What We Learned From the 2024 Open WINcome Grant Cycle
We Heard Loud and Clear That Nonprofits “Need More Support”
Funding cuts. Increased need. Spread thin. These are the recurring themes we heard from organizations that applied for WINcome funding through The Women’s Foundation of Colorado’s (WFCO) WINcome grant cycle. With federal, state, and philanthropic funding cuts depleting the nonprofit sector as community needs increase, we heard the call from WINcome applicants loud and clear: “We need more support.”
WFCO is disheartened that WINcome funding cannot meet the immense needs of our community
Last year, WFCO opened WINcome applications for the first time since 2020. WINcome provides three years of funding for direct-service organizations to offer Colorado women flexible cash assistance paired with holistic services, such as education, child care, and support for survivors of domestic violence. Public policy grantee partners are provided general operating support to engage in community organizing, advocacy, and policy efforts aimed at improving access to cash assistance, reproductive justice, and public benefits.
Following the grantmaking process that included application reviews by a committee and approval of our board of trustees, WFCO awarded $900,000 to 14 direct-service and 9 public policy advocacy grantees for the first year of funding. However, over 150 organizations applied for WINcome funding, requesting a total of more than $8 million – millions more than we are able to grant.
As the state’s only community-funded foundation focused on advancing women, girls, and gender-expansive individuals in Colorado, we are disheartened that we are unable to meet the immense need through WINcome and our Women & Girls of Color Fund. Applicants and grantees frequently tell us that the structure of our grants are rare and much-needed; trust-based investments in organizations, women, and gender-expansive individuals can mean the difference between economic progress or stagnation.
Decreased philanthropic funding, cuts in state grants decimate nonprofit budgets
Community organizations led by and serving women are consistently underfunded and under-resourced. This rings true for the organizations that applied to WINcome. They are doing more with less, pulling together all the resources available to help as many individuals as possible. With the end of American Rescue Plan Act funds looming, overall decreased funding from donors and foundations, and cuts in state grants, organizations are deeply concerned about how they will meet the increasing needs of their communities.
One area that has experienced drastic funding cuts in recent years is in services for survivors of domestic and intimate partner violence. The Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) funds, a federal program that funds organizations supporting survivors across the country, have decreased by 75% at a time when one in three women experience physical violence from an intimate partner at some point in their lives. In 2023, firearms were involved in 67% of all domestic violence-related deaths in the state.
These sobering numbers motivated lawmakers to recently propose a new excise tax on the firearm industry that would support severely underfunded services for a variety of vulnerable populations, including survivors of domestic violence. WFCO proudly endorsed Proposition KK and are thrilled voters approved the ballot measure during the last election.
However, this is not enough to fill in the current and impending funding cuts.
Consider investing your time, talent, and treasure in organizations that are more needed than ever
Among the grantee partners selected in this year’s WINcome grant cycle, three of 14 direct-service organizations primarily focus on supporting survivors, and all grantee partners provide a wide range of services to their community members, including survivors. Below is a list of organizations that are not currently funded through WINcome that focus on supporting survivors. We invite you to consider investing your time, talent, and treasure in these organizations.
We must acknowledge the social and political structures in the background, ones that were designed to push under-resourced populations to the margins. Following the 2024 election, organizations leading on policy and advocacy, especially those focused on women and families, will be more needed than in previous years. But grim funding changes at the state and national level are putting the sustainability of these organizations at risk. This year, WFCO is funding more policy and advocacy organizations than ever before. However, funding gaps remain in the policy advocacy arena. We invite you to consider investing your time, talent, treasure, and testimony in the following organizations that are not currently funded through WINcome:
Following the 2024 election, the needs will only grow
Without a doubt, with reductions in federal and state funding impacting community members and organizations, we are moving into an era of increased precarity for our sector and the communities we serve. The Women’s Foundation is actively fundraising for our grantmaking strategies so that we may be able to further our investments. The call to take action is ringing louder than ever. We cannot ignore it. We hope you’ll answer the call with us.
