Ford Foundation and GNOF Continue in Partnership
A Greater New Orleans Foundation partner for many years, the Ford Foundation is renewing its commitment to the region through its Ford Metropolitan Opportunity program. The Ford Foundation has selected New Orleans and its long-time ally-the Greater New Orleans Foundation-to address urban issues such as joblessness and urban blight.
“Our goals are aligned. They want to build stronger communities and a promising future for families,” said Ellen Lee, senior vice president of programs for the Greater New Orleans Foundation. “We’ll continue to be a local resource for the Ford Foundation as we partner in this new community development work.”
The funding for this program will go beyond the investment the Ford Foundation has already made in workforce housing. Ford was one of the first supporters of the Greater New Orleans Foundation’s Community Revitalization Program, a housing initiative comprised of local and national foundations that has resulted in the production or rehabilitation of 6,600 homes over the past several years.
Through the Ford Metropolitan Opportunity Program, $1.3 million will be directed toward integrating services for low-income families.
“Housing is key, but for a family to succeed, access to jobs, transportation, and good schools is just as important,” said Lee. “These resources will allow us to connect these critical services so that families can achieve long-term stability.”
This is a great program and commitment to improve the quality of life in New Orlean’s low and moderate income communities. As a community partner and homeowner in Treme, I am hopeful some of those resources will help African-Americans like me rebuild our homes and mitigate the blight that many of us are struggling to remove because of the lack of financial resources and the cost of preserving the history, culture and architectural beauty of these neighborhoods.