Black Belt Community Foundation
/OVERVIEW: This funder supports the arts, community and economic development, education, and health and wellness in a 12-county region in Alabama.
IP TAKE: This is a great foundation for community and arts groups serving the Black Belt region of Alabama. It tends to prioritize African American-led and African American-serving nonprofits. Interested grantseekers should attend one of the foundation’s community or arts grants workshops, for which the schedules are posted on the foundation’s website. This is an accessible community foundation, so don’t hesitate to reach out with questions or ideas.
PROFILE: Based in Selma, Alabama, the Black Belt Community Foundation seeks “to forge a collective stream of giving from the community and other sources so we, the people of the Black Belt, can enhance our continuing efforts to lift ourselves by taking what we have to make what we need.” The Black Belt region stretches across the middle of the state, from Mississippi almost to Georgia. The region got its name from its dark, rich soil; it also has the state’s greatest number of African American residents.
The foundation was created by the merging of two efforts. One came from Dr. Carol P. Zippert, vice president of the Babcock Foundation board, co-publisher of the Greene County Democrat and director of the Society of Folk Arts and Culture. The other was from David Wilson, vice president for University Outreach at Auburn University, who first pursued the concept of the foundation. It was officially created in December 2003. Since 2004, BBCF has granted over $3 million to nonprofits throughout the 12-county region.
The foundation’s funding priorities include the arts, community and economic development, education, and health and wellness. The foundation revised its strategic plan in 2013 to focus on these topics for the foreseeable future.
It typically awards grants through its community and arts programs to over 100 nonprofits each year. This funder awards grants to about 40% of its applicants. Grants are generally awarded in amounts of up to $5,000.
Grant seekers must serve the following counties to be eligible for community grants: Bullock, Choctaw, Dallas, Greene, Hale, Lowndes, Macon, Marengo, Perry, Pickens, Sumter and Wilcox. Grant applications are usually made available to groups that attend one of the funder’s community or arts grant application workshops, for which the schedules are available on the community and arts program pages. General inquiries may be submitted to the foundation’s staff via its contact page.
PEOPLE:
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