ZSR Announces $19.9 Million in Funding for State-Level Systemic Change Trustees awarded 146 grants to organizations working across NC

News

During the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation’s (ZSR’s) November board meeting, ZSR’s Board of Trustees awarded 146 grants totaling $19.9 million to organizations working toward state-level systemic change in North Carolina.

Of the 146 grants awarded, 107 (73%) are for general operating support, and 118 (81%) are for multiple years. 

ZSR’s State-Level Systemic Change Strategy supports state, regional and local organizations, coalitions, or collaboratives that are working to achieve systemic change at the state level within and across four priority areas: Advancing Public Education, Fostering a Healthy and Sustainable Environment, Promoting Social and Economic Justice, and Strengthening Democracy. ZSR also supports work at the intersection of these priority areas. 

Trustees awarded funding to the following organizations during the Fall 2023 State-Level Systemic Change grant cycle: 

Action for the Climate Emergency 
For general operating support  

Action Institute NC 
For general operating support 

Action4Equity 
For general operating support 

Alliance for Heritage Conservation 
Museum of the Southeast American Indian Heritage Preservation project 

American Civil Liberties Union of NC Legal Foundation 
For general operating support 

American Rivers 
For general operating support 

Asheville City Schools Foundation 
For general operating support 

Asociación de Mexicanos en Carolina del Norte 
For general operating support 

Blue Ribbon Commission Prevention of Youth Violence 
Leandro Plan project 

Book Harvest
For general operating support 

BVM Capacity Building Institute 
For general operating support 

Campaign for Southern Equality
Rapid Response for Southern Trans Youth Emergency project 

Cape Fear River Watch 
For general operating support 

Carolina Federation Fund
For general operating support 

Carolina Jews for Justice 
For general operating support 

Carolina Public Press 
For general operating support 

Catawba Riverkeeper Foundation 
For general operating support 

Center for Community Self-Help 
For general operating support for the Avila Center 

Center for Death Penalty Litigation 
For general operating support 

Center for Racial Equity in Education 
For general operating support 

Center for Responsible Lending 
Responsible Lending in North Carolina: Protecting Economic Opportunity for Families by Eliminating Abusive Lending Practices project 

Central Carolina Regional Education Service Alliance 
Leveraging North Carolina's Principals of the Year to Advance Public Education project 

Charlotte Center for Legal Advocacy 
For general operating support 

CleanAIRE NC 
For general operating support 

Coastal Carolina Riverwatch 
For general operating support 

Code the Dream 
For general operating support 

Colaborativa La Milpa 
For general operating support 

Community Building Initiative 
For general operating support 

Community Success Initiative 
For general operating support 

Croatan Institute 
Rural Beacon Initiative Free Union Farm Sustainability Hubs project 

Dare Education Foundation 
For general operating support 

Democracy Green 
For general operating support 

Democracy NC 
Carolina Youth Partnership: Youth Engagement project 

Disability Rights NC 
Access the Vote North Carolina project 

Duke University 
For general operating support for the North Carolina Leadership Forum 

Durham Public Schools Foundation 
For general operating support 

Eagle Market Streets Development 
For general operating support  

Education Justice Alliance  
For general operating support 

Empowered Parents in Community 
For general operating support 

Environmental Justice Community Action Network 
For general operating support 

Equity Before Birth 
For general operating support 

Forward Justice 
For general operating support 

Freedom Center for Social Justice 
For general operating support 

Fresh Energy 
Energy News Network Reporting in North Carolina project 

Friends of the Earth 
Climate and Energy Justice Program to Stop Dirty Energy in North Carolina project 

Haw River Assembly 
For general operating support 

Hispanic Federation 
For general operating support 

Public Ed Works 
For general operating support 

Immersion for Spanish Language Acquisition 
For general operating support 

James B. Hunt Jr. Institute for Educational Leadership and Policy Foundation 
Expanding Equitable Access in K-12 Education project 

Journalism Funding Partners 
North Carolina Climate Coverage project 

Latinx Education Center 
For general operating support 

Legal Aid of NC 
For general operating support 

Legal Aid of NC 
Home Defense project 

Lillian's List Foundation 
For general operating support 

MDC, Inc.  
ARPA Partnership capacity-building project 

Men and Women United for Youth and Families 
For general operating support 

Mi Familia Vota Education Fund 
For general operating support 

MountainTrue 
For general operating support 

Mt. Calvary Leadership Development Corporation 
For general operating support 

myFutureNC 
For general operating support 

NALEO Educational Fund 
North Carolina Latino Civic Engagement Strategy project 

National Conference of Black Lawyers 
For general operating support of its North Carolina chapter 

National Domestic Workers Alliance 
For general operating support 

NC A. Philip Randolph Institute 
For general operating support 

NC Association of Black Lawyers' Land Loss Prevention Project
For general operating support 

NC Black Alliance
For general operating support 

NC Business Council
For general operating support 

NC Center on Actual Innocence 
For general operating support 

NC Child
For general operating support 

NC Clean Energy Fund 
For general operating support 

NC Climate Justice Collective 
For general operating support  

NC Coalition Against Sexual Assault 
For general operating support 

NC Coalition for Alternatives to the Death Penalty 
For general operating support 

NC Coalition on Aging 
Essential Jobs, Essential Care North Carolina project 

NC Community Foundation 
Invest Early Fund project 

NC Congress of Latino Organizations 
For general operating support 

NC Council of Churches 
Farmworker Advocacy Network project 

NC Counts Coalition 
For general operating support 

NC Early Education Coalition 
For general operating support 

NC Employee Ownership Center 
For general operating support 

NC FIELD 
For general operating support 

NC For the People 
For general operating support 

NC Immigration Law & Justice Center 
For general operating support 

NC Institute of Minority Economic Development 
For general operating support 

NC League of Conservation Voters Foundation 
For general operating support 

NC Partnership for Children 
For general operating support 

NC Prisoner Legal Services 
Long-Term Incarceration project 

NC State University 
Institute for Emerging Issues’ BAND-NC Digital Inclusion Plan project 

NC State University 
For general operating support for the CEFS' North Carolina Local Food Council 

NC WARN 
For general operating support 

Neighborhood Funders Group 
LIFT Fund project  

NEO Philanthropy 
North Carolina Local News Lab Fund project 

NEO Philanthropy 
Cypress Fund project 

New NC Project 
For general operating support 

One Dozen Who Care 
For general operating support 

Opportunities Industrialization Center 
For general operating support 

Orange County Translatinas 
Asheboro Latinx Services project 

Parents for Public Schools 
Expansion of Parents for Public Schools in North Carolina project 

Parents for Public Schools of Pitt County 
For general operating support 

Pastors for NC Children 
For general operating support 

Piedmont Business Capital 
For general operating support 

Profound Ladies 
For general operating support 

Prospera NC LLC 
Latino Entrepreneurship Support in Eastern North Carolina project 

Public School Forum of NC 
Dudley Flood Center for Educational Equity and Opportunity project 

Public Schools First NC 
For general operating support 

Ready for School, Ready for Life 
For general operating support 

Recidivism Reduction Educational Program Services, Inc 
For general operating support 

Red Wine & Blue Education Fund 
For general operating support 

Refugee Community Partnership 
For general operating support 

Resound Future Bilingual Educators Network 
For general operating support 

Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors 
Climate Nexus Communicating Climate Justice project

Rural Empowerment Association for Community Help 
For general operating support 

Sandhills Cooperation Association 
For general operating support 

SBG Digital 
Digital Mis- and Dis-information Impacting Black North Carolinians project 

Scalawag 
For general operating support 

SD Foundation  
North Carolina Clerk Work Program project 

SisterSong 
For general operating support 

Somos Siembra 
For general operating support 

Sound Rivers 
For general operating support 

Sound Rivers 
Waterkeepers Carolina project 

Southeast Asian Coalition 
For general operating support 

Southern Vision Alliance 
Durham Beyond Policing project 

Southern Vision Alliance 
Refund Raleigh project 

Southern Vision Alliance 
North Carolina Collaborative for Strong Latinx Communities project 

States Newsroom 
For general operating support 

Strategic Energy Innovations 
For general operating support 

Student U 
For general operating support 

Sustainable Sandhills 
For general operating support 

Triangle Native American Society 
For general operating support 

Tyrrell County Community Development Corporation 
For general operating support 

United for a Fair Economy 
Inclusive Economies Project North Carolina - Raising Wages North Carolina project 

University of North Carolina Chapel Hill 
For general operating support for the School of Government's Lead for North Carolina project 

University of North Carolina Chapel Hill 
North Carolina Native Leadership Institute's Building Capacity Among North Carolina's Tribal Communities project 

University of North Carolina Chapel Hill 
For general operating support for the School of Government's Criminal Justice Innovation Lab 

University of North Carolina Chapel Hill 
For general operating support for Kenan Institute's NCGrowth 

University of North Carolina Chapel Hill 
Institute for the Study of the Americas' Building Integrated Communities project 

University of North Carolina Chapel Hill 
For general operating support for the Carolina College Advising Corps' Summer Training and Professional Development project 

Urban Sustainability Directors Network 
Southeast Sustainability Directors Network project 

VoteRiders 
North Carolina Voter ID Education and Assistance project 

WakeUP Wake County 
For general operating support 

We Are Down Home 
For general operating support 

WEBB Squared 
For general operating support 

Winyah Rivers Foundation 
For general operating support 

Working Films 
For general operating support 

Yadkin Riverkeeper 
For general operating support