In a collaborative effort, United Way of Northern California and North Valley Community Foundation established the North State Equity Fund, with funding from S.H. Cowell Foundation and The McConnell Foundation, in 2020 after the tragic death of George Floyd.
The partner organizations provided seed money of $100,000 to begin a series of funding opportunities for non-profit organizations intended to spur positive efforts towards intercultural dialogue and equal opportunity.
In 2021, the Board of Directors of UWNC adopted an anti-racism statement to guide an equity-based framework for grantmaking and other community investments. With this framework, United Way seeks to reduce barriers equity-based organizations face in receiving grants.
Grantees from the 2022 grant cycle included: Black In Butte, Celebrating Life One Event At A Time, Civic Hacker Network, Dr. MLK Jr. Annual Breakfast, Scholarship & Technology Awards, Hmong Cultural Center of Butte County, Indigenous Language Network, Karuk Tribe, Northern California Youth Feather Dancers, Northstate Women’s Health Network, Red Bluff High School Diversity Club, Seeds of Ancestral Renewal, Shasta Beloved Community, Shasta Scout, The Sikh Centre, Toyon-Wintu Center (collaboration with Wintu Language Web), Trinity Together (collaboration with NorCal Outreach and Stonewall).
New funding opportunities will open again soon for the 2023 grant cycle.
For more information fill out the NSEF interest form here, and UWNC will notify you when applications open.