For Immediate Release: February 1, 2021
Contact: Kristin Ginger, Communications Manager, Housing Action Illinois, kristin@housingactionil.org or 312-854-3333
The Opportunity Starts at Home multi-sector affordable homes campaign is pleased to announce that it has awarded $50,000 grants to eight state-based organizations that share the national campaign’s goals. Each grantee will use the funding to diversify their state’s housing coalition to other sectors, such as health, education, civil rights, food security, climate, faith, anti-poverty, and more. Their multi-sector partnerships will be leveraged to engage federal elected officials who represent the state to enact policies which correct longstanding racial inequities and expand affordable housing for the nation’s lowest income people.
The grantees were selected through a highly competitive proposal process and will be formally recognized as state affiliates of the national campaign, as well as gain access to resources, multi-sector networks, and technical assistance from the national campaign. Each applicant demonstrated a strong commitment to advancing federal affordable housing solutions for the lowest income people, amplifying racial equity, and expanding partnerships to different sectors. The grantees are:
- Colorado Coalition for the Homeless
- Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness
- Housing Action Illinois
- Idaho Asset Building Network
- Minnesota Chapter of Opportunity Starts at Home
- NC Child
- Prosperity Indiana
- Texas Homeless Network
“Not only is it critical for Congress to hear from national advocates, but also from their own constituents in the states they represent,” said Mike Koprowski, National Director of the Opportunity Starts at Home campaign. “Housing Action Illinois will be a critical partner in helping the campaign achieve its goals. To be sure, the housing crisis cannot be solved without stronger federal action. And we are more likely to build the necessary political will in Congress when an array of sectors are standing shoulder-to-shoulder demanding solutions, rather than just housing advocates alone.”
“Where you live affects everything in your life, from your financial stability and job opportunities to your education and health,” said Sharon Legenza, Executive Director at Housing Action Illinois. “We need to build multi-sector partnerships to address a multi-sector issue. This grant will help us create critical partnerships and engage with our elected officials more effectively as a broader coalition, with allies from different fields, united in our call to create and protect affordable housing.”
In addition to this new cohort of grantees, the campaign also has previously established partnerships with Housing California, Maine Together, Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey, Housing Network of Rhode Island, Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio, Oregon Housing Alliance, and Utah Housing Coalition.
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