Foundation awards $500,000 in grants to local community-based organizations

MINNEAPOLIS (May 20, 2011) – The General Mills Foundation has awarded 50 Twin Cities nonprofit organizations with $10,000 grants to support programs and initiatives focused on Celebrating Communities of Color.

The grant recipients, all based in the seven-county metro area, provide a variety of services to a wide range of groups including children, youth and adults. Their programs are specifically designed to improve the lives of the Twin Cities’ communities of color and beyond. Areas of focus range from resources for immigrant families, early childhood care and education, and programs for at-risk youth.

“Celebrating Communities of Color is a unique and important way General Mills can nourish our communities by supporting a broad spectrum of organizations dedicated to strengthening our communities of color in the Twin Cities,” says Ellen Goldberg Luger, executive director of the General Mills Foundation. “Some of these groups are just gaining a foothold in our community, while others have been in existence for years. We’re pleased to support the hands-on dedication and innovative ideas they offer as they work to make our community a better place for all.”

Following is a sampling of the 2011 Communities of Color grant recipients. The full list is here.

Neighborhood Mini Markets
Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP)

Many communities of color in Minneapolis have little access to fresh fruits and vegetables, particularly fresh produce grown by local farmers. In 2006, IATP launched several small farmers markets or mini markets in diverse low-income neighborhoods to help support smaller-scale sustainable farming and expand market opportunities for local farmers. Today 21 mini markets, each hosted by a neighborhood-based organization, reach hundreds of community members and provide diverse, low-income families in Minneapolis with increased access to fresh, affordable produce. The program is certified to accept Women, Infants, Children (WIC) coupons and Farmers Market Nutritional Program coupons at the markets. First Lady Michelle Obama cited Minneapolis' mini markets as a leading example of how communities can support healthy eating in inner cities. 

Vietnamese Social Services of Minnesota
St. Paul, MN
The Karen Youth and Family Support project is designed to help high-risk Karen refugees, an ethnic minority from Burma and Myanmar, build successful lives in their new country where they face profound linguistic, educational, and economic challenges.  Over 100,000 Karen persecuted by the Burmese military government fled to refugee camps in neighboring Thailand. Currently, 5,000 have resettled in the Twin Cities.  Many young Karen are failing in school and engaging in at-risk activities. Parents are challenged in intervening because of their inability to communicate in English and their lack of access to culturally sensitive family resources. The Karen Youth and Family Support Project helps bridge the gaps between Karen families and  mainstream society, and between Karen youth and their elders through weekly life skills workshops, cultural enrichment activities, academic tutoring, community service activities and leadership development. Parents are equipped to better nurture their children through support groups and quarterly parenting skills workshops that address issues such as the American education system, school expectations, appropriate child discipline, and family communication.

JuxtaLab: Creative Social Enterprise Program
Juxtaposition, Inc.

JuxtaLab is an art and design-based education and employment initiative that, in 2011, will produce 70 creative industry apprentice jobs for young adult artists. The program will also facilitate new individual and community connections to education, income and asset building resources in North Minneapolis' West Broadway and Emerson corridor. Through the program’s pilot project, young adults went through intensive visual art literacy training before they were hired for part-time jobs in Juxtaposition’s textile, graphic design, painting and/or environmental design studios. They learned marketable art and design skills while working on jobs for clients including designing a West Broadway Pride t-shirt that was sold during the FLOW Northside Arts Crawl, constructing a pocket park on a previously vacant/ underutilized lot on a prime commercial/residential corridor and designing and painting a large scale mural on the wall of the Juxtaposition Arts building.  Juxtaposition Arts is a 15-year-old nonprofit cultural center that annually engages thousands of youth, artists and other local stakeholders through a myriad of innovative participatory visual art and design programs.

About the General Mills Foundation
The mission of the General Mills Foundation, celebrating 56 years of giving, is to nourish communities. In fiscal 2010, General Mills awarded more than $100 million to communities across the country. Of the total, the Foundation contributed $22 million in grants in the targeted areas of hunger and nutrition wellness, and K-12 education. In addition, 82 percent of U.S. employees volunteer in the communities where they live and work. More information is available at GeneralMills.com/Foundation.

2011 Celebrating Communities of Color Grant Recipients (Alphabetical by Organization)

Organization	Program
Augsburg College	Jane Addams School for Democracy
Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Greater Twin Cities	Native American Mentoring Initiative (NAMI)
Center School, Inc.	Lakota Star Knowledge
Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio, Inc.	The Learning Together Program
Eco Education	Eco Education's Youth Advisory Board
Equality Minnesota	Community Outreach for Equality
FreedomWorks Incorporated	Job Transition and Readiness Program
Genesis II for Families Inc.	Adolescent Parent Education
Givens Foundation for African American Literature	Givens Literary Arts Education Program
HCCM	Latina Educational Development System (LEDS)
HIRED	Dakota-Scott Employment Project
Hope Community, Inc.	Learning in Community
Hope For The City	Partnering Agency Program
Illusion Theater and School, Inc.	North Minneapolis GIRL DRAMA
Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy	Neighborhood Mini Markets
Jabbok Family Services	COOL Youth Center
Joyce Preschool	Latino Family Involvement and Support
Juxtaposition Inc.	Juxta Lab: Creative Social Enterprise Program
Kaleidoscope Place	Young Artist Expressions
La Oportunidad, Inc.	Padres (Parents) Program
Little Earth Resident Association, Inc.	Little Earth Community Co-op and Urban Farm
Loaves & Fishes Too	Expansion of Summer Lunch Program for Children
Mad Dads	MAD DADS Vigil and Community Support for Crime Victims in North Minneapolis
Merrick Community Services	East Side Heritage Project
Minneapolis Community and Technical College Foundation	Student African American Brotherhood Initiative
Minneapolis Public Schools, Special School District #1	Nellie stone Johnson Health and Wellness Initiative
Minnesota Humanities Center	Absent Narratives
Minnesota Landmarks, Inc.	'Urban Expedition: Discovering Our World'
Page Education Foundation	Service-to-Children
Park Square Theatre	Commissioned work by Carlyle Brown
People Responding in Social Ministry (PRISM)	Local Nutritious Food for Families
Playworks Education Energized	Playworks Twin Cities
Project for Pride in Living, Inc.	PPL Youth Tutor/Mentor Programs 2011
Ragamala Music and Dance Theater	Sacred Earth
Resources for Child Caring, Inc.	Laotian Quality Childcare Engagement Pilot
ResourceWest	Project Starfish
Reuben Lindh Family Services	Four Directions Family Center
Somali Success School	Somali Success School Youth Program
TeenWorks, Inc.	SPARC (Students with Purpose for Achievement and Readiness for College)
Tennis and Education	Be Your Own Fitness Coach
The Bakken	The Bakken School Partnership Program
The Cedar Cultural Center	Concerts for Youth
The History Theatre, Inc.	NELLIE
TU Dance	World Premiere at Ordway Center
Urban Homeworks, Inc.	Construction Training Capacity-building
Vietnamese Social Services of Minnesota	Karen Youth and Family Support
Volunteers of America of Minnesota	Opportunity All Stars
Way to Grow	Great by 8 Initiative
Youth Determined to Succeed Track Minnesota Mentor Programs	Kids 4 Health Program
YouthCARE	Camp Sunrise Program