Back in the summer of 2008, literally a month after I arrived in Syracuse to join the Community Foundation, I met with leaders of Say Yes to Education and the Syracuse City School District (SCSD). They presented the outlines of an emerging partnership to expand college access for SCSD students in collaboration with local partners, including the City of Syracuse,
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On December 30, 1960, Syracuse residents Gil and Letty Murray created the first donor-advised fund at the Central New York Community Foundation – the H. Gillis and Letty M. Murray Fund – using the cash balance of a paid-up life insurance policy. The Community Foundation is 93 years old this year and for 60 of those years, we have been
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Whether in Minneapolis, Louisville, New York City, Brunswick, GA or elsewhere – what we are witnessing at the moment are just the latest examples of outright racial oppression that goes back generations. In Syracuse, one need look no further than the dreadful distinction that our city holds in having the highest rates of concentrated poverty for African American and Latinx
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The coronavirus pandemic is not only a public health crisis but also a threat to the economic stability of many of our friends and neighbors in Central New York. While it is hard to be reflective in the middle of such uncertainty – this is nevertheless a good time to ask: What is the role of philanthropy during a crisis?
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While we are navigating one of the most challenging moments in recent history, we must not forget that we are also in the midst of a major civic event that will have a significant impact on Central New York’s next decade – the 2020 Census. Ensuring an accurate and complete census is critical to our community. Why is it so important?
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The Community Foundation took the unusual step last week of endorsing legislation put forth by the Syracuse Common Council. The proposed ordinance would make the presence of lead a housing code violation during interior housing inspections of one- and two-unit rental properties. Prior to this, homes could only be cited for visible chipping or peeling paint. This is our first-ever
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As I walked through Hanover Square in downtown Syracuse recently on my way between appointments, I was surprised to find a plaque memorializing an 1831 visit to Syracuse by Alexis de Tocqueville during his tour of the United States and Canada. De Tocqueville was a French aristocrat, government official, social reformer and political theorist visiting our country to do a
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The Community Foundation is committed to using data to measure where we are and where we want to go. We foster opportunities for those that use local population data, such as staff members within nonprofits, school districts and governments, to share what they know and what they have learned about trends and issues both with each other and with the
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We launched our LeadSafeCNY initiative this fall and have been really happy with the momentum building among community partners towards addressing the lead poisoning crisis in Syracuse. The launch of this initiative is the culmination of 5 years of our work to help convene the Green and Healthy Homes Initiative Greater Syracuse. There has been noteworthy coverage on Syracuse.com/The Post-Standard
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Earlier this year, we encouraged local nonprofits to have their voices heard through the Nonprofit Finance Fund’s 2018 State of the Nonprofit Sector Survey. NFF released the results of the survey last week, reflecting the perspectives of more than 3,400 participants nationwide representing nonprofits of all shapes and sizes. Here are some of the topline themes that came from the survey
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