VPP’s New Strategic Initiative Will Enhance Capacity of Youth-Serving Nonprofits in Prince George’s County

Today, Venture Philanthropy Partners (VPP) and the Prince George’s County Council announced VPP’s new Ready for Work Nonprofit Capacity Building Initiative to strengthen nonprofits to better serve youth across the County. The Prince George’s County Council believes in the power of nonprofits to serve the community and is generously contributing $250,000 in financial support for this initiative.

“At VPP, we strive to improve the lives of youth in Greater Washington,” said Carol Thompson Cole, President and CEO of Venture Philanthropy Partners. “With the Ready for Work Nonprofit Capacity Building Initiative, we are investing in Prince George’s County nonprofits so they can expand their ability to help young people achieve their goals. We are excited to see the long-term impact that this will have on youth.”

Ready for Work is a six-year, $15 million investment to help young people in Prince George’s County successfully transition to adulthood career and college ready.

We carefully identified four multi-service nonprofits that support a broad range of positive children and youth outcomes. This includes a focus on providing high school students with the skills, tools and support that they need to succeed in high school and prepare for a post-secondary education and careers after graduation. A key goal of Ready for Work is to build networks of community-based organizations that can provide integrated supports for students. The Nonprofit Capacity Building Initiative will strengthen the capacity of these nonprofits to provide more students in the County with high-quality services. After a competitive process, the following nonprofits have been selected to participate in this initiative:

• First Generation College Bound
• Foundation for the Advancement Music and Education, Inc. (FAME)
• Joe’s Movement Emporium
• End Time Harvest Ministries

“The Council appropriated FY 2018 funding to support this pilot initiative and the power of nonprofits to serve the community,” said Council Chair Derrick L. Davis. “We are especially excited to partner with VPP to build up nonprofits in Prince George’s County dedicated to improving the lives of young people, and the Council congratulates the selected nonprofit participants. This is a critical investment in our youth and the future of our County.”

VPP has selected Fair Chance, an experienced provider of nonprofit capacity building, to co-manage the initiative and to work with the nonprofits to improve organizational outcomes in:

• Effective leadership;
• Strategic governance and stewardship;
• Organizational management practices;
• Program design, implementation and evaluation;
• Communications; and
• Collaboration.

Through this initiative, the selected nonprofits will not only be provided with the support they need to become high-performing organizations, but will also have the opportunity to practice and strengthen their grant writing, grant management and report writing skills and capacities. To achieve these goals, each organization will compete for mini-grants that they can use over a three-year period to further enhance select organizational and programmatic capacities. In addition, there will be a particular focus on strengthening the boards of the participating organizations.

By the end of the three-year period, participating nonprofits may be invited to begin serving students in the Ready for Work high schools.

Read the Prince George’s County Council press release here.

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Venture Philanthropy Partners (VPP) is a philanthropic investment organization that builds strong nonprofits and strategic networks that measurably improve the lives of children and youth throughout Greater Washington. Since its founding, VPP has raised and deployed more than $100 million to help vulnerable young people gain access to quality education, health care, career training and a better chance at a brighter future. To learn more, visit www.vppartners.org.