A little more than four years after announcing it would provide up to $100 million in grants over a five-year period to help Flint recover and rise from its water crisis, the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation has awarded more than $106 million in related grants. The Foundation announced its five-year commitment on May 11, 2016.
“While we’ve fulfilled our financial pledge ahead of schedule, our commitment to our hometown is as strong as ever,” said Ridgway White, president and CEO of the Mott Foundation.
“We know many residents still feel like things haven’t improved for them since the water crisis, and now we’re also grappling with the coronavirus pandemic,” White added. “We want to assure the Flint community that we intend to be here to work with you to address the challenges we face- today and in the future.”
The Foundation’s grantmaking related to the water crisis has focused on six priorities. They are listed below, along with the total funding for each:
- Access to safe drinking water: $5.1 million
- Meeting the health needs of families: $7.6 million
- Supporting educational opportunity: $67.5 million
- Strengthening the nonprofit and public sectors: $3.4 million
- Promoting community engagement: $0.8 million
- Revitalizing the local economy: $22.2 million
Earlier this month, three grants supporting educational opportunities in Flint brought the Foundation’s support for the water crisis past the $100 million mark:
- $3.7 million to the Genesee Area Focus Fund to provide high-quality, research-based afterschool programming in all Flint public schools.
- $3.3 million to the Crim Fitness Foundation to support community education in the Flint Community Schools District.
- $500,000 to the Cranbrook Educational Community to provide Flint students in grades K–12 with supplemental educational opportunities in STEM.
The full list of grants and updates on the Foundation’s response can be found at
mott.org/flint-water.
