🔒Hartford Foundation pledges $1M to help nonprofits hit by state cuts

Q&A talks to Linda Kelly, president of the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, about her organization's efforts to help nonprofits that face state and local funding cuts.

Q. Back in July, the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving announced it would provide $1 million to assist nonprofits affected by unexpected losses of state funding. How has the program gone?

In response to this year's reductions in state and municipal support to our region's nonprofit sector, the Foundation has been working with area nonprofits to determine the impact of potential cutbacks and how the Foundation can assist.  While we will continue to evaluate the needs, by the end of this year the Foundation will have exceeded its $1 million allocation from our general grantmaking budget to assist qualifying nonprofits affected by unexpected losses of support, particularly in the areas of critical human needs. 

Additionally, for long-term effectiveness, the Foundation's Nonprofit Support Program (NSP) is providing capacity building and sustaining strategies to help nonprofits address the changing funding environment in a strategic and sustainable way. These efforts include participation in NSP's organizational assessment, which focuses on aligning staff and board as they seek to resolve organizational issues. NSP has also seen increased requests for technical assistance grants (TAGs), which provide help with long-term planning.  A number of organizations have come forward for help to figure out how to allocate scarce resources through NSP's strategic planning program.

Several agencies have also requested help with strategic alliances ranging from figuring out ways to combine back-office activities all the way through to possible mergers.  NSP also offers nonprofits the opportunity to participate in its financial-management program and offers a variety of workshops that are free to nonprofit executives.

Q. In 2015, the Foundation awarded grants amounting to more than $33.1 million. How much of an impact can the Foundation hope to have with limited resources against significant state cuts?

Our spending policy and investment strategy are designed to work together to provide a predictable stream of dollars for annual grantmaking to support the region's current and future needs. This ensures that during fiscal downturns the Foundation will continue to provide a steady and stable level of support. Our nonprofits depend on this. Our donors expect it. Our commitment to the Greater Hartford community is to be here in good times and bad.

Q. There are continued talks about deficits ahead in the state budget. Will your funding strategy shift in the future as the state likely cuts spending to nonprofits?

As a community foundation, our role is to respond to the ever-changing needs of the community. The Foundation will continue to work with our many partners to assess the impact of state budget cuts on our communities and find ways that collectively we can address them. 

Because no organization can do this work alone, the Foundation continues to look for ways to partner and collaborate with state and local governments, other funders including national organizations, the business community, nonprofit providers and our donors to create opportunities for all residents to ensure that our region can thrive, now and into the future.

 Q. Overall, how is support for the Foundation? Has it recovered from the recession?

Unlike many other nonprofit organizations, the Hartford Foundation does not rely upon an annual fundraising appeal. We are incredibly fortunate to have built long-term relationships with donors who give generously. Even in economic downturns, we continue to see donors add to these funds and join our giving circles.

One trend we have seen during times of economic crisis is that many of our donors make donations directly to nonprofit organizations that have been impacted by cuts in government funding.