Who We Are
Our community is full of people building towards something better. Every day people are working towards financial stability, a good job, a degree, and owning a home.
What stands between them and economic stability isn't ambition; it's access. Nearly 4 in 10 Flint residents live below the federal poverty line, and nearly 70% of young people are growing in poverty. The unemployment rate sits at 10%, double the national average. These numbers point to where systems need to change, not to what people lack. The data also points to a clear path forward: residents with a bachelor's degree face a poverty rate of just 4.5%. Education moves the needle. So does stable housing, accessible healthcare, and investment in neighborhoods.
The Community Foundation of Greater Flint invests across the full arc of economic opportunity, from early childhood through higher education, from neighborhood reinvestment to healthcare access, because when people in our community have the tools to build financial stability, we all benefit.
Theory of Impact: We strive to break the cycle of intergenerational poverty by supporting programs that build household resilience and increase access to economic resources and services for underserved residents.
How we’re investing in Economic Mobility:
Since 2016, the Flint Kids Fund has invested over $16 million in programs aimed at addressing and mitigating the impact of lead poisoning and trauma suffered by many children in Flint. The 20-year fund supports programs and services that focus on the long-term health and development needs of our children.
The Neighborhoods Small Grants Program supports established and emerging citizen-based groups or organizations in moderate- to low-income neighborhoods in and near the City of Flint to develop projects that address pressing issues within their neighborhoods, build alliances with other community institutions, and foster community-based leadership.
The Tuuri Health Fund is the Community Foundation’s unrestricted source for grants in health. Assets for this Fund were established in 1988 when the Flint Area Health Foundation merged with the Flint Public Trust to form the Community Foundation of Greater Flint in 1988.
Education is one of the most effective ways to achieve economic mobility, and in Genesee County, scholarship funds are helping to maintain that opportunity. Last year, 149 students received over $345,000. By filling out a single application, students gain access to all the scholarships for which they qualify.
CFGF's four Youth Advisory Committees (Clio, Countywide, Grand Blanc, and South Lakes) review funding requests, conduct site visits, and recommend real grants for programs that benefit local youth. Since 1992, they've granted more than $1.5 million back into the community.
Data sourced from Focus on Flint: Facts, Figures and Community Insights (Issue II, 2024), a publication of the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. focusonflint.org