The New Connections Fund was created in 2004 to provide open, competitive funding to small and midsize organizations whose work was well-aligned with Irvine's programs but which had not previously received Irvine funding. From 2004 to 2007, we awarded more than 300 grants, totaling $11 million, to nonprofits across California. More than 75 percent of these organizations had never before received a grant from Irvine.

Based on feedback from grantees and applicants, including feedback received in late 2006 through a Grantee Perception Report, we have redesigned the New Connections Fund to retain its best features – namely, the open, competitive nature of this well-received small grants fund – and to address the primary challenges identified by grantees and Irvine staff.

We will continue to offer small grants programs in each of our program areas as follows:

• Arts: The Creative Connections Fund supports creativity and the expansion of diverse, relevant cultural offerings in local communities across California and primarily outside the
  San Francisco Bay Area. The fund offers project grants of up to $50,000, over one to two years, through an open, competitive review process.
• California Perspectives: We plan to expand the Families Improving Education Initiative, through a competitive grant process, to support organizations that help families, particularly those in low-income, ethnic and immigrant communities, become involved in policymaking concerning their local schools. The initiative currently supports five organizations in the Central Valley, and in fall 2008, additional organizations in the Inland Empire (Riverside and San Bernardino counties) may apply for funding.
• Youth: We are in the process of identifying an intermediary organization to manage an open, competitive grant program called the College and Career Connections Fund. The fund will support community-based organizations that assist low-income youth, ages 16 to 24, who have dropped out of high school, to reconnect with employment and postsecondary educational options. Based on an initial review of county-level data, we have identified San Bernardino and Riverside counties as our initial target areas. The fund will launch in fall 2008.

For reflections on key accomplishments and challenges of the New Connections Fund, please see this page.