The Chicago Community Trust

OPPORTUNITY: A new from Press Forward Chicago. This funding opportunity will give grants to Chicago-based news organizations and journalism support organizations for projects focused on collaborations, shared resources, or infrastructure benefitting local media.

Details at the link:

RFP: Press Forward Chicago – Collaborations & Infrastructure 2026 - The Chicago Community Trust Press Forward Chicago is a grantmaking initiative administered by The Chicago Community Trust—designed in partnership with the John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and local journalism donors and practitioners.

On Chicago’s South and West sides, vacant lots and abandoned properties have long contributed to lower home values, population loss, and difficulty maintaining the businesses and services that are essential to a thriving community.

Reclaiming Chicago, a campaign led by United Power for Action and Justice, aims to change that through a proven national model for building affordable homes at scale.

Across Chicago, hundreds of nonprofit organizations – and the people who power them – show up every day with unwavering dedication to strengthen our communities, rise to meet challenges, and support neighbors in need.

Learn how this community changemaker is building homes and restoring hope: https://www.cct.org/stories/building-homes-restoring-hope-reclaiming-chicago/

When it comes to solving complex challenges, what can philanthropy do? How do we build spaces where funders and nonprofit partners can dream, experiment, and do more together than we could alone? For decades, The Chicago Community Trust and Kinship Foundation have been answering these questions through collaborations that push beyond traditional grantmaking.

Our latest joint effort, the Transfer Innovation Impact Model (TIIM), brings two- and four-year institutions together to redesign the college transfer experience so that more students can successfully complete a bachelor’s degree – particularly those at greater risk of not finishing.

Together, we’re making big ideas real: https://www.cct.org/stories/making-big-ideas-real-together/

Level up your nonprofit’s impact by integrating policy advocacy into your strategy or strengthen your current approach with expert tips on influencing local, state, and federal government. New America Chicago’s CivicSpace initiative and The Chicago Community Trust are hosting a workshop to help your organization take community priorities and needs from bold ideas to policy reality.

Policy Advocacy & Implementation Training for Nonprofits
June 26, 2026
10:00 a.m. –1:00 p.m. CDT

Link to register:

Policy Advocacy & Implementation Training for Nonprofits Level up your nonprofit’s impact by integrating policy advocacy into your strategy or strengthen your current approach with expert tips on influencing local, state, and federal government. New America Chicago’s CivicSpace initiative and The Chicago Community Trust are hosting a workshop to help ...

Many people know the Greater Chicago Food Depository, founded in 1979, as Chicago’s food bank. Last year alone, it partnered with more than 850 organizations to provide 96 million meals to more than 2.3 million households. But the Food Depository isn’t just feeding neighbors in need – it’s working to end hunger through strategic policy and advocacy to strengthen the social safety net.

In 2025, amid rising food insecurity and changes to SNAP eligibility, the Food Depository launched an awareness campaign to address misconceptions about the program and help more Chicagoans maintain access to critical food assistance.

Across Chicago, hundreds of nonprofit organizations – and the people who power them – show up every day with unwavering dedication to strengthen our communities, rise to meet challenges, and support neighbors in need.

See how GCFD is feeding today while changing tomorrow: https://www.cct.org/stories/feeding-today-changing-tomorrow-greater-chicago-food-depository/

The spirit of generosity turns today's challenges into tomorrow's solutions. As we near America’s 250th birthday, we reflect on how the spirit of American generosity serves as an essential bridge for our communities.

For us at The Chicago Community Trust, we have stood with and for Chicago for over 111 years. The work we do alongside our community partners, dedicated donors, and civic leaders is in pursuit of a Chicago where everyone can feel financially secure, care for their families, and invest in our region's future.

Together, we turn generosity into impact.

One example: our grant recipients at the Greater Chicago Food Depository working alongside more than 800 community partners to address food insecurity and end hunger.

See this change in the making: https://youtu.be/EuVDfUNBLV8?si=yuW8BJIa0RxMJSTY

For more than 50 years, business and civic leader King Harris has brought vision, energy, and a hands-on approach to philanthropy in Chicago. From housing to the arts, higher education to community development, his work has touched a wide range of issues that contribute to the region’s well-being.

During Harris’ 10 years on our Executive Committee, The Chicago Community Trust benefited from his wide lens on the region. In turn, Harris says the experience gave him an even broader perspective by introducing him to people, organizations and initiatives he might not otherwise have known.

Explore Harris’ lifetime of supporting Chicago: https://www.cct.org/stories/king-harris-a-lifetime-of-supporting-chicago/

Founded in 1984, the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) works to ensure all immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers in and around Chicago have access to legal counsel and a fair day in court. By combining direct legal services with strategic advocacy and litigation, NIJC works to transform the immigration system.

Across Chicago, hundreds of nonprofit organizations – and the people who power them – show up every day with unwavering dedication to strengthen our communities, rise to meet challenges, and support neighbors in need.

Learn how this community changemaker is protecting the rights and dignity of others: https://www.cct.org/stories/protecting-the-rights-dignity-of-all-national-immigrant-justice-center/

What does neighborhood transformation look like up close? Yesterday, members of our donor community found out when they joined The Chicago Community Trust for a neighborhood tour highlighting the Connecting Capital and Community (3C) initiative—and saw firsthand how 3C is working to expand homeownership opportunities for Chicagoans. At Inherent, we watched innovative modular homes take shape on the factory floor. Then, we stepped inside two newly built homes from 3C developer partners Nath Construction and Citizens Building a Better Community that now stand where vacant parcels once sat on Chicago's West Side.

Seeing, touching, and walking through these spaces brought 3C's vision to life. 3C unites cross-sector partners to strengthen neighborhood stability in East Garfield Park and Humboldt Park—expanding access to homeownership for first-time homebuyers through coordinated investment, policy innovation, and community-driven solutions.

"Housing stock that is affordable to working people is essential to our city," said Trust President and CEO Andrea Sáenz. "Having financial stability allows people space to plan for their future. And it is only possible to achieve this in neighborhoods that have amenities and feel safe and vibrant.”

Thank you to our guests, hosts, and partners who braved the heat to join us!

Learn more about 3C: www.cct.org/3c

[Photo Credit: Jamel Williams/THREE20 Media]

The Chicago Community Trust's Stay in Place initiative is focused on preserving homeownership and increasing home equity. This aims to prevent displacement and help low- and moderate-income Chicagoans living in neighborhoods experiencing both historic underinvestment and rapidly rising costs.

In 2025, the Trust awarded $3.4 million in grants to nonprofits in two pilot neighborhoods — Englewood and Pilsen — that are testing innovative approaches to help neighbors stay in their homes, thereby strengthening their communities.

Learn why a home is more than bricks and mortar: https://www.cct.org/stories/a-place-to-stay-a-path-to-stability/