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Organizations the Fund Supported in 2009

The Dunham Fund supports both programs and capital projects that respond to community needs primarily in the areas of Education and Community Development. In the first grant cycle of 2009, the Fund has awarded grants and scholarship funds totaling over $2.4 million to the following organizations:

 

Dunham Nursing Scholarship – Advancing Nursing in Aurora/$750,000
Rush Copley Foundation, in partnership with Alden of Waterford, Aurora University, Dreyer Medical Clinic, Kane County Health Department, Visiting Nurse Association of Fox Valley and Waubonsee Community College, will implement a nursing scholarship program to build a high-performing, diverse workforce of nurses in Aurora, Illinois. Over the next two years, an estimated 100+ nursing education scholarships will be awarded at the undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate levels.

 

Breaking Free, Inc./$509,309 (2nd installment of three year grant)
Breaking Free provides in-school substance abuse counseling to area teens in their Dunham Student Assistance Centers.

 

Quad County Urban League/$333,334 (Final installment of three year grant)
From its John C. Dunham Educational and Vocational Training Center, the League provides advocacy and support programs that range from an alternative learning environment at Aurora Middle School Academy to emergency rental assistance.

 

Dunham Emergency Assistance Fund/$250,000
In the first quarter of 2009, the Dunham Emergency Assistance Fund was established at the Fox Valley United Way in response to the unprecedented need for emergency food and shelter in the Aurora area during the recent economic downturn.

• Fox Valley United Way/$10,000
  This grant was made in appreciation of Fox Valley United Way’s administration of the Dunham Emergency Assistance Fund and for United Way’s achievement of the $100,000 match challenge for the fund.

 

Challenge for Change Grant Awards/$165,000 in total

• Institute for Collaboration’s Mathematics and Science Education System/$100,000
  The Institute and its partners brought together a collaborative coalition with the goal of developing an Aurora Mathematics and Science Education System that would culminate in a Magnet Academy for East Aurora and West Aurora elementary and middle school students who are gifted and talented in math and science. 
• Communities In Schools’ Community Assessment Project/$50,000
  The collaborators will develop a comprehensive, centralized data warehousing system for use by agencies who apply for funding both inside and outside Aurora. The primary focus of the project is to develop and analyze data that will support education and school-based community initiatives.
• Rush Copley Medical Center’s Binary Health Integration Project/$15,000
  Working with their six B-Hip collaborative partners in behavioral health, psychiatry, the Aurora East School District, and local human service agencies, the Copley family practitioners will coordinate the prevention, promotion, and especially, the early identification, intervention and treatment of mild to severe mental illness in children and teens in the Aurora area.


For a more comprehensive view of the Challenge for Change criteria and the three award recipients.

 

 

Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley/$180,000
The Dunham Fund Board of Advisors designated $180,000 for Dunham Scholarships for the 2010-2011 academic years to be administered by the Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley.

• Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley/$2,700 The Dunham Fund Board of Advisors also allocated funding for hardware and software purchases to implement an on-line application process for the Community Foundation's Scholarship Program.

 

Hesed House Employment Training Program/$100,000
Hesed House, an area homeless shelter, in partnership with Waubonsee Community College and the Illinois Employment and Training Center, Aurora Jobs Council and local employers will collaborate in a transitional employment program to provide job skills preparation and employment opportunities for homeless individuals. The Dunham Fund grant will reimburse 50% of 20+ trainees’ salaries for 90 days with cooperating local employers.

Association for Individual Development Internship Program/$76,400 (Two-year grant)
This internship program is in collaboration with Aurora University and will provide twenty students in the Health and Social Services field the opportunity for hands-on experience in Behavioral Health, Development Training, Residential Services, and other interactions with clients. The goal of the program is to provide a path that leads to employment at AID and other service providers in the Dunham Fund service area.

Joseph Corporation/$50,000
Joseph Corporation is a community-based nonprofit organization that focuses on affordable housing and counseling programs for homeowners. This grant was given specifically to provide JoCo clients with home foreclosure counseling.

Fischer Middle School Math Innovation Project/$49,000
The Math Innovation Project at Fischer Middle School in Aurora's Indian Prairie School District 204 was funded by the Dunham Fund through the Indian Prairie Foundation to equip a state-of-the-art math classroom with the "Lrn2innovate" software program and thin client technology. 

 

Mutual Ground/$35,000
This Dunham Fund grant was provided for the continuation of Mutual Ground's domestic violence shelter which offers a unique program in the Fund's service area for women and children in need of protective emergency services.

Peaceful Schools/$25,000
The Dunham Fund grant provided staffing and materials for school sites for this Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley sponsored anti-bullying program.

Serenity House/$25,000
Serenity House provides housing for individuals with substance abuse issues who must be in a recovery program, be employed and able to pay rent. The residents maintain the home and cooperatively share household duties until they can relocate to their own independent living arrangements. The grant provided by the Dunham Fund will be used by Serenity House for a down payment on a new residence, with the mortgage on the home to be serviced by the rent paid by the residents.

Spectrios Institute for Low Vision/$25,000
This Dunham Fund grant will partially fund a program in the Aurora area providing educational opportunities, on-site clinics and financial assistance for adults and children in need of low-vision rehabilitation.

Rosary High School Student Scholarships/$23,675
This Dunham Fund grant will provide emergency assistance scholarships for two outstanding, minority women students from the Aurora area currently attending Rosary High School. This grant will help each woman complete her high school education and will be matched dollar for dollar by the Dominican Sisters' Minority Fund.

Kaneland School Foundation/$10,000
The Kaneland Foundation sponsors an annual arts festival for the educational benefit of area school children, their families and the community-at-large. This grant will fund quarterly performances for the community-at-large and the annual Home Town concert.

Society of St. Vincent de Paul St. Katherine Drexel Conference/$10,000
This Dunham Fund grant will help the St. Katherine Drexel Conference with seed money for a new 501(c)(3) organization of volunteers who will respond to the increased demand for individuals in need of emergency assistance with rent, utility, food, clothing and medical payments during the current economic climate.