Funding advocacy that changes public policies to benefit children is a cost effective investment.
ADVOCACY AND COLLABORATION
In addition to supporting organizations which provide direct services to children, the Foundation also awards grants to advocacy organizations. These organizations build community awareness, encourage citizen involvement, and advocate for policy and legislative changes which have the potential to impact positively the lives of hundreds, if not thousands, of children.
The Foundation’s advocacy work occurs on national, state, and local levels. Grants to advance advocacy have included: The Pew Charitable Trusts, to support its national collaborative, Partnership for America’s Economic Success: Investing in Children; Voices for Ohio’s Children, to advance its statewide advocacy agenda for children in the areas of health policy and early care and education; groundWork, a program of the Center for Community Solutions, to support evidence-based home visits to at-risk families; Fight Crime: Invest in Kids - Ohio, for its work to engage the law enforcement community as advocates for early care and education and Voices for America’s Children, to support advocacy efforts on at the national level.
The Foundation's commitment to this initiative is also evident from the staff's active participation and leadership on boards, councils, and committees of local, state, and national advocacy organizations.