The Christian Theological Seminary Faith & Action Project has awarded grants totaling $105,000 for 5 efforts breaking the cycle of poverty in Indianapolis.

INDIANAPOLIS, IN, UNITED STATES, July 18, 2023/EINPresswire.com/ -- The Christian Theological Seminary Faith & Action Project has awarded grants totaling $105,000 for five efforts aimed at breaking the cycle of poverty in Indianapolis. “In their own unique ways, these organizations are effectively attacking poverty through a collaborative and holistic framework,” said Faith & Action Director Lindsey Nell Rabinowitch. “At the same time, they’re pioneering and modeling approaches that we believe can be copied and scaled up to serve people living in poverty in other communities.”

The 2023 grant recipients follow:

$20,000 to Elevate Indianapolis to support the launch of the Indianapolis-IPS College Core Pipeline. This partnership with IPS and Ivy Tech Community College will serve marginalized 9th to 12th graders as they complete Indiana College Core Program requirements. Students will earn 30 hours of dual-credit college-level coursework that transfers to all public colleges and universities in the state, saving up to $10,000 in college tuition and launching “a trajectory away from generational poverty toward purpose, prosperity and contribution.” Elevate’s 24-7 mentorship model will help participants overcome challenges, achieve educational goals and develop socially and emotionally.

$20,000 to Heart Change to expand the Gift of Work program by adding a new product line to Heart Change’s social enterprise business, which gives women coming from intergenerational poverty jobs-skills training while also paying them a wage and surrounding them with supports and positive relationships. The expanded program will prepare two of the participants for supervisory roles, equipping them to serve as supervisors and trainers at Heart Change. The ultimate goal is for the new product line to become self-sustaining – like Heart Change’s original product line – and provide a livable-wage job for women involved in Heart Change.

$15,000 to Greater Indianapolis Multifaith Alliance (GIMA) to expand the Eviction Court Watch teams and to expand GIMA’s lobbying efforts for the next Indiana General Assembly. With a focus on promoting equitable housing and ending Indy’s eviction crisis, GIMA will expand and systemize a cohort of congregation-based court watchers who keep an eye on Indy’s eviction court judges, who wield enormous power to affect families but who, in many cases, operate with little compassion or grace. The grant also will help to enhance GIMA’s lobbying efforts by supporting the engagement of a firm that can help inform policymakers about equitable-housing issues.

$20,000 to Indiana Youth Group (IYG) to double their mental health services and case management support to address the unique stressors, issues, and needs of LGBTQ+ individuals and help low-income LGBTQ youth navigate the system of community resources and supports. Often LGBTQ+ youth find themselves trying to access services and programs without essential documents that are withheld by parents as a form of punishment or disownment. Left adrift, these youth find it nearly impossible to apply for services, enroll in school, apply for a job, or enroll in a high school equivalency program – a state of affairs that puts them on a short path to poverty.

$30,000 to West Morris Church for the opening of the Westside New Day Center (WNDC). Westside New Day Center, which will support more than 30 neighbors experiencing homelessness and connect them to case management, housing, employment-skills training, healthcare services and other wrap-around services. A key component of the program will be offering a place of respite, resource and rejuvenation where basic needs are met and hope can flourish. The grant will help with the cost of developing the space and installing needed plumbing, electrical, and HVAC systems that will give neighbors access to showers, laundry facilities, Wi-Fi, computer access, and more.

Launched in 2016, the Christian Theological Seminary Faith & Action Project is supported by the Mike and Sue Smith Family Fund and the Pettigrew Fund as a multiyear effort to help reduce poverty in Indianapolis. In addition to providing grants, the Faith & Action Project holds communitywide events and attracts national poverty experts to Central Indiana.

The Faith & Action Project will continue to highlight solutions to poverty and breaking the cycle of poverty with its Oct. 3rd Faith & Action Fall Event, which this year features a keynote address by Heather McGhee, bestselling author of The Sum of Us.

About the Faith & Action Project
The Christian Theological Seminary Faith & Action Project is dedicated to helping to spark a revolution of hope by leveraging resources of communities of faith to connect, inspire, and empower lasting solutions for people confronting poverty. Through annual public events and grants, the Faith & Action Project seeks to ignite a solution-oriented movement for inclusive well-being in our community.

About Christian Theological Seminary
Christian Theological Seminary (CTS) is a fully-accredited ecumenical graduate school open to all with historic roots in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). CTS offers master and doctoral degree programs through its School of Theology and School of Counseling, accessible mental health services through the Counseling Center, and collaboration to mitigate poverty through the Faith & Action Project.

To learn more, visit https://www.cts.edu/faith-action/

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Lindsey Nell Rabinowitch
Faith & Action Project, Christian Theological Seminary
+1 317-931-2336
lrabinowitch@cts.edu

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