The W.W. Caruth, Jr. Fund is CFT’s largest endowment gifted to CFT through the estate plans of the late William Walter Caruth, Jr. to advance innovative and evidence-based solutions to significant community challenges in the areas of education, public safety, health, and medical and scientific research. Mr. Caruth aspired to combine his heart for giving with the tools of entrepreneurship and scientific inquiry to bring about widespread community improvements, and these latest grants advance those goals.
These recent grants focus on education, health, and public safety and were awarded to the following nonprofits: City Year, Communities in Schools Dallas Region, The Concilio, Dallas Afterschool, Dallas Innovation Alliance, Education Opens Doors, The Family Place, Genesis Women’s Shelter, North Texas Healthcare Collaborative, Per Scholas, Safe Haven of Tarrant County, SMU Deason Center, TexProtects – Family Connects, UNT Dallas Principal Impact Collaborative, and Urban Teachers.
Of the fifteen awards:
- Nine of the grants seek to either improve educational outcomes for children and adults by reducing learning loss, working to close the racial achievement gap and digital divide, or ensuring mental health services are available for at-risk students across Dallas. These grants aim to support teachers and students through the current online learning challenges, as well as parent engagement programs to assist learning at home.
- Two of the grants seek to improve the health and wellbeing of individuals and families through increased access to community resources and health insurance coverage.
- Three of the grants aim to reduce domestic violence and raise awareness regarding its cause, prevalence, and impact.
- One grant will fund the conducting and publishing of empirical research on rural criminal justice systems in Texas, recommend policy changes, and raise awareness of the needs and challenges in these communities.
The below table contains a full list of the recent grantees, award amounts, and project descriptions.
| Grantee Organization and Project Title | Grant Amount and Caruth Focus Area | Project Description |
| City Year Broadening the scope of responsibilities for the City Year Dallas Corps Members |
$500,000 Multi-Year Grant Education | As the Dallas Independent School District (DISD) reopens, principals & teachers’ jobs have never been more challenging. Many of the 6,600 students in the ten DISD schools that City Year partners with are re-entering the 2020-21 school year with significant learning loss due to emergency school closures last spring, mixed experiences with distance/virtual learning, increased emotional trauma, as well as being impacted by the digital divide. City Year recruits and trains Corps Members ages 18-25 from diverse backgrounds to serve full-time in DISD schools, providing literacy, math, attendance, and social-emotional learning (SEL) interventions, plus targeted 1:1 support for students most at risk of dropping out. Funding will be used to support the programming changes City Year made and the increased roles the Corps Members have taken on to meet the unique needs of DISD partners and students during the pandemic, as they are now performing duties akin to a traditional teacher’s assistant as well as “near peer” mentorship. |
| Communities in Schools Dallas Ensuring mental health services are available and accessible for at-risk students across Dallas County |
$500,000 Multi-Year Grant Education | The devastating effects of the pandemic include increased mental health issues within schools, including an increase in depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, and attempts, particularly affecting low-income students of color. Communities in Schools Dallas (CISDR) operates in 85 schools in ten school districts in the Dallas region, providing tailored, culturally relevant information, supports, and interventions around mental and behavioral health issues for 8,000+ students. CISDR is finding that as many as 60% of the students they serve are experiencing some form of mental health issues, and is working with schools to help identify early warning signs, intervention, and to expand mental health clinical serves available for students and their families. CISDR has expanded programs despite budget cuts, and funding will be used to support program services for the next two school years to help ensure that mental health services are available and accessible for at-risk students across Dallas County. |
| The Concilio Offering evidence-based programming and technology access to families in need |
$200,000 Multi-Year Grant Education | In partnership with local schools and social service agencies, The Concilio serves the growing Hispanic population in North Texas, offering effective dual-generation programming to parents and their children, addressing their unique educational and health challenges. During the pandemic, 81% of The Concilio’s clients have lost their jobs or experienced a decrease in the number of work hours available. Families face additional challenges as they navigate digital learning, due to lack of access to consistent technology and technical literacy. The Concilio offers evidence-based Parents Advocating for Student Excellence (PASE) bi-lingual programming sessions to families in Dallas and Fort Worth schools to address these issues. Additionally, to support families with the new online learning environment, The Concilio developed a 6-week Technology Access program to increase digital equity by helping families set up email, access to Wi-Fi, and trainings on online platforms to improve their ability to access technology. Funds will be used to cover program costs and hire additional essential staff to meet increased need and to support costs for tablets and hotspots to help families engage in virtual learning. Over 3,000 families will be served through these programs. |
| Dallas Afterschool Ensuring focused SEL, Literacy, and STEM resources are available and distributed for students in need | $75,000 Education | Dallas Afterschool works to create equity for children of all races and socio-economic backgrounds through high quality out-of-school programming. With an increase in out-of-school time (OST) due to the pandemic, the opportunity gap is growing. Studies show that lack of access to OST programming means that middle-income students receive more hours of learning compared to low-income students. Many students lack safe places, trusted peers, and mentors to engage fully in their education and receive support they need while out of school. In collaboration with their 35+ nonprofit partners running 100+ after school programs, funding will be used to expand the availability and distribution of focused social emotional learning (SEL), Literacy, and STEM activities for 2,500 students across Dallas County, including expanding the use of the online platform (DAS 360°) to offer virtual/distance activities when necessary, and responding to the evolving needs of their partners. Funding will also help provide continued racial equity training to staff, board members, partners, and stakeholders. |
| Dallas Innovation Alliance Addressing the digital divide in South Dallas by providing a Mobile Learning Lab, onsite educational support, and socially distanced programming, including STEM/STEAM |
$150,000 Multi-Year Grant Education |
The Dallas Innovation Alliance (DIA) is a 501(c)3 public-private partnership dedicated to supporting a Smart City strategy in Dallas. DIA is focused on equity-driven issues in the Southern Sector, working on issues around mobility, public safety and the digital divide, providing connectivity and programs for students, parents and seniors impacted by the pandemic. The lack of broadband access impacts every facet of life these days, widening the opportunity gap many communities in Dallas are currently struggling to solve. There have been many challenges with moving classroom instruction online for both learners and teachers, but one of the most significant challenges is the lack of access. DISD estimates that as many as 30% of students do not have access to internet services, impacting their ability to connect to classes and engage in learning. As the pandemic continues, the need for online access continues to grow. In addition to the needs for access for public education, other services such as telemedicine, accessing and completing job applications and skills training requires high speed internet to be functional, as well as enrollment in public benefits such as WIC, social security and Medicare/Medicaid. As an interim solution for addressing the digital divide in South Dallas, DIA is providing a Mobile Learning Lab, which is a school bus converted into a classroom with a wi-fi signal of a 300’ radius that provides a wi-fi hot spot, onsite educational support and socially distanced programming, including STEM/STEAM programming, homework support, as well as support for job seekers, and educational programs for adults and seniors in the areas of financial and digital literacy. DIA partners with community organizations in Southern Dallas to host the Mobile Learning Lab and to offer programming. For the 2020/2021 school year, DIA is using the Mobile Learning Lab to support homework assistance during afternoon and evening hours, providing on-board tutoring, experiential learning, financial and digital literacy, resources for parents, and more. Wi-Fi will be turned on all day at the site for use during class time for community members to access. Weekend programming includes seminars for seniors on financial planning, digital literacy, identity theft and fraud protection. Funding will be used to expand and expedite services provided by the Mobile Learning Lab, increasing hours of operation, and increasing staff to ensure management of social distancing and program increase. |
| Education Opens Doors Providing an all-digital distance-learning option as well as supporting teachers with tools for in-person learning that ensure students receive parallel experiences |
$100,000 Education | Education Opens Doors (EOD) exists to open doors for middle and early high school students who are predominately students of color, students living in low-income communities, or students who may be the first in their family to attend college. EOD is providing an all-digital distance-learning option in the form of an online Guidebook as well as supporting teachers with tools for in-person learning that ensure students receive parallel experiences at home, virtually or in the classroom. The goal of the EOD program is to ensure students gain the knowledge required to pursue the high school of their choice and ultimately enroll in postsecondary education. To achieve this goal, the EOD Program partners with schools and other student-centered programs in the community to reach middle and early high school students (ages 12 to 16) from communities of color, those living in low-income communities, and future first-generation college students. During the COVID-19 pandemic, EOD pivoted its model of service delivery to meet the dynamic needs of schools for the upcoming school year. EOD began providing an all-digital distance-learning option in addition to in-person learning through engaging, student-centered lessons, skills and knowledge both online and through an interactive Student Guidebook. This allows students to navigate the online platform at a self-led pace, through videos, activities and quizzes or for teachers to facilitate in person or virtually to ensure students receive parallel experiences at home, virtually or in the classroom. Funding will be used to digitize the remainder of the curriculum (year 2 of programming) and to support ongoing operational costs including but not limited to salaries of a curriculum writer and digital program team as well as EOD’s efforts to continue robust data collection. |
| Family Place, Inc. Providing emergency shelter and support services for domestic violence victims since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic | $500,000 Multi-Year Grant Public Safety |
The mission of The Family Place is to eliminate family violence through intervention and proactive prevention, extensive community education, advocacy and assistance for victims and their families. The Family Place is the largest family violence service provider in Texas with three emergency shelters and 177 shelter beds and have continued providing much needed emergency shelter and support services for domestic violence victims since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. |
| Genesis Women’s Shelter Providing safety, shelter, and support for women and children who have experienced domestic violence |
$500,000 Multi-Year Grant Public Safety |
The mission of Genesis Women’s Shelter & Support is to provide safety, shelter, and support for women and children who have experienced domestic violence, and to raise awareness regarding its cause, prevalence, and impact. Last year they saw 3,700 women and children at their emergency shelter, transitional housing apartments, and nonresidential counseling office. |
| North Texas Healthcare Collaborative Connecting individuals with health coverage and providing financial assistance to help afford health insurance coverage | $200,000 Health | COVID-19 has impacted the daily lives of all North Texas residents, especially those who have no financial safety net. The North Texas Healthcare Coverage Collaborative (NTHCC) is an innovative collaboration formed in response to the growing number of uninsured in our community. The goal of the collaborative is to quickly and efficiently connect individuals with health coverage and provide financial assistance to help afford health insurance coverage. |
| Per Scholas Partnering with IT employers with jobs to fill and provide custom curriculum to support individual market needs |
$150,000 Multi-Year Grant Health |
Per Scholas trains students (18+) who are un/underemployed and/or low-income (200% below federal poverty guidelines, by providing evidence-based technical career training and job placement services. Per Scholas has evolved to be at the forefront of national efforts to close the skills gap that separates too many otherwise capable individuals from rewarding career pathways in the technology sector. This is accomplished through partnering with the largest IT employers who have jobs they need to fill and then create a curriculum to support those individual market needs. Training is provided on a rolling basis, at no charge to the student. In Dallas, training courses include IT/Network Support, Software Engineering, with Cybersecurity launching in Fall 2020 to meet the employment demands. Per Scholas graduates have launched technology careers at local Dallas partner employers such as Cognizant, DART, IBM, Jamba Juice, Microsoft, NTT Data, State Farm Insurance, TEKsystems, Thomson Reuters, T-Mobile, UPS and more. In Spring 2020, Per Scholas pivoted to move all training online, continuing to serve learners with training and placement services, even during a challenging time. Online training has been more successful than they anticipated, and as a result they plan to continue to offer a digital option to help support and retain those learners who prefer an online option, even when they are able to return to in-person learning in 2021. Additionally, while some of their employers have been cutting back hiring during this time, they have been approached by new employer partners who are interested in working with Per Scholas to train new workers to fulfill their needs. Funding will be used to train 140 unemployed or underemployed individuals with industry-recognized IT training and certifications over the next 12 -14 months, preparing them for career placement with numerous tech companies looking for a diverse pool of talented individuals to join their organizations. |
| Safe Haven of Tarrant County Providing services at no cost to domestic violence victims |
$500,000 Multi-Year Grant Public Safety |
Safe Haven of Tarrant County seeks to end domestic violence through safety, support, prevention and social change. They are the largest and most comprehensive agency in Tarrant County providing services at no cost to domestic violence victims. SafeHaven provides 24-hour care at two emergency shelters and transitional housing. Last year they served 3,529 individuals. |
| SMU Deason Criminal Justice Reform Center Leading the nation’s first multi-site and multi-method study of rural criminal justice systems |
$100,000 Multi-Year Grant Public Safety |
Rural and tribal communities in Texas are currently facing a lack of effective legal services, while also being hit hard by opioid addictions and mass incarceration. In order to understand the impact and opportunities for criminal justice reform in rural and tribal communities, the Deason Criminal Justice Reform Center at SMU will be leading the nation’s first multi-site and multi-method study of rural criminal justice systems entitled “Country Justice”. The Country Justice research project will conduct and publish empirical research on rural criminal justice systems in Texas, recommend policy changes and raise awareness of the needs and challenges in these communities. |
| TexProtects – Family Connects Seeking to improve the health and wellbeing of individuals and families, as well as advance the interoperability and functioning of systems and communities |
$500,000 Multi-Year Grant Health |
With mental health disorders emerging at unprecedented levels due to the pandemic, the importance of a population-level approach to empower new mothers with confidence and support so they can be at their best is readily apparent. TexProtects, a respected leader in child advocacy, seeks to improve the health and wellbeing of individuals and families, as well as advance the interoperability and functioning of systems and communities by bringing Family Connects, an evidence-based model to Dallas County, providing mothers of newborns tailored support and access to community resources using a social determinants of health approach and delivered through registered nurses. |
| UNT Dallas Principal Impact Collaborative Ensuring that North Texas education leaders are equipped with skills, knowledge, and resources to drive equitable impact that will be needed to combat learning loss during COVID-19, and build inclusive, equitable school cultures | $300,000 Multi-Year Grant Education |
COVID-19 has had a disproportionate impact on the health, wellbeing, and educational prospects of Black and Hispanic youth, which makes it more critical that school leaders are equipped with the resources, skills, and knowledge to drive equitable impact. Historically, ~21% of DFW principals turnover each year, a figure likely to increase due to the pandemic. As resources have depleted and inequities are exacerbated, the role of a principal is even more complex, as they must be innovative and equity-driven to ensure the most vulnerable students aren’t left behind. To compound these challenges, the recent dissolution of Teaching Trust, a key partner organization dedicated to school leader professional development, creates a critical gap in the local education community, with the leadership pipeline of many local school districts left without the support they need. Principal Impact Collaborative provides high quality continuing education and skill development for North Texas principals. They are working to expand their existing model through the addition of customized programs for first and second-year principals from North Texas districts as well as building out their current program to ensure an improved focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion. These efforts will ensure that more North Texas education leaders are equipped with skills, knowledge, and resources to drive equitable impact that will be needed to combat learning loss during COVID-19, and build inclusive, equitable school cultures. |
| Urban Teacher Center Supporting teachers in their efforts to delivery quality virtual and hybrid instruction and provide improved social and emotional support to students and families | $500,000 Multi-Year Grant Education |
Urban Teachers is a local leader in recruiting, training, and retaining quality teachers in urban school districts in North Texas through their comprehensive recruitment and retention strategy that currently impacts 330 teachers and 15,500 students in Dallas ISD and Uplift Education schools. Their work is even more vital during COVID-19 given the additional need to support teachers in their efforts to deliver quality virtual and hybrid instruction and provide improved social and emotional support to students and families, as well as support and coaching for teachers as they navigate teaching during this stressful time. Urban Teachers moved all coursework and coaching for teachers online, utilizing Zoom, Blackboard, and Whetstone, along with creating virtual recruitment events and interviews online to continue to recruit teachers to Dallas’ most high-need schools. Urban Teachers has adjusted its content so that its 330 teachers and their 15,500 students in Dallas’ most high-need schools can navigate the transition between distance learning, hybrid learning, and face-to-face instruction as conditions , along with models of lesson planning, best practices, and methods for interactive lessons in each format. They are also offering their teachers enhanced emotional and wellness support, along with information and a referral network to ensure that families who are facing housing, food, or economic security barriers have the resources they need to resolve them. Funding will be utilized to directly support Preparation Program Delivery for participating teachers in Dallas, including enhancing the program to accommodate and include best practices for online and hybrid learning, as well to enhance coaching to allow for an online coaching program to support teachers. |
