The Chicago Racial Justice Pooled Fund was started in 2020 in response to the disproportionate effects of Covid, the racial uprisings, and decades of underinvestment in Black communities. Members of the Neighborhood Organizing Funders Group took action to create the Pooled Fund after hearing from researchers, organizers, and community activists.

The Pooled Fund committed to raising and distributing $10,000,000 to Black- led organizations, as well as ally-led organizations working to combat anti- Blackness, within four years. The founders, all staff at local foundations, became a steering committee that created a streamlined grantmaking process and fundraised. The Crossroads Fund agreed to serve as fiscal agent.

By the end of 2024, forty-two local and national foundations had contributed $10,700,000. The Steering Committee had distributed $9,000,700 to 105 local organizations, 70% of which were Black- led.

In an effort to determine the impact of those dollars as well as the motivations that catalyzed 42 foundations to give, the Fund contracted with the Black Researchers Collective to conduct an evaluation.

WHAT WE LEARNED

Successful Streamlining

Funders were motivated to contribute to the Pooled Fund primarily to address racial injustices and support Black-led organizations, with nearly half citing the 2020 uprisings as a catalyst for their involvement.

The Pooled Fund not only simplified the funding process, allowing foundations to give without the need for extensive new strategies or multiple applications, but it also aligned with the missions of many participating foundations. Although most funders did not initially commit to multi-year contributions, many made multi-year contributions, reflecting a strong commitment to racial justice and community organizing in Chicago.

The Pooled Fund increased their capacity for giving. According to funder interviews, participating in the Pooled Fund allowed foundations to provide grants to community organizing efforts without needing to create new funding strategies or sift through numerous grant applications. Grantees praised the ease of the application process, which allowed them to focus on their mission and effectively utilize the support received.

Flexible Funding for the Win

The Pooled Fund was instrumental in enhancing grantee organizations' contributions to the racial justice movement by providing flexible funding and cultivating community support. Grantees used the unrestricted funding to support a range of campaigns and initiatives, coalition-building, and mutual aid efforts including rent assistance and COVID-19-related support. Several used journalism and social media to amplify community voices. Eighty percent of grantees specifically valued the unrestricted funding, which facilitated organizational growth and new initiatives.

Foundation Staff Influence & Agency

Despite challenges in shifting internal foundation funding priorities, many funders interviewed reported adjusting their strategies and valuing direct engagement with community organizations, indicating a commitment to sustained support for racial justice efforts. Even with external challenges, 64 percent of funders reaffirmed their commitment to supporting race-explicit efforts.

Sustainability

The majority of funders (64 percent) are committed to continuing support for the Pooled Fund, driven by its ongoing need and effectiveness. Over half indicated that receiving an impact report detailing the Fund's successes would encourage their support for the next phase. Forty-five percent stressed the importance of maintaining open dialogues with community organizers to understand how to help effectively.

Meanwhile, 72 percent of grantees are proactively planning for potential funding declines, fearing reduced support as focus shifts away from racial justice issues.Concerns about potential funding cuts were prevalent among grantees, with 88 percent fearing it could lead to layoffs and instability, resulting in significant budget losses.

Professional Development for Foundation Staff

Foundation staff who did participate in Fund meetings that featured grantee organizations as speakers appreciated the opportunity to learn; nearly half of the funders expressed an interest in learning more about community organizing work in Chicago. The Fund introduced foundations to community organizers across Chicago they had not previously known.

Those who did not participate, or participated only occasionally, perceived a lack of communication from the Fund regarding grantee successes. Most funders (64 percent) reported lacking specific strategies to address anti-Blackness.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Funded organizations recommended:

CRJPF and contributing foundations should play the long game and “double down” on their financial commitment to supporting Black-led organizing and advocacy. Grantees noted how important it is for foundations to remain committed to funding issues that impact Black (and Brown) communities directly and realize that initial funding, even over a four- year period, is not enough to truly have long-term, in-depth, or sustainable change, especially during times where there is pushback and backlash at all levels (local, state, federal). They also noted the need for continued, multi- year, unrestricted funding and less onerous reporting requirements.

Grantee organizations recommended that CRJPF create more opportunities for grantees to talk with foundations and vice versa, and for funders to be willing to introduce and help make connections with corporate sponsors they have connections with. This was seen as important because foundations can leverage their positions to serve as advocates and spokespersons to mitigate the harm and barriers to the very issues that they are funding.

Funders should reflect on their role and take steps to dismantle structural racism. Grantees note that although they are appreciative of funding, philanthropic foundations inadvertently or unknowingly contribute to the very structural racism they seek to dismantle and should take steps to reflect on how they could help to dismantle it.

Contributing funders recommended:

Funders requested that the CRJPF regularly communicate grantee successes and accomplishments that were made possible by their funding. Funders say that concrete examples of the impact of the Pooled Fund will help them advocate with their boards and presidents to continue contributing.

Funders recommended that CRJPF hire a full-time staff person to support CRJPF executive tasks. This suggestion was aimed at expanding the Pooled Fund’s capacity, especially considering that all of the Pooled Fund’s leadership hold other roles.