2020 Community Giving grants

For more than two decades, CareOregon Community Giving has worked to improve access to health care and other resources for both CareOregon members and non-members. In the past two years alone, we’ve invested more than $20 million into Oregon communities through grants, sponsorships, improvements in provider capacity and social services. This commitment continues in 2020. We firmly believe in the power of trickle up. When we make one child or one family healthier, we all become stronger. It’s something we call the CareOregon Effect.

See a list of our past grant recipients, including COVID-19 response grants in 2020, here.

2020 Grant types

Development Investments

CareOregon’s Fall 2020 grant cycle will focus on improving community health in non-clinical settings, with an emphasis on efforts involving Traditional Health Workers (THWs) in community settings, including in Community Based Organization (CBO) settings.

Overview of Fall 2020 Grant Opportunity

In 2020 CareOregon community giving will invest up to $500,000 in at least 5 Community Based Organizations (CBOs) in the Portland Metro area for projects that explore, develop and test the role of certified and non-certified Traditional Health Workers (THWs) in improving community health through non-clinical settings. An emphasis will be placed on efforts involving THWs in community settings, including Community Based Organizations (CBOS). This is a multi-year funding opportunity. Year 2 funding will be determined in 2021. Year 2 funding will only be available to year 1 grantees and is not guaranteed. 

Examples of what we are looking to fund:

• Activities across the spectrum of THW types (doula, community health worker, personal health navigator, peer support specialists and peer wellness specialists) and services, including care coordination, outreach, education, etc.
• The development of CBO organizational infrastructure to enable health systems to reliably purchase or contract THW services within the next few years.
• Information technology platforms within CBOs to track THW efforts and measure outcomes.
• THW workforce development activities – including recruiting, training, certifying.
• Activities related to COVID-19 response by addressing disparities driving COVID-19 in vulnerable populations.

Eligibility

• Tax-exempt organizations and coalitions with services in Multnomah, Clackamas and/or Washington Counties in Oregon are welcome to apply.
• Focus will be on CBOs employing, contracting with or partnering with THWs or “THW-like” community members.
• CareOregon encourages culturally specific organizations (CSOs), especially those leading with race, to apply. A CSO is an organization providing a service to a specific and named population, including LGBTQ+ and disability populations.
• CareOregon will focus Fall 2020 grantmaking on organizations and programming operating in non-clinical spaces, including schools, social service organizations and housing settings.
• Organizations under fiscal sponsorship may apply with the agreement of their sponsoring entity.

Adaptive Fund: Event sponsorships and general grant requests

CareOregon’s Adaptive Fund will accept requests at any time in 2020. The Adaptive Fund provides support to community partners to recognize both the importance of partnership and the need to build capacity.

Adaptive fund grants and sponsorships will prioritize funding support to:

• Culturally specific organizations, including disability and LGBTQ+ focused organizations.
• Organizations and programming increasing health equity, particularly within CareOregon’s membership.
• Programming and/or policy addressing the social determinants of health, with a focus on food security and behavioral health.

Adaptive Fund proposals do not have a dollar limit, but resources are limited. Organizations seeking funding at levels greater than $10,000 are strongly encouraged to reach out to CareOregon’s grant program manager to discuss their request prior to submission.

Contact

Please direct all questions to CareOregon’s grant program manager at communitygivinggrants@careoregon.org or call 503-416-3913.