PROVIDENCE – The Women’s Fund of Rhode Island contributed nearly $50,000 in 2017 in local engagement as part of a national funding collective dedicated to helping low-income women and their families obtain economic security, the WFRI announced Wednesday.
The Women’s Fund of Rhode Island’s local investment included two $10,000 grants for the Center for Women and Enterprise and Year Up Providence. Both the Center for Women and Enterprise and Year Up focus on providing women with career advancement opportunities, including education and training.
The other $30,000 contributed to the state economy included the production of the 2017 Status of Working Women in Rhode Island report, among other projects.
According to WFRI’s report, Rhode Island had a relatively low women’s unemployment rate at 4.9 percent. Rhode Island women had the second-highest rate of long-term unemployment in the United States in 2015, according to the group.
“Local research indicates that many features of our economy could be improved for Rhode Island women,” said Kelly Nevins, executive director of the Women’s Fund of Rhode Island, in a statement. “Workplace policy, government regulations, collective action and educational attainment are all areas that can grow access and opportunity for low-income women and their families.”
The nonprofit organization is a part of Prosperity Together, a nonpartisan group of 32 women’s foundations across 26 states and Washington, D.C., who collectively committed $100 million to supporting women’s economic advancement over five years.
In the two years since the collective commitment was announced in November 2015, the group has invested $58,421,499 nationally – 58 percent of the five-year goal. The investments have supported 1,022 nonprofit organizations and 137,153 women and girls nationwide, the organization said.
Lauren Aratani is a PBN contributing writer.
