Michael Reese Health Trust
/OVERVIEW: The Michael Reese Health Trust supports health-focused nonprofits in the Chicago metro area. Its areas of grantmaking are strengthening the safety net, health and housing, the healthcare workforce, oral health, the Jewish community, school-based behavioral health and interpersonal and community violence prevention.
IP TAKE: This funder maintains a strong commitment to the health and wellness of Chicago’s underserved residents. It prefers to support collaborative and cross-sector efforts to make broad and lasting improvements in public health. The fund does not accept unsolicited proposals, but asks organizations working in its areas of interest to reach out with information and ideas.
PROFILE: The Michael Reese Health Trust was established from the sale of the Michael Reese Hospital to a for-profit corporation in 1991. Since its inception, the fund has given more than $103 million to Chicago health organizations. Its overarching goal is to improve the health of vulnerable populations in the Chicago metro area. The funder “carries forward the vision of Michael Reese Hospital’s Jewish founders and the generations of philanthropic and healthcare leadership they inspired through grant making to organizations that address the health and well-being of our community.” Its stated grantmaking programs are strengthening the safety net, health and housing, the healthcare workforce, oral health, the Jewish community, school-based behavioral health and interpersonal and community violence prevention.
This funder’s committment to strengthening the safety net consists mainly of support for advocacy “to sustain and improve health and mental health services” for at-risk families and individuals.
In health and housing, the fund focuses on the links between adequate housing and health outcomes and works toward cross-sector collaboration and data sharing in this space.
The fund also supports the development of a skilled and inclusive middle-skill healthcare workforce in Chicago, focusing on creating opportunities for economic advancement in these careers.
The oral health program works toward integrating oral health into primary care services and places a strong focus on the comorbidity of periodontal and gum diseases with diabetes.
Michael Reese’s school-based behavioral health program supports organizations and services for the large number of Chicago public school students who have experienced trauma, including bullying, physical and emotional abuse.
The fund runs two violence prevention programs. Its interpersonal violence prevention program supports collaborative efforts to serve victims and survivors of domestic violence and address the long-terms need of support for this population. The community violence prevention prioritizes the prevention of gun violence in Chicago communities. The fund tends to work with collaborative, community-based efforts in this area.
Across all areas, the Michael Reese Health Trust supports the needs of affiliates of the Jewish Federation, prioritizing programs and organizations that promote the health of Jewish communities in Chicago.
Foundation grants often range between $25,000 and $60,000, and grantmaking is limited to Chicago.
While this funder does not accept unsolicited grant proposals, it encourages Chicago organizations that are working in its areas of interest to reach out to program officers with information about their work. For general questions, call 312-726-1008.
PEOPLE:
Search for staff contact info and bios in PeopleFinder (paid subscribers only).
LINKS:
