Womens Foundation Of Minnesota

Programs: Grantmakingin fy18 (apr. 1, 2017 - mar. 31, 2018), the foundation awarded $2. 77 million to create equal opportunity and build pathways to economic security for women and girls who experience the greatest disparities in outcomes, particularly low-income women and girls, women and girls of color, and women and girls from greater minnesota. The foundation's $2. 77 million investment across minnesota in fy18 included:* 201 grants to 129 nonprofit organizations and 20 grants to 20 individuals* 94,504 women and girls servedthe women's foundation of minnesota has the following grantmaking funds: girlsbest (girls building economic success together) fund, innovation fund, mn girls are not for sale, pathways to prosperity (p2p) fund, and the young women's initiative of minnesota (ywi mn). A commitment to communities in greater minnesota and a value of inclusivity are reflected in the demographics of all the funds. Girlsbest (girls building economic success together) fundestablished in 2002, the girlsbest fund awards multi-year grants to programs that build the future economic success of minnesota's girls. Priority is given to programs that include outreach to underserved, underrepresented populations of girls around the state. Grantees are funded in one of four program tracks: academic; entrepreneurial; employment development & high-paying/high-skill careers; and public education & advocacy. After 16 years of girlsbest fund grantmaking, we know girlsbest fund model programming is effective. In june 2017, the women's foundation of minnesota engaged its fifth cohort of girlsbest and awarded $300,000 in girlsbest funding, which includes 19 multi-year grants and two planning grants. The grant period is june 15, 2017 to june 14, 2018. Multi-year grants will be renewed for up to three years, based on an annual grant review and approval of progress towards goals. Planning grants are limited to one year. The fifth multi-year girlsbest cohort extends from 2017-2020. The results of the program evaluation of 19 year 1 girlsbest grantee-partners (may 2018) clearly illustrate the effectiveness of the model: 1. High school graduation: girlsbest participants have a 95% high school graduation rate, compared to 51-88% in minnesota overall, depending on ethnicity. 2. Post-secondary enrollment: girlsbest participants have an 81% post-secondary education enrollment, compared to 44-72% in minnesota overall, depending on ethnicity. 3. Teen pregnancy: 99% of girlsbest participants avoided teen pregnancy. Innovation fundthrough the innovation fund, the foundation provides general operating funding to organizations that drive gender equity in minnesota. Because gender inequity looks different in every community, we use our intersectional equity framework to look at how gender, race, place (geography), and equity (ethnicity, sovereignty, class, age, ability, lgtbq+, immigration status) intersect in order to target the most innovative solutions to build greater gender equity. Priority is given to organizations that ensure women's safe and healthy lives. During our last fiscal year, wfmn awarded a total of $75,000 in general operating grants through our innovation fund to five organizations working to safeguard the rights of women related to reproductive health, political leadership, immigration, and sexual harassment. Mn girls are not for salemn girls are not for sale (mn girls) began as a five year, $5 million campaign of the foundation to galvanize resources to end sex trafficking in minnesota through grantmaking, research, and public education. The success of the first phase of the mn girls campaign (april 1, 2011 - march 31, 2016) and critical impact it had on the work to end sex trafficking led the foundation's board of trustees to extend the campaign to a second phase (april 1, 2016 - march 31, 2019). Phase 2 of mn girls are not for sale launched on april 1, 2016 and is guided by four key goals:1. Reduce demand for sex trafficking. 2. Create prevention strategies to reduce vulnerability to sex trafficking. 3. Increase visibility, outreach, and services to targeted, underserved communities. 4. Build systems and infrastructure to sustain the movement to end sex traffickingthe success of the mn girls campaign and critical impact it has had on the work to end sex trafficking is undeniable. With cross-sector leaders, the women's foundation has invested more than $7 million to date and driven a sea change in our communities' response to this unconscionable crime. In addition, the foundation, together with hennepin and ramsey counties, co-chaired the anti-sex trafficking planning committee for super bowl lii (minneapolis 2018). The foundation was involved with the super bowl planning committee since 2015 to coordinate its plan to address sex trafficking and violence against women and girls during national sporting events. The committee included cross-sector leaders to elevate the issue, increase public awareness, and coordinate the twin cities' response. The committee developed a coordinated cross-sector plan to prevent and disrupt sex trafficking during super bowl lii, and our work serves as a national model approach for other sporting and large events. Much of the model is based on our successful cross-sector mn girls campaign. In fy2018 (april 1, 2017 - march 31, 2018), the foundation awarded $355,000 in funding to mn girls are not for sale grantee-partners focusing on the following priorities: 1. Research and advocacy efforts to increase resources for shelter, housing, and services for victims of sex trafficking and training for law enforcement. 2. Decreasing demand by educating and mobilizing public support and activism through strategies aimed at youth, men and boys, and the broader community to prevent sex trafficking in minnesota.

research, education, and public policystatus of women and girls in minnesotain 2009, the foundation launched the status of women & girls in minnesota (status) research project in partnership with the university of minnesota's humphrey school's center on gender, women, and public policy. Data specific to minnesota women and girls has been gathered, analyzed, and published in economics, safety, health, and leadership. The status research and community input expands the available data on women and girls, provides ongoing trend analysis, informs the foundation's annual grantmaking and policy agenda, identifies new areas where research is needed, and raises public awareness about the needs of women and girls in minnesota. During the year ended march 31, 2018, the foundation made a grant to the university of minnesota humphrey school's center on women, gender, and public policy to analyze and summarize the data, and produce new research for the report, which was published in april 2018. Sex trafficking researchon august 2, 2017, our grantee-partner university of minnesota robert j. Jones urban research and outreach-engagement center (uroc) released mapping the demand: sex buyers in minnesota, new research commissioned and funded by wfmn. Mapping the demand: sex buyers in minnesota, the second in a series of research reports commissioned and funded by the foundation and produced by the university of minnesota, was released in august, 2017. This new research examined the demographics of minnesota's sex buyers, their buying tendencies, and methods of entry into the marketplace. Mapping the demand will be used to influence policy, policing, and service provision and be instrumental in allowing communities to create action plans that understand the market, create points of prevention and protection for youth vulnerable to sex trafficking, and end the demand. The first report in the series, mapping the market for juvenile sex trafficking in minneapolis, was released in september 2014. Sex trafficking and the 2018 super bowl in minneapolis: a research briefthe foundation commissioned the university of minnesota to conduct a research brief focused on the review of available scholarly literature on the connections between sex trafficking and super bowls, and a review of media coverage in the united states related to this topic. Findings revealed that while the super bowl does temporarily increase the number of online ads for commercial sex in the host city, it does not stand out in this sense from other large events, such as trade shows and other sporting events. Sex trafficking is not a special event: it happens everywhere, 365 days a year. We seized the opportunity of super bowl lii opportunity as a platform to increase resources and attention on this issue, and together with cross-sector leaders, create a replicable response to prevent and interrupt sex trafficking during super bowl lii and future major events. State partnershipsthe foundation engages in collaborative funding and partnerships within minnesota's foundation community dedicated to social change grantmaking. Our work has been highlighted multiple times with minnesota council on foundations' programs. We are a member of several funder collaboratives, including solidarity mn, the start early funders coalition for children and minnesota's future, minneminds, and the northside funders group, offering a gendered perspective at those tables. National partnerships* founding member of the national ywi funders collaborative, a learning cohort of eight women's foundations who will share best practices and field learning as ywis unfold in their respective regions. * founding member of prosperity together, a nonpartisan partnership of u. S. Women's foundations who have collectively committed $100 million over the next five years to create pathways to economic security for low-income women and their families in america. * member of partnership for women's prosperity with five other women's funds to share best practices and find solutions to systemic problems facing economically vulnerable women and girls in communities nationwide. * member of women's funding network, a network of more than 100 women's foundations and gender equity funders in 21 countries across 6 continents.

building philanthropy for gender equitya critical part of the foundation's work is helping people understand the power they have to change the world through personal philanthropy. Our donor-partners and donor advisors are encouraged to embrace their philanthropic leadership by participating in donor workshops, sharing community and grantee connections, and engaging in giving opportunities, such as donor advised funds and legacy and planned giving. Additional donor engagement opportunities building philanthropy for gender equity include:* on april 13, 2018, the foundation held its second annual economic opportunity summit to bring together corporate, philanthropic, and individual donor-partners with policymakers, young women leaders, and statewide grantee-partners from all our funds - girlsbest, mn girls are not for sale, pathways to prosperity, innovation, and donor advised funds - for a day of inspiration, learning, and cross-sector networking. * donor-centered grantmaking: ripley memorial foundation, a donor advised fund of the women's foundation of minnesota, awarded $65,800 in grants to seven organizations focused on teen pregnancy prevention in ramsey and hennepin counties. The grant period is january 1, 2018 to december 31, 2018. * engaged a paid wenda weekes moore intern and reatha clark king fellow as we invest in building a pipeline of leadership opportunities for women of color leaders-a value to philanthropy, nonprofits, and communities. * as of 3/31/18, the foundation has 59 donor advised funds, which is an increase of 14 from the previous year. The combined assets of all donor advised funds totals: $6,319,837. * in fy18, we provided numerous opportunities for donor advisors to learn about and engage with local and international funding opportunities for consideration.