The Activate Fund
The Activate Fund is Co.act Detroit’s first and flagship grant program that strengthens nonprofits’ abilities to achieve their missions and accelerates collaborative action across Southeast Michigan.
History
In 2019, Co.act and other Southeast Michigan partners co-authored Building a Network, a roadmap for a connected nonprofit capacity building ecosystem that is rooted in racial equity and social justice. Then, with Building a Network as our guide, in 2020 we convened the partners to co-design and launch a $1.5 million capacity-building fund, the Activate Fund, with support from the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation. The fund was designed to accelerate the impact of Southeast Michigan’s nonprofit community by:
- Breaking down barriers to accessing capital and resources
- Modeling an organized and connected cohesive capacity building ecosystem and seeding the infrastructure for that connective tissue
- Providing customized capacity building and technical assistance to meet the unique needs of SEM nonprofits and collaboratives
Total award amount that 25 grantees have received
Value of in-kind services that an additional 7 collaboratives, comprising 171 organizations, have been awarded
Percentage of grantees who reported that the Activate Fund grant helped further the work and accelerate the mission of their organization*
%
Percentage of grantees who reported a desire to stay connected to Co.act in the future and connect with future grantees*
*Reported by third-party evaluator Pacific Community Ventures (2021)
Program Design
Service Provider Network
Established in 2020 to provide direct services to Activate Fund grantees, this program has evolved to a community of practice and ecosystem directory and network map. Network convenings build the capacity of capacity builders to better serve and address the needs of nonprofits. It fosters peer-to-peer learning, mentorship, and collaboration between funders, nonprofits, and service providers.
Nonprofit Fundamentals
Established in 2020 to build the internal capacity of nonprofits to effect transformative impact in their communities. Grants totaling $1.18 million were awarded to 25 organizations to support funding and resources; operations; organizational culture; and program development, implementation; and evaluation. The majority of funded organizations are led by people of color or women, as well as have an operating budget of less than $1 million.
Collaboration Pilot
Established in 2020 to accelerate collaborative impact with an emphasis on supporting nonprofits working across sectors to achieve greater community impact than they could on their own. The program first provided resources of support like facilitation services, meeting spaces, and more; and then it grew to provide customized, one-on-one technical support. More than 7 collaborative groups comprising 170 organizations were funded.
Earned Revenue Accelerator
Established in 2021 to help nonprofits in Wayne County grow earned revenue streams from existing services or products. We offered this program because earned revenue models allow organizations to diversify bases of support to meet growing needs and to better sustain operations over the long term. Six nonprofits were awarded grants, financial technical assistance and participation in a twelve-week intensive learning cohort.
Financial Technical Assistance
Established in 2021 in response to COVID-19’s impact on organizational operations. It helped grantees build financial capacity through financial modeling and scenario planning during a time many nonprofits found difficult to keep their doors open.
An intense, challenging but ultimately transformative experience that has reframed the way we both approach and plan to advance our work (products and services).
– Activate Fund Grantee
Impact
A 2021 qualitative and quantitative evaluation found that Activate positively impacted grantees’ organizations – including improving their financial health, expanding services, fundraising, and more. For example, the six organizations that went through the accelerator program raised an additional $500K, collectively. Read success stories about a few of the grantees.
Journey to Healing
Journey to Healing is a nonprofit dedicated to strengthening communities in the Detroit-metro area through inclusive and culturally competent mental health programs. They provide evidence-based education, outreach programming, and clinical therapeutic services to families experiencing trauma related to grief and loss.
Challenge
Journey to Healing faced significant organizational challenges in 2020, primarily surrounding the need for insurance licensing and the operational shift towards stabilizing the organization and its team members. Originally established as a grief support agency, Journey to Healing’s board of directors was cautious about typical support group formats due to participants experiencing panic attacks and manic breakdowns.
Solution
This led to a focus on building trust through community workshops while trying to determine how to provide necessary clinical care. The agency needed to transition from an executive board to a working board and establish a continuum of care, requiring internal restructuring and development.
The $50,000 grant was the largest they had received, offering a much-needed financial boost that allowed them to sustain operations and expand their mental health and grief services during the pandemic, specifically addressing several critical needs, including obtaining CRM software to ensure compliance and billing, upgrading their website, and utilizing livestreams for virtual care during COVID-19, which served as a large outreach expansion.
Carr Center
Founded in 1991 as The Arts League of Michigan, The Carr Center draws on the rich cultural heritage of the African American experience to deliver exceptional arts programming and foster artistic creation within the Detroit community.
Challenge
The organization faced significant challenges due to the pandemic, which halted all in-person programming. Instead of waiting for a return to normalcy, The Carr Center quickly transitioned to digital programming, partnering with DPTV to produce and livestream high-quality content.
Solution
The Activate Fund grant was crucial in acquiring the necessary technology for these digital productions to support artists, enabling them to reach a global audience of over 27,000 people, significantly expanding their reach beyond their largest in-person venue, which seats 800. It also funded the production of a new digital series “Duos + Duets.”
New Detroit
Founded in 1967, New Detroit leads conversations, drives policy changes, and provides essential services, such as guided discussions on race and specialized trainings in diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice.
Challenge
New Detroit faced significant challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, prompting a reevaluation of their visibility and scalability. They needed to elevate their presence and develop collateral to promote their programs effectively.
Solution
The Activate Fund grant played a pivotal role in modernizing their programming, particularly through initiatives like the Multicultural Leadership Series and “Conversations on Race.” These efforts, previously limited to search engine marketing, were transformed into online courses accessible to a national audience, featuring local and national consultants and presenters. Additionally, the grant enabled New Detroit to produce impactful video content for their “Conversations on Race,” significantly enhancing their outreach and engagement efforts.
For More Information
Nonprofit Fundamentals and Collaboration Pilot Press Release (2020)
Earned Revenue Accelerator Announcement (2021)
Dovetail Directory, an evolution of the Service Providers program
Earned Revenue Accelerator Impact Report
Course Catalog for the Earned Revenue Accelerator program
Natural Collisions, Episode 3
Black and Brown nonprofit leaders are generally left out of funding opportunities and not provided the same opportunities as White-led organizations. It was great to see that the Activate Fund both invested in minority-led nonprofit organizations as well as small-to-midsize nonprofit organizations that really needed the investment to move their organizations to the next level.
– Activate Fund Grantee