The nine winners of the $1 million Key to Community Grants have been announced.

As part of the Philadelphia Foundation's Key to Community Grant, the general public throughout the Greater Philadelphia Region were given the opportunity to cast their vote between 15 different nonprofits, between July 8 and July 26. 

Three first place winners received $200,000, three second place winners received $100,000, and three third place winners received $33,000.

The grants were split between three categories: economic prosperity, the opportunity divide, and community and civic engagement. 

These are the organizations that have been named the winners across the grant categories, as chosen by three panels of judges:

Economic Prosperity

National Urban League President Marc H. Morial issued the following statement in response to the death of Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison:

“The world has lost an eloquent and singular voice of the African-American experience. Her work plumbed the psychic wounds of slavery and brought Black-centered stories into the mainstream. Her literary and spiritual legacy lives on. The Urban League Movement joins her family, friends and the nation in mourning this tremendous loss.”

Twenty-five people from Louisville's poorest neighborhoods can take a coding class for free as part of the Louisville Skills program.  The program is a partnership between Interapt, The University of Louisville, the Louisville Urban League (Louisville, KY) and The Humana Foundation.

Anyone can apply.

It's designed to put people from Louisville's poorest zip codes in high-paying jobs.  Louisville Skills runs for 40 hours a week for 3-4 months at the Hite Art Institute in west Louisville.  Students will also get a $100-a-week stipend, and they could land an apprenticeship when classes are done.

Applications are due Aug. 9.

To read the full article, click here. 

Hundreds of families celebrated the end of summer and received free school supplies thanks to the Urban League of Metropolitan Denver Young Professionals (Denver, CO).

"Everyone is having fun here today," Kwon Atlas of the ULMDYP said. "It's very important to engage the community, especially the young folks."

The nonprofit hosted its fourth annual 'Back to School Block Party' outside of the Vickers Boys and Girls Club. The event featured food and games for kids and their parents, in addition to free lunchboxes and an estimated 200 backpacks filled with school supplies.

"It says that Denver is a community that just everybody wants to help. Everybody wants to help anybody and everybody," Myka Barnes-Garcia, the Vice President of ULYP Denver Chapter, said. "Some of these people donating supplies have no idea who it's going to."

The Akron Urban League (Akron, OH) has a new president and CEO, but it's a familiar face.

The league on Monday, Aug. 5, announced that Teresa LeGrair will lead the nonprofit, beginning Sept. 3. LeGrair, who most recently served as director of community investment for the Akron Community Foundation, was the Akron Urban League's vice president of operations from 2003-05.

LeGrair also previously served as president and CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Western Reserve and a vice president of the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank. She also held positions with National Inventors Hall of Fame and Aetna Health Plans.

"I am honored to be selected to lead the Akron Urban League and help advance the organization's mission," LeGrair said in the release.

For the seventh year in a row, The Chicago Urban League (Chicago, IL) took part in their signature Student Mission Trip to China, an exchange program which included 16 African American students.  The Student Mission Trip to China gave youth from underserved communities a global perspective on their lives and empowered them to see themselves as part of a global community. 

NEW YORK (August 4, 2019) -- National Urban League President Marc H. Morial issued the following statement in response to the nation’s plague of mass shootings which surged with five attacks in the last eight days, in which 100 people were shot and at least 35 died. 

“Our paralysis in response the scourge of mass shootings is our national shame. The slavish devotion of elected officials to the gun manufacturing lobby is killing us, literally and spiritually.

“At least one of the shooters was inspired by violent and racist rhetoric streaming from the highest office in the land, yet we see little willingness to on the part or our lawmakers either to condemn the rhetoric or to stem the tide of violence. 

NEW YORK (JULY 31, 2019) -- Gillibrand, Bass Introduce Landmark Legislation To Make Bold Reforms To American Infrastructure Investment

Gillibrand, Bass introduce landmark legislation to make bold reforms to American infrastructure investment to raise wages and labor standards, train a new generation of workers, put low-income communities first, and help end decades of failed federal policies that have isolated communities of color