In 2001, fifteen women came together with a bold goal to focus intentionally on women and girls and the barriers they face in achieving their goals and dreams. Those founders knew their own voices were not carrying enough weight in the Central Ohio community they loved, so they set out to change that for themselves, and, more importantly, for generations to come. They founded the Women’s Fund of Central Ohio to be the vehicle for that change.
This year, the Women’s Fund is celebrating twenty-five years of deep impact in our community thanks to our founders’ vision and grit. We focus on three main pillars to achieve that impact: grantmaking, research, and advocacy.
During our first generation of work, the Women’s Fund has invested more than $6 million in innovative nonprofit grant partners led by and for women and girls. Those grants have funded trailblazing work to change societal systems that have never served women well and, thus, hold back women as well as our entire economy.
The Women’s Fund has also commissioned six groundbreaking research reports that investigate what barriers women and girls face as they navigate our current systems in search of success. We study what it takes to remove those barriers for women and girls and accelerate their wealth accumulation. We then freely share that research with the community to make the case for investments that drive women’s economic freedom. We also use our research to tailor our own grantmaking to achieve those goals.
Relying on our research reports and the productive relationships we have with grant partners who implement social change every day, we also advocate for the policies that will help our systems evolve to meet women’s specific lived experiences. We champion measures to accomplish equal pay, adequate paid leave, a robust, affordable childcare system, improved transportation options, comprehensive healthcare, and more.
Equally important as The Women’s Fund’s work is the way we do it. Though the Women’s Fund is a public foundation that accumulates, invests, and grants funds for mission-related purposes, it was not founded with a major endowment gift that solidified a sustained future from the start. Instead, it is a self-made organization funded entirely by thousands of diverse people who make consistent donations of all sizes each year, so that we can sustain our critical mission and grow.
Our next generation of work depends on our diverse and forward-thinking community continuing to grow as well. We need people of all identities (yes – men too!) to stand side-by-side with a shared commitment to making the case for believing, trusting, and funding limitless futures for women and girls. Those investments are the least risky investments we can make in a brighter future for all.
For more information about The Women’s Fund’s work and how to engage: https://womensfundcentralohio.org/
Join us at Keyholder on April 22: https://womensfundcentralohio.org/keyholder/
