The latest round of grants from the Community Foundation of the Holland/Zeeland Area’s (CFHZ) Youth Advisory Committee (YAC) supports several organizations working to create a more inclusive, and equitable community. 

According to CFHZ, their YAC is looking to advance racial equity in the Holland and Zeeland area by supporting organizations that are working to address racial inequity and implicit bias in the community, and are centering the voices of Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) community members.

In 2020, the YAC committed $25,000 of its grantmaking for youth racial equity efforts as part of CFHZ’s efforts to make progress towards racial equity in the community.

“CFHZ doesn’t presume to have the answers to the difficult and complex problem of racism, but we believe it is of utmost importance to stand alongside our community in searching for those answers and to do our part to support this process with financial resources,” Jessica Lynch, donor service associate at CFHZ and Yah-Hanna Jenkins Leys, director of community impact/college success coach at CFHZ said. 

The murder of George Floyd and the national reckoning for racial justice led the YAC to have conversations about the racial inequities and racism that exist in their own community.

“When the CFHZ board began considering how we use our flexible community’s endowment resources to respond, our YAC wanted to play a meaningful role at this moment and committed $25,000 of YAC’s 2020 funding for this purpose,” shared Lynch and Jenkins Leys.

As a result of these efforts, the YAC awarded $59,449 to seven organizations working to advance racial equity. The funding will directly support organizations in the following programs and initiatives:

•    CultureWorks Transformative Art & Design Academy: Support scholarship costs for students of color who participate in classes.

•    Holland Historical Trust's Holland Museum: Implement the Cultural Lens Series, a robust year-long programming that includes topics that connect individuals to cultural themes including racial diversity, homelessness and LGBTQ+ advocacy.

•    Hope College: Prepare a literacy workshop in which elementary and middle school students of color will participate in a group read and then workshop with professionals to create literary or artistic projects to celebrate their identities.

•    Ottawa Area Intermediate School District – Instructional Services Department: Provide programs that expose white educators to racial diversity, equity and inclusion resources through virtual courses and resources.

•    Escape Ministries: Driver’s training scholarship program which will increase access for students of color to opportunities, help families manage transportation dilemmas and decrease negative interactions with police officers for youth.

•    Maple Avenue Ministries: Support BIPOC children who are adopted by providing their families with culturally appropriate items.

•    Ottawa Area Intermediate School District in partnership with Holland/Zeeland Schools: Provide bilingual welcome kits to families who are immigrants as they enroll their child or children in K-12 schools.

CFHZ said its YAC will continue to invest in young leaders and their DEI journeys and work to elevate BIPOC voices in grantmaking decisions. 

“Our YAC has committed to using a DEI lens when reviewing grant proposals throughout the year by elevating voices of marginalized youth and using local data disaggregated by race and other key variables to better understand the greatest needs of young people in our community,” Lynch and Jenkins Leys said. “Youth grantmakers are uniquely positioned to engage in this work and have an important role to play in ensuring that funding decisions reflect the lived experiences of youth in our community."

When recruiting new YAC members, current committee members are also focused on welcoming new members who are able to provide different perspectives through their different lived experiences.

Want more?

Learn more about CFHZ's YAC