, MA/$7,950
A planning grant to engage community stakeholders and develop business and fund development plans prior to the launch of Imagination Library, an early literacy program for Framingham families with children age 0-5.

Grant Track:
Teen Angst & Beyond: Coping with Depression and Risky Behaviors

Communities for Restorative Justice, Concord, MA/$10,000
For an IT consultation and computer hardware and software upgrades to support financial and case management, outreach and communications as the agency transitions from its fiscal agent to a self-sufficient nonprofit.

Eliot Community Human Services, Inc., Lexington, MA/$6,920
Funds for staff training and repairs to the ropes course at the agency’s New River Academy in order to reactivate an important component of the residential treatment center’s Adventure-Based Counseling Program.

Jeff’s Place, Framingham, MA/$13,375
For a strategic planning process and other capacity building activities designed to stabilize this new agency which provides support and counseling to children coping with the loss of a family member or friend.

REACH Beyond Domestic Violence, Inc., Waltham, MA/$15,000
For a consultation to develop and pilot an evaluation tool for the Peers Against Violence classroom program that measures changes in students’ knowledge, attitudes, and behavioral intentions around dating violence and healthy relationships. The tool will be piloted at Wayland High School.

Invitation Initiative

For this pilot program, we invited agencies we knew well to identify the most pressing capacity building needs. Organizations articulated their priorities and worked with Foundation staff to develop their funding request.

Assabet Valley Collaborative, Marlborough, MA/$45,000
For a series of capacity building projects designed to strengthen and sustain the Family Success Partnership, which serves children with borderline mental health issues and their families. Funds will support a cost avoidance study, ongoing advocacy and professional development.

Boys and Girls Clubs of MetroWest, Marlborough, MA/$130,000 over two years
For a series of capacity building projects designed to strengthen and sustain the organization, including a capital/operating support campaign consultation and website redesign.