We’re kicking off 2018 with some exciting news! Our grantmaking team is now set up to enhance our collaboration and impact in the community.

To better align our board directed and community responsive grantmaking, we’ve refined our program staff’s specific areas of focus:

• Leadership Development
• Youth & Social Services
• Education
• Neighborhood Revitalization & Engagement
• Economic & Workforce Development
• Arts & Culture
• Environment & Health

The enhancements to our grantmaking team include a few staff updates as well. Dale Anglin officially joined the foundation in October as Program Director for Youth & Social Services, while Nelson Beckford begins today as Program Director for Neighborhood Revitalization & Engagement. In addition to the new hires, the foundation also announced the promotion of Diane Kaszei, who has been with the foundation since 1990, to Director, Grants Management.

Meet the entire grantmaking team here.

India Pierce Lee, Senior Vice President, Program

How will these changes impact our grantmaking and the grant application process? We sat down with Senior Vice President, Program, India Pierce Lee to answer a few questions:

Why did the foundation make these changes?

These changes reflect our desire to better integrate and align our grantmaking—both community responsive grants (where we respond directly to community requests and needs) and board directed grantmaking (where our board and staff direct grants). Doing so will help us better understand the outcomes of all grantmaking and measure the impact grants to organizations are having in the community.

Refining our grantmaking team structure not only reflects how the needs in Greater Cleveland have evolved over time, but it also better leverages the strengths of our program directors and officers to apply their expertise with community partners and our donors to have an even greater impact.

What do these changes mean for my grant?

Community responsive grants will be assigned to the program officer based in specific area of focus and will also be reviewed with the associated program director. This will not affect the timing of grants or delay any grant decisions in the normal process. It simply means that you will continue to work with experts in the field.

Does this change the way we apply for grants and/or the entire grant application process?

The application process will be the same. During 2018, we are reviewing our application process and may make changes to streamline the process as much as possible. We are open to feedback from our grantees on how this is working for you and on any improvements that we can make.

Are “environment & health” new priorities for the foundation?

We have always funded organizations and projects in the fields of environment and health. With the alignment of our board directed and community responsive grantmaking, you will see that our staff (who have always managed grants in these areas) are now even more fully dedicated to these important areas of focus.

What happened to your community-responsive grantmaking?

It’s still here! We will continue our community responsive grantmaking.

What do you mean by “leadership development”?

We have always made leadership development a priority here at the foundation. We work hard to attract and retain talented people to live and work in Greater Cleveland and especially to contribute to the civic sector. The foundation supports a multi-generational approach to leadership development through a number of programs, including the Saint Martin De Porres High School Corporate Work Study Program, our Summer Internship Program, the Cleveland Foundation Public Service Fellowship, National Urban Fellows, American Marshall Memorial Fellowship, and Encore Cleveland. We also support leadership development through our scholarships.

Who should I contact with questions?

For questions regarding the changes, contact me or Lillian Kuri.