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The New Jersey State Council on the Arts yesterday awarded more than $30 million in grants to support approximately 900 arts organizations, projects, and artists throughout the state. The grants were approved at the Council's 58th Annual Meeting in Trenton, which featured a special musical performance by Hector Morales, a 2024 Arts Council Heritage Fellow.

State funding for the Arts Council comes from the revenue generated through the State’s Hotel/Motel Occupancy Fee, and supports arts activity in all 21 counties. From the smallest neighborhoods to the largest cities, artists and arts organizations strengthen communities and offer solutions for complex issues we all care about – quality education, health and wellness, thriving economies, cross-cultural understanding, and more.

“The investment made in our state’s artists and organizations has a direct, positive impact on New Jersey residents, families, businesses, and communities,” said Acting Governor Tahesha Way, who oversees the Council in her role as Secretary of State. “It’s an honor to work closely with the Council to help our state’s creative industries thrive, and to ensure New Jersey’s diverse constituencies can access the many benefits of the arts.”

The Trustees of The Fund for New Jersey awarded $1,250,000 in grants to 18 non-profit organizations at their June 2021 quarterly Board meeting. Grants were awarded to organizations in the areas of climate change and clean energy, environmental protection, voting rights, education, criminal justice reform, social justice and workers’ rights, and transportation.

Kiki Jamieson, President of The Fund for New Jersey, stated, “We at The Fund are pleased to invest in these policy organizations working to offer solutions that address the growing climate crisis, protect the state’s natural resources, improve public transportation, expand voting rights, and promote racial and economic justice in New Jersey. These investments are critical in making New Jersey a better place to live, with access to opportunities for all residents and newcomers.”

Jamieson continued, "We are proud to highlight the work of the NJ Domestic Workers Coalition, consisting of six different grassroots organizations advocating for the rights of domestic workers, such as housekeepers, nannies, and home care workers in New Jersey. Many of these workers are typically excluded from overtime pay, federal labor laws, minimum wage, and other labor protections that we often take for granted. In New Jersey, 97% of domestic workers are women, 60% women of color, and 52% are immigrants. Too many of these workers are denied lunch breaks, owed money, or at risk on the job due to the lack of safety precautions. Eliminating the inequalities that domestic workers face is a critical task that we must overcome to give them a real opportunity to succeed and to treat them with dignity and respect.”

The F. M. Kirby Foundation Board of Directors announced 249 grants totaling $14,354,050 were made in 2022 to nonprofit organizations working to foster self-reliance and create strong, healthy communities. Over half of these organizations have been partners of the Foundation for over 20 years, in keeping with the Foundation’s philosophy of long-term investments in effective programs.

The Foundation’s 2022 grantmaking included increased contributions to nonprofit organizations in the arts and humanities, education, health, human services, environment and animals, public affairs, and religion. Over 100 grants totaling more than $5.2 million were awarded to New Jersey-based nonprofit organizations working to make a direct impact on people’s lives throughout the state, 60 of which (totaling $3.1 million) supported work in Morris County, the Foundation’s home county. Additional grants totaling over $9 million supported organizations in Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina, regions connected to Kirby family members, as well as national nonprofits largely based in Washington, D.C. and New York City.

Reflecting on a year of grantmaking supporting both consistent community partners and exciting new initiatives, Executive Director Justin Kiczek stated, “The F. M. Kirby Foundation was founded more than 90 years ago by Fred Morgan Kirby, an entrepreneur. The values that led to his success have informed this organization and its grantmaking since its founding. We are proud of the ways in which we supported, in 2022, the entrepreneurs, innovators, and problem-solvers who are fostering strong and healthy communities. On a local level, our grantmaking this year supported organizations like Rising Tide Capital, based in Jersey City, NJ, in their mission to transform lives and communities through entrepreneurship. On the other hand, we continued to promote national and global social entrepreneurship through the F. M. Kirby Prize for Scaling Social Impact, administered by the Center for the Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. We remain committed to funding the next generation of Fred Morgan Kirbys, who are inspired to use their entrepreneurial vision to tackle the significant challenges of our era.”

The FirstEnergy Foundation awarded more than $3.43 million to nearly 100 organizations across its six-state service territory for the final round of "Investing with Purpose," an initiative focused on supporting nonprofit organizations that advance health and safety, workforce development, educational and social justice initiatives. In addition, FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) provided $220,000 to five organizations as part of the initiative. The grants build on $3.3 million in charitable contributions the Foundation awarded in December 2020 as part of the initial round of giving, which has collectively gifted $7 million to nearly 200 nonprofit organizations making a difference in the communities served by FirstEnergy's 10 electric companies.

"Investing with Purpose" was developed in response to the COVID pandemic, which created health, financial and educational hardships for customers across FirstEnergy's footprint, and in response to the events of 2020 that highlighted racial and social injustices impacting our nation. With those issues in mind, the Foundation identified philanthropic opportunities through nonprofit organizations across its service territory that are responding to needs of vulnerable populations. The "Investing with Purpose" initiative represents an additional commitment on top of the company's annual charitable giving, which averages approximately $10 million per year.

"Many of our communities are still facing a significant hardship due to the pandemic. Nonprofit organizations on the frontline of our current health and economic crisis have realigned to support current needs in the community, including housing, workforce development and training, and the continued support of our healthcare workers," said Lorna Wisham, vice president of Corporate Affairs & Community Involvement and president of the FirstEnergy Foundation. "We've witnessed the positive impact these grants made for deserving organizations in 2020, and we look forward to seeing how the second round of contributions will help strengthen the communities we serve."