Working to Stop Domestic Violence Before it Starts

In the past few weeks it seems like violence against women has been getting a lot of press attention. In our news round ups we have been seeing headlines like Domestic Violence can also Include Economic Abuse and Spousal Rape Laws Continue to Evolve. People have discussed the idea that domestic violence has been on the rise due to the economic crisis, and of course the press has been paying close attention to the Rihanna vs. Chris Brown case.

Even with the announcement of the new White House Advisor on Violence Against Women, the press continues to fail reporting on successful and innovative solutions to domestic violence. The Women's Fund of Central Indiana has been working to break the cycle of domestic violence by educating youth.

"I am really proud of a $150,000 grant Women's Fund gave to the Ruth Lilly Health Education Center (RLHEC)... RLHEC created a curriculum to help the students learn to recognize appropriate behaviors and what to do if they are currently in or someday are part of an unhealthy relationship."

Read more about this awesome program at the Women's Fund of Central Indiana's blog.

Keep up the great work!

New Report: Women's Philanthropy on the Rise!

The Women's Funding Network and the Foundation Center released a new report on Monday, June 22 called Accelerating Change for Women and Girls: The Role of Women's Funds. The report discusses trends in philanthropy for and by women. Read a short excerpt from the executive summary below:

The report finds that in recent years funding for women and girls by the broader foundation community has grown at a faster rate than foundation giving on the whole, although as a share of overall foundation giving, it has remained below 7.5 percent for over a decade-and-a-half. Giving by women’s funds in particular has grown even more rapidly.

What this suggests is that funders are becoming increasingly aware of the potential for accelerating social change by investing in women and women-led organizations. Nevertheless, the relatively small share of foundation funding focused on women and girls indicates that this awareness could be further strengthened.

Although the report clearly states that women have been making an impact in and through the world of philanthropy, we all know, our work is far from over. Click here to read the full executive summary and order a hard copy of the full report. Thank you to all of our member funds who participated in the research for the report.

Check out press coverage of the report here, here and here.

News Round Up: Women and Poverty (week ending April 24, 2009)

Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity, a national foundation-led initiative, is excited to collaborate with The Washington Area Women’s Foundation to bring you the latest news and analysis on women and poverty.

Here’s this week’s news:

• The Chicago Sun Times reports on a charity that provides gowns to help low-income girls attend prom.

• A Miami Herald story on local African-American leaders highlights a minister who, herself having once been a homeless mother, has started an organization helping struggling women.

• The Boston Globe tells the story of a breast cancer survivor who received early detection because of a state insurance program for the poor.

• In a story on the troubled lives of Hispanic teenagers in a low-income suburb, the New York Times focuses on a young woman who has tried to reform herself after being a member of a local gang.

• The Pittsburgh Post Gazette profiles a young woman with an Ivy League education who will devote her first year out of college to serving the poor with AmeriCorps.

• Among the questions surrounding a law that could limit health care for illegal immigrants are its effects on screenings for breast and cervical cancer for low-income women, according to the Salt Lake Tribune.

• The St. Petersburg Times runs a story on a clinic that has provided free cancer screening for hundreds of low-income women.

• The Associated Press reports that federal stimulus funds will allow New Mexico’s Women, Infants, and Children supplemental food program to serve 1,600 additional low-income women and their children.

To learn more about Spotlight, visit www.spotlightonpoverty.org. To sign up for our weekly updates with the latest news, opinion and research from around the country, click here.

Posted by Lisa Kays, Washington Area Women's Foundation; crossposted at Ask Us How: The Washington Area Women's Foundation

News Round-Up: Women and Poverty (week ending April 10, 2009)

Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity, a national foundation-led initiative, is excited to collaborate with The Washington Area Women’s Foundation to bring you the latest news and analysis on women and poverty.

Here’s this week’s news:

• In an op-ed in the Atlanta Journal Constitution arguing against new, harsher penalties for speeders, the author cites the example of a single mother losing her license after getting pulled over on the way to work and to drop her kids off at day care.

• As noted in a McClatchy report carried in the Miami Herald, 50 advocacy organizations have come together to ask President Obama to support the hiring and training of women, minorities, and the poor to work on new federal construction projects.

• The Arizona Republic reports that a college scholarship fund for single moms has seen its applications jump from 40 to almost 300 within the past year.

• A South Florida Sun Sentinel article on a new program helping low- and moderate-income residents move into foreclosed housing focuses on a single mother excited to own her first home.

Posted by Lisa Kays, Washington Area Women's Foundation; crossposted at Ask Us How: The Washington Area Women's Foundation

Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity is a foundation-led, non-partisan initiative aimed at ensuring that our political leaders take significant actions to reduce poverty and increase opportunity in the United States. We bring together diverse perspectives from the political, policy, advocacy and foundation communities to engage in an ongoing dialogue focused on finding genuine solutions to the economic hardship confronting millions of Americans.