Alliance for a Better Community
Alliance for a Better Community (ABC) is a Los Angeles, California-based public charity that advances social, economic, and racial equity and justice for the Latina/o community and the Los Angeles region through power building and policy advocacy. Its grantmaking includes support for community organizations and crisis response, including through its Fuerza Fund initiative.
Alliance for a Better Community at a glance
In short: Alliance for a Better Community gave $483K across 21 grants in 2025 (avg $23K), mostly in California. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $482,500
- +85.6% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 21
- +90.9% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $22,976
- -2.8% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $10,000
- Total assets
- $2,610,108
- +29.2% vs 2024
- Primary geography
- California (98% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990, 2025; updated September 2026.
How to apply to Alliance for a Better Community
- Contact
Mailing address: 201 S Figueroa Street 200, Los Angeles, CA 90012
Phone: (213) 267-2144
Website: https://afabc.org
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Open Grants
1 open opportunity from Alliance for a Better Community
Who Alliance for a Better Community funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (Chirla) ($175K). Together the top 10 received $418K.
Grant Size Distribution
47 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 38 grants of 47 (81%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
ABC’s stated work serves the Los Angeles region. Fuerza Fund’s stated geographic scope is the Los Angeles region and California. In filing-year 2025, 98% of grant dollars went to recipients in California and 2% to recipients in Massachusetts.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 21 itemized grants.
Cities
How Alliance for a Better Community gives
- 29% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (+10%). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990 filings (2025). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.
Giving History
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2021 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $25K (2021) to $483K (2025). In 2025 it made 21 grants totaling $483K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (Chirla) Los Angeles, CA | Wildfire disaster relief payments to those most vulnerable to the effects of natural disasters and crises. | $175,000 |
| Community Partners Los Angeles, CA | Consortium for multilingual learner success advisory committee member (parent organization network) | $50,000 |
| Proyecto Pastoral Los Angeles, CA | Consortium for Multilingual Learner Success Advisory Committee Member | $50,000 |
| Californians Together Long Beach, CA | Consortium for Multilingual Learner Success State Co-Lead | $40,000 |
| Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA | Produce 2024-2025 Lcap Study Report; Disseminate Analysis | $20,000 |
| Parent Engagement Academy (Pea) Whittier, CA | Consortium for Multilingual Learner Success Advisory Committee Member | $20,000 |
| Community Development Technologies Center Los Angeles, CA | Sela votes november 2024 general elections integrated voter engagement | $15,000 |
| Asian Youth Center (AYC) San Gabriel, CA | Consortium for multilingual success - narrative change project partner committee member sub-grant | $10,000 |
| Carecen Los Angeles, CA | Consortium for Multilingual Learner Success Network Member | $10,000 |
| City Year Boston, MA | Consortium for Multilingual Learner Success Network Member | $10,000 |
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Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Net Investment Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $2,610,108 | $3,398,326 | $3,272,322 | $482,500 | 21 | $24,165 |
| 2024 | $2,020,272 | $2,292,063 | $2,253,401 | $260,000 | 11 | $-2,186 |
| 2023 | $1,246,532 | $1,788,902 | $1,191,649 | $77,500 | 3 | $87 |
| 2022 | $777,518 | $1,143,474 | $1,286,688 | $439,000 | 11 | $75 |
| 2021 | $865,042 | $1,718,430 | $1,599,354 | $25,000 | 1 | $58 |
| 2020 | $677,615 | $735,610 | $645,981 | — | — | $29 |
| 2019 | $515,000 | $787,816 | $555,374 | — | — | — |
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
ABC’s stated mission is to advance social, economic, and racial equity and justice for the Latina/o community and the Los Angeles region through power building and policy advocacy. Its website identifies education, civic engagement, health, and economic prosperity as areas of focus.
ABC’s 2024 filing describes work on multilingual learner success, college access, voter outreach, digital equity, environmental justice, and research and community engagement. It describes Fuerza Fund as supporting families facing urgent crises and providing recovery and longer-term organizational support. The filing says the fund focused in FY2024–25 on recovery after the Los Angeles wildfires, prioritizing essential workers and uniquely impacted households.
Among 2025 grantees, Proyecto Pastoral describes its mission as empowering Boyle Heights’ economically and politically disenfranchised community through grassroots work in education, leadership, and service. Californians Together says it seeks an education system that prepares every child for college, career, and civic participation. Community Development Technologies Center describes work to strengthen residents, businesses, and community-serving institutions in low-income areas of Greater Los Angeles. These are the grantees’ own stated missions, not ABC’s.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, ABC reported 21 grants totaling $482,500. Grants ranged from $1,500 to $175,000, with a median of $10,000.
The largest reported grants included $175,000 to the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA) for wildfire disaster relief payments to people most vulnerable to natural disasters and crises; $50,000 each to Community Partners and Proyecto Pastoral for roles in the Consortium for Multilingual Learner Success; and $40,000 to Californians Together as the consortium’s state co-lead. Other grants included $20,000 to Loyola Marymount University for a 2024–25 LCAP study report and dissemination, $20,000 to Parent Engagement Academy for consortium advisory committee membership, and $15,000 to Community Development Technologies Center for integrated voter engagement in the November 2024 general elections.
ABC’s website describes Fuerza Fund as providing flexible, no-strings-attached funding to Latina/o-led and serving organizations. Its filing says ABC creates agreements with subgrantees specifying the grant amount, responsibilities, tasks, and reporting requirements, including program updates and final reports.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Vanessa Aramayo as CEO/President. Officers and directors listed on that filing are Audrey Dow, chairman; Rosie Arroyo and Juan de la Cruz, vice chairs; Michael Mendez, secretary; Refugio Lopez, treasurer; and directors Veronica Carrizales, Mercedes Cruz, Robert M Sainz, and Lizette Carbajal.
Alliance for a Better Community is led by Vanessa Aramayo, CEO & President since 2024 (on filings since 2019); 1 of 10 officers listed in 2025 is compensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Vanessa Aramayo
CEO & President
Executive Director → CEO & President, 2024
On filings since 2019
40 hrs/week
$122K (2019) → $207K (2025)
Audrey Dow
Chairman
Director → Vice Chair, 2022
Vice Chair → Chairman, 2023
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Mercedes Cruz
Director
On filings since 2019
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Robert M. Sainz
Director
Vice Chair → Chairman, 2022
Chairman → Director, 2023
On filings since 2019
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Veronica Carrizales
Director
On filings since 2023
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Lizette Carbajal
Director
On filings since 2024
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Refugio Lopez
Treasurer
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Rosie Arroyo
Vice Chair
Director → Vice Chair, 2022
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Michael Mendez
Secretary
Director → Secretary, 2023
On filings since 2021
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Juan De La Cruz
Vice Chair
Director → Vice Chair, 2023
On filings since 2022
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (10)
- Former: Feliza Ortiz-Licon (2019–2022) — Secretary
- Former: Helen Torres (2019–2022) — Director
- Former: Angela Sanbrano (2019–2021) — Director
- Former: Fernando Guerra (2019–2021) — Director
- Former: Fernando Torres-Gil (2019–2021) — Secretary
- Former: Michele Siqueiros (2020–2021) — Chairman
- Former: Darlene P Robles (2019) — Director
- Former: Ed Avila (2019) — Director
- Former: Nadia Funn (2019) — Chairman
- Former: Thomas A Saenz (2019) — Director
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Compensation Overview
From 2025 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $207K, to Vanessa Aramayo (CEO/ President).
Frequently asked questions about Alliance for a Better Community
How much does Alliance for a Better Community give each year?
Alliance for a Better Community gave $483K across 21 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. In 2024 it gave $260K across 11 grants.
What is Alliance for a Better Community's typical grant size?
Alliance for a Better Community's median grant in 2025 was $10,000, and its average grant was $22,976, across 21 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990.
Where does Alliance for a Better Community give grants?
Alliance for a Better Community gives mostly in California: 98% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990 went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Los Angeles, CA (14 grants).
Does Alliance for a Better Community give general operating support?
Yes: 19% of Alliance for a Better Community's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (4 of 21) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990. Recurring purposes include "Consortium for Multilingual Learner Success Network Member" (3 grants).
Who are Alliance for a Better Community's largest grantees?
Alliance for a Better Community's largest 2025 grantees include Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (Chirla) ($175,000), Community Partners ($57,500 across 3 grants) and Proyecto Pastoral ($50,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. Together they received 59% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Alliance for a Better Community?
Alliance for a Better Community reported $2.6M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $3.4M.
What does Alliance for a Better Community fund?
ABC’s stated mission is to advance social, economic, and racial equity and justice for the Latina/o community and the Los Angeles region through power building and policy advocacy. Its website identifies education, civic engagement, health, and economic prosperity as areas of focus. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Alliance for a Better Community?
Alliance for a Better Community has no public application process in the sources Grantable reviewed. Check afabc.org for current guidelines, or contact the foundation directly before submitting a request.
What is Alliance for a Better Community's EIN?
Alliance for a Better Community's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 31-1760082. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(6)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 14, 2024)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 15, 2025)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 16, 2022)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS March 14, 2024)
- Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 15, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2019–2024
Live grants for the work Alliance for a Better Community funds
Community Improvement & Capacity Building Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in Alliance for a Better Community's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Alliance for a Better Community funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 18, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/alliance-for-a-better-community-morg_59f4c89f6088477290c8cae3ed14de22
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_311760082_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Alliance for a Better Community funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/alliance-for-a-better-community-morg_59f4c89f6088477290c8cae3ed14de22},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-18. Data licensed CC BY 4.0}
}The figures on this page are open data under CC BY 4.0: reuse them with credit to Grantable and a link. Download the data.
Figures come from Alliance for a Better Community's IRS filings (methodology). AI-written summaries, news items and logos are not covered by the open licence. Spot an error? Email hello@grantable.co.
Alliance for a Better Community down — hundreds of funders to go?