Communityworks Grant Competition

Communityworks Grant Competition

Status: ACTIVE
Funder: Community Foundation of Kankakee River Valley
Amount: Up to US $10,000
Last Updated: January 07, 2026

Summary

The Communityworks Grant Competition, run by the Community Foundation of Kankakee River Valley, aims to enhance community welfare through targeted funding. Focus areas include Early Childhood Education, Land Use & Protection, and Workforce Development. Grants are awarded to nonprofit organizations in Kankakee and Iroquois Counties, emphasizing initiatives that address unmet community needs. By fostering collaboration and innovative solutions, the Foundation seeks to ensure sustainable improvements in quality of life for local residents.

Overview

Communityworks Grant Competition The Community Foundation of Kankakee River Valley’s mission is to build endowment funds for our region over time, and it strives to bring together individuals and organizations to assess community needs, to build greater endowment funds, to convene area leaders around important issues, and to distribute grant awards to worthy nonprofit organizations. The Foundation also serves as a neutral leader with no direct affiliation with any group, religion, political or governmental entity. The goal of the Community Foundation is to improve the quality of life in both greater Kankakee and Iroquois Counties by supporting initiatives that are not currently being adequately funded. Grants awarded by the Community Foundation originate from income generated by our Communityworks Endowment Fund, a visionary initiative to help the Community Foundation build endowments for making grant awards, particularly in the following focus areas: Early Childhood EducationLand Use & ProtectionWorkforce Development Grant-funded recipients of the Communityworks Endowment Fund are encouraged to address one or more of the above-identified focus areas and to make it publicly apparent how it is accomplished. Focus Areas Early Childhood Education The community has determined that the Community Foundation can have the greatest impact on Early Childhood Education (birth to age 8) by supporting:The improvement of the quality of child care;The support for parent education;The improvement of the quality and accessibility of early childhood education services, andThe improvement of opportunities to access children’s mental health services.More specifically the Community Foundation seeks to:Improve the Quality of Childcare by:Soliciting grant applications with creative solutions for improving the quality of local child care, specifically home-based, license-exempt providers.Funding programs that improve, advance or develop programs to improve childcare programs.Support Parental Education by:Supporting the creation of web-based parent education that widely disseminates parent education information about local, school-based, Birth-to-Eight programs.Supporting grant applications with creative approaches for providing parental education.Improve the Quality and Accessibility of Early Childhood Education Services by:Convening local, center-based and family-based child care providers for a “Child Care Collaborative,” where members exchange ideas, concerns, solutions, and submit joint grant applications for Illinois Early Childhood grant funds.Supporting initiatives to expand home-visiting programs.Improve Access to Children’s Mental Health Services by:Supporting the initiatives to improve community awareness of children’s mental health needs and capacity-building initiatives aimed at young children.Land Use & Protection The community has determined that the Community Foundation can have the greatest impact in these areas by: Expanding community efforts on land development with consideration for recreation focused on the benefits of the Kankakee River;Taking steps to preserve “rural charm” of our service area;Supporting efforts to address transportation issues.More specifically the Community Foundation seeks to:Expand Community Efforts on Land Development by:Assisting in the planning and implementation of programs focused on improving neighborhoods in area communities through various economic and tax incentives. The County has formalized programs such as Main Street, Historical Preservation, brownfields, and urban renewal strategies.Continuing to convene planning and advisory meetings for the Riverfront Biking & Walking Trail Initiative. These efforts are critical in the development of the Riverfront for maximum benefit to the community.Preserve & protect the trails of the area and surrounding communities.Preserve a “Rural Charm” Atmosphere by:Cooperating with local historical organizations already in place in various municipalities to implement county-wide historic districts.Focus on Transportation by:Supporting public forums to inform and involve residents and elected officials with information on initiatives to progress transportation projects. Transportation projects may involve seeking capital funds and encouraging long-term planning among multiple levels of government.Develop Plans for County Infrastructure & Zoning by:Facilitating communications to the public on the various programs underway to improve zoning and infrastructure by the Kankakee County Planning Department.Assisting with a focus on quality development along the ½ mile corridors on each side of Interstate 57 to reflect favorable appearances for developers, residents and travelers.Convening public forums and other meetings to foster public and governmental collaboration Workforce Development Our area’s communities have determined that the Community Foundation can have significant impact by supporting: Increased work opportunities for unemployed/underemployed youth through collaboration with the Workforce Board and other governmental and community-based organizations.Youth programs that prepare entry-level employment through the development of soft skills and work experience. More specifically the Community Foundation seeks to: Increase Work Opportunities for unemployed/underemployed community youth through collaboration with the Workforce Board and other governmental and community service providers via training partnerships, work experience, resource identification, workshops, surveys and other information-gathering efforts as well as through coordinated partnerships for workforce development strategies, initiatives and sponsorships.Prepare youth for entry-level employment through the development and sponsorship of programs designed and implemented to prepare youth with employment soft skills, job-seeking and job-retaining skills and youth work experience. The Community Foundation also seeks to collaborate and coordinate efforts with appropriate community partners to seek external funding resources or to underwrite costs as well as to assure quality employment preparation of youth including supportive, on-the-job work experience and workplace expectations.

Eligibility

You can learn more about this opportunity by visiting the funder's website. Grant awards are to be made only to those nonprofit organizations and programs operating within Kankakee and Iroquois Counties.Awards through the Communityworks Endowment are made only to organizations with charitable 501(c)(3) classifications by the Internal Revenue Service, or to quasi-governmental agencies, e.g., school districts, libraries, park districts, etc.Awards are generally made for one year at a time. Multiple-year awards will be considered if circumstances justify it; however, sustainability after the grant award-making period should be explained.The Community Foundation of Kankakee River Valley operates without discrimination as to race, religion, sex and national origin in considering grant requests from agencies and organizations.

Ineligibility

While the Community Foundation attempts to remain flexible in responding to community needs, in general, grants are not awarded for:Religious purposes (this does not exclude grants to religious organizations for non-religious purposes or to facilities such as day-care centers that have non-profit status independent from a sponsoring church or religious organization);Purchase of advertising;Capital or operation debt reduction; however, capital items needed for training purposes will be considered.Political campaigns or to support attempts to influence legislative issues of any governmental body.Multiple proposals from one organizationAre There Expense Categories Discouraged by the Community Foundation which could jeopardize selection?Expenses for technology with shorter-term life/use.Administrative costs (particularly salary, fringe benefits, space, general office expenses such as utilities, office equipment, supplies, etc.)