The Impact of Multi-Year funding

In 2020 The FUND awarded Independent Living Resource Center (ILRC) a $30,000 Multi-Year ($10,000 annually for 3 years) grant that concluded in 2022 System Change Coordinator, Jacob Lesner-Buxton, shares the impact these funds had on the organization

“Being able to get Multi-Year Funding for our advocacy group (AKA The Rapid Response Committee) allows ILRC to plan the project more thoroughly People on the committee are excited because they can suggest projects to work on for the next year or two ”

Multi-Year Funding allows an organization like ILRC to plan (with the committee) their projects and goals for the years ahead without worrying about where future funding may come from to support the project. At the height of the pandemic, the ILRC Rapid Response Committee shifted its focus from meeting with policymakers in person to informing and educating the community on issues important to people with disabilities “The committee has hosted four webinars on accessible/affordable housing, disability pride, intersectionality, being an entrepreneur, and accessible cooking in the two years since we received the grant. We also created a PSA about accessible housing that aired on KEYT and met and met with Congressman Salud Carbajal’s office on two different occasions about the needed improvements to Social Security benefits for people with disabilities. This year, our 6 person committee hopes to travel to Sacramento to meet with lawmakers ”

There are two YMC Boards one meets in Santa Maria and the other in Santa Barbara and both are led by teens, ages 13-19. Each board gives out $15,000 per year in grants to youth-led projects that impact young people in Santa Barbara County. They create and conduct an entire grant cycle and then share with their communities what they learned as grant-makers and philanthropists. Since 2008, YMC has awarded more than $350,000 to over 165 youth-led groups throughout Santa Barbara County.

"I have been a part of Youth Making Change for the past three years as a board member and I have absolutely loved it I have experienced an immense amount of personal growth Not only my collaboration and problem-solving skills, but also in time management and organization as well I knew that being a facilitator would increase the skills I already possessed from YMC by ten-fold I am forever grateful for YMC and how it has positively impacted me as a human being"

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10 Grants Awarded

Youth Making Change North Board Members

"I stumbled upon YMC freshman year After being board member for a year, I applied to be facilitator While I was a new, young board member, I really looked up to the facilitators One of my goals for the future is to be on the leadership team for community nonprofits which was inspired by YMC I’ve also appreciated how being facilitator has allowed me to learn more about social change and adopt a more hands-on approach for promoting social change

"My freshman year of high school, my AVID teacher introduced Youth Making Change to me and I was super intrigued I applied to be a board member I didnt think I was good enough to get on the board but I still tried A while later, I was notified that they wanted to interview me I was filled with joy, soon after I became a board member I got to experience my first year on zoom, the way the facilitators bonded with the board and the way the were leaders truly revealed what I wanted to become 3 year member"

19 Youth Making Change South Board Members

$24,158 Awarded in

Grants

"Being a YMC board member was a life changing experience, I learned so much about philanthropy and social justice and felt inspired to become more actively involved in the board; my facilitators were excellent role models for me and I wanted to apply my own leadership skills to help new board members feel comfortable in our YMC family and inspired to create social change"

Youth Making Change - South County

Arts Mentorship Program - Inclusion Coalition -

Cops Off Campus SB Youth Coalition - Community not Cops -

Future Leaders of America - Bridge the Divide Workshop -

Isla Vista Compost Collective - New compost pile and operation expansion -

Misendero - Spring Student Workshop and Website Development -

Youth Leadership Council - CAN DO! (Change Agent Network for Dismantling Oppression) -

Youth Making Change - North County

Chicano/Latino Studies Students at SMHS - Ethnic Studies/POC Film Festival -

Dream Club - Cinco de Mayo, Diversity Day, and ASBG Collaborations (Black History Month and International

Women’s Day) -

$3,000 $2,850

Lompoc Valley Black Student Union, Lompoc and Cabrillo High Schools / Mural titled “Unify Lompoc Valley –We’re in this together” -

Pioneer Valley High School Science and Engineering Club / Learn About Climate Change and Build Your Own

Solar-Powered Vehicle -

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