Foundation to provide $75 million in community grants to foster racial equity

Kellogg Foundation awards $75M anti-racism grant

WASHINGTON — The W.K. Kellogg Foundation announced Tuesday it is devoting $75 million over the next five years to efforts aimed at undoing the effects of racial inequalities on children in poor communities across the nation.

About $14.6 million will go to 119 communities in at least 20 states and the District of Columbia in the first year of funding for the foundation’s “America Healing” initiative.

Gail Christopher, a Kellogg vice president, said the money will be part of what amounts to more than the $300 million a year that foundation spends on nurturing children through other programs. The difference with this undertaking, Christopher said, is that funds will be specifically devoted to the needs of children of color in dealing with the problems of racism.

An example of a grant recipient is The People’s Grocery, a community organization in Oakland, Calif., that organizes low-income people from various racial groups to work together on establishing a system to improve local access to fresh produce and nutrition education.

The recipient of the largest award was the St. Paul Foundation in Minnesota, which is receiving $1.2 million over three years and will share the grant money with other communities across the state.

The Kellogg Foundation, started by the breakfast cereal pioneer in 1930, has recently focused its resources on vulnerable children who face poverty and discrimination.

On the Net:

W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s “America Healing” initiative:

www.wkkf.org/what-we-support/racial-equity/america-healing.aspx