$15 million grant will address racial equity, poverty in communities of color in Fresno
A 10-year community-driven initiative to sustain and support an inclusive economy in the Fresno region was given a boost courtesy of a $15 million grant from the James Irvine Foundation.
The Fresno DRIVE Initiative was awarded a $15,006,751 grant on Monday to focus on addressing race and systemic barriers to economic opportunity in the region, along with community engagement and neighborhood leadership, workforce and small business development, business recruitment and wealth creation in communities of color.
About 80% of the funds will provide support to local nonprofits.
“The James Irvine Foundation’s investment in the Fresno DRIVE Initiative comes at a crucial time in our community. Chronically high unemployment and low rates of racial inclusion in the economy are being exacerbated by COVID-19,” Ashley Swearengin said in a news release. The former Fresno mayor is president and chief executive officer at the Central Valley Community Foundation.
The grant will support the creation of 1,650 jobs and the growth of over 150 small businesses owned by women and people of color. It will help pay for 350 internships for workers at over 75 job sites and help more than 1,000 residents annually involved in improving the conditions of low opportunity neighborhoods.
It will also drive additional public, private and philanthropic investment in the region.
“We are at a critical juncture in American history and there has never been a better time for an initiative like DRIVE. If we get this right, life for small business owners, particularly women and people of color, will be forever changed for the better,” said Tara Lynn Gray, president and chief executive officer at the Fresno Metro Black Chamber of Commerce.
It is needed: According to the Urban Institute, Fresno ranked 59th among California’s largest 59 cities in economic and racial inclusion.
The DRIVE Initiative announced its plan to attract $4.2 billion in investments over 10 years at last year’s California Economic Summit. It earned major support from Gov. Gavin Newsom in the state’s original 2020 budget. The budget was later revised and much of that funding disappeared.
But the initiative continues to see support from the community, Swearengin said.
“I’ve been involved in community and economic development initiatives for over 20 years in Fresno and the Central Valley, and I’ve never seen people coming together like they are through the Fresno DRIVE Initiative. This effort has become a huge, mobilizing force in our community to address systemic barriers to economic opportunity and put serious muscle behind an inclusive vision of what Fresno’s economy can become.”
This story was originally published June 22, 2020 at 3:23 PM with the headline "$15 million grant will address racial equity, poverty in communities of color in Fresno."