Supporting a resident-led approach to equitable community building
We ensure a coordinated and thoughtful approach to community building, one that includes meaningful involvement of Black, Hispanic and Latinx residents and organizations with a stake in the decisions being made.
Strategic Partners
To advance the Wean Foundation community-building mission, we focus key investments to create a resourced and sustained physical landscape in Warren and Youngstown through resident-centered neighborhood revitalization.
In 2009, the Foundation formed a critical public-private partnership with the City of Youngstown to establish the city’s first neighborhood-focused community development corporation. The Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation (YNDC) was founded to improve the quality of life in Youngstown by building and encouraging investment in neighborhoods of choice for all.
Building on the success of this work, Trumbull Neighborhood Partnership (TNP) was launched in 2010 as a community development corporation to empower residents and promote sustainable community development in the City of Warren.
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As community-based organizations, YNDC and TNP operate as strategic partners of the Wean Foundation. This strategic partnership is characterized by a significant level of Foundation investment, as well as:
- A commitment to the Foundation’s values of resident engagement, race equity and inclusion, social equity, collaboration, community investment and learning
- The organizations’ strong leadership role in seeking to achieve a resourced and sustained physical landscape in Warren and Youngstown neighborhoods
- A deep engagement with the Foundation to achieve impact across strategic priorities.
Together, we share a clear vision to “collectively build capacity to provide voice to residents and leaders throughout the Mahoning Valley.”
YNDC is committed to improving the quality of life in Youngstown by building and encouraging investment in neighborhoods of choice for all. To accomplish this mission their focus is a dual approach that includes strategic investments to rebuild market confidence in neighborhoods with strong assets and broaden partnership strategies to strengthen Youngstown’s community development capacity and the citywide infrastructure supporting neighborhood revitalization.
TNP is dedicated to empowering residents through programming and projects that improve the quality of life in the neighborhoods of Warren, Ohio. The vision of TNP is to transform neighborhoods into meaningful places where people invest their time, money, and energy into their homes and neighborhoods; where neighbors have the capacity to manage day-to-day issues; and where neighbors feel confident about the future of their neighborhood.
Resident Council
Composed of Warren and Youngstown residents, the Wean Foundation’s Resident Council represents the rich diversity that makes the Mahoning Valley a vibrant community. Resident Council members, by way of their proximity to neighborhoods, use their time and talents to inform the Wean Foundation’s resident engagement efforts.
The Resident Council is intended to support and champion our vision of empowered residents creating an equitable Mahoning Valley. Members play a critical role in executing meaningful decisions in various aspects of our programming, contributing time and expertise in:
- Grantmaking: To ensure a fair and thoughtful decision-making process for grant awards
- Capacity Building: To review plans and provide input on proposed programming and vendors
- Convening & Partnerships: To participate, with staff, in relevant community events, activities and meetings
In all instances, Resident Council members serve as ambassadors of the Wean Foundation and promote specific events and programming.
Currently, our Resident Council is on pause as we work closely with our nonprofit partners to determine how best to respond amidst these challenging times. We expect to call on residents again soon with an intentional and meaningful ask, once the work before us is more apparent.
Christine Anderson
Danielle Anderson
Erica Putro
Grantmaking
Funding the development and implementation of viable solutions led by organizations whose leadership reflects the racial demographics of the communities in which they work.
Capacity Building
Supporting the strong leadership, strategy and impact of Black and Hispanic/Latinx-led organizations.
Convening and Partnerships
Defining challenges, formulating solutions and taking collective action, with Black and Hispanic/Latinx-led organizations who have a stake in the decisions being made.