 Rural America is vast! It covers 3,444,930 square miles, more than 97% of the total U.S. land mass and has 21% of the total U.S. population.  Our tri-county area is 3,680 square miles with a population around 99,000.

 A community-wide partnership  A collaboration of service providers and community stakeholders  A united and visible voice of the community  A backbone or umbrella organization

County Families below poverty level Children Below poverty level Children receiving Food Stamps Children Participating in WIC Children on Medicaid Free & Reduced Lunch Colorado 16%27.6%21.4%37.2%32.9%64.8% Wharton 18.9%26.6%24.3%43.8%32.8%66.8% Matagorda 21.2%28.4%31.8%42.9%40.6%71.7% Children from homes below poverty level start school behind and stay behind Disadvantaged children have lower levels of soft skills Skills beget skills. Early success fosters later success.

American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates of Population Below Poverty Level EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT - Less than 9th grade – – – – – – – – – – 36.8

 All kids Kindergarten ready  All 3 rd graders reading at grade level  All kids graduate from high school  All adults have access to literacy and workforce development success

Fund Development The Gulf Coast Medical Foundation has provided a generous grant to hire a fund development manager to secure funding necessary to build capacity and increase literacy services. Development Training To support the growth of fund development in partner organizations our grant writer will be available twice a month by appointment to partners to work one on one to increase their grant writing skills. Phone and consultation is also available. Partner Support Fund This fund is designed to enable partners to apply for support for specific key short term projects that are needs-based and demonstrate effective return on investment. Recipients will submit a brief project evaluation that includes data to qualify for additional support. Backbone Support The Gulf Coast Foundation Collaborative members have invested in the coalition by providing a salary for an executive director to manage the work of the coalition. A strong backbone organization is a powerful investment to secure sustained progress over time.

Community Engagement!

Backbone Organization

Common Agenda Shared Measurement Mutually Reinforcing Activities Continuous Communication Backbone Organizations

 Understanding the concept of catalytic philanthropy  Using four basic strategies to develop funding partnerships  Working with a funders collaborative  Aligning community and funding goals for success

 Awarded OneStar Foundation Grant to build partnership  Initial 20 partner organizations grew to nearly 100  Monthly partner meetings every month since  Information sharing, networking, collaborative planning, training  Awarded USDA/RCDI grant  503 individuals participated in training during course of grant

 All American Cities GLR Finalist/CSAP  Helped develop County Community Plans for HGAC submittal  Gulf Coast Foundations Collaborative provided administrative/staffing funds to hire executive director  First Rural Coalition accepted into national STRIVE (Collective Impact) network  2013 – World Book Night partner – 500 books distributed

 Selected for the Results Based Scorecard national data pilot project  Collecting data across 12 school districts in 3 counties to set baseline for action  Chosen to receive Mobile Learning Lab by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting – thousands of apps distributed and mobile trans- media lab program kicked off  Awarded grant from Gulf Coast Medical Foundation for grant writing, media and web support

 What are the challenges related to the development of a funders collaborative and the implementation of catalytic philanthropy in your community?  What challenges or successes have occurred?  What have you experienced and what would you like to see…?