In 2018, the Trustees launched a Deep Impact Grantmaking program that enabled the Foundation to establish multi-year partnerships with organizations and communities that were committed to developing or deepening a “whole family” approach that puts entire families on a path toward economic mobility and well-being.
Our 2Gen (two-generation) grantmaking strategy aligns with Ascend at the Aspen Institute’s 2Gen framework, which promotes policies, practices and holistic service delivery systems that honor lived experience and center the needs and strengths of children and the adults in their lives.
Today, more than a dozen O’Neill family members –across generations, geographies and family branches— are engaged in this multi-generational grantmaking program.
Together we are learning alongside our 2Gen partners. They are working to combine siloed child and adult programs or create new, cross-agency partnerships to ensure everyone’s needs in a family are met. Each approach is different and tailored to their community. Yet each seeks to listen to and engage families in reimagining solutions that reduce access barriers, broaden the range of available services, and strengthen community social networks and peer support.
Through this “by invitation only” grantmaking program, the Foundation is making fewer, high impact grants; sharpening its “whole-family focus”; advancing best practices to improve outcomes for families; and deepening relationships with grantee partners addressing generational poverty.
In partnership with Ascend at the Aspen Institute, we convene our grantee partners with other 2Gen experts and Ascend Network Partners to share learnings and best practices. We are proud of the transformative work of our grantee partners who have become avid 2Gen/ whole-family advocates within and beyond their own organizations.
For current 2Gen Grantee Partners:
The following videos convey the positive impact of the 2Gen/whole family approach on families, service providers, and community systems.
Promoting Maternal and Child Wellness: Integrating Home Visiting and Maternal and Child Health Programs
This video follows the journey of a family involved in Community of Hope’s home visiting program and highlights the importance of pre-natal and post-partum services with holistic wraparound family supports. Explore a wealth of resources offered by Community of Hope such as prenatal care, emotional wellness interventions, pediatric care, and more. Witness how Community of Hope’s evidence-based programs are actively breaking the cycle of poverty and fostering a thriving start for families in Washington, D.C.
Immigrant Families Thrive Through English Language and Health Literacy Education
Immigrant parents and caregivers come to Literacy Partners to transform their lives and create a brighter future for their children through the power of literacy. With free classes, community workshops, and support groups, caregivers develop the confidence and vital language skills to solve problems and achieve success in today’s world. This video tells the remarkable stories of women who have participated in the program.
Streamlining how Families Receive Support through Seamless, Cross-Agency Collaboration
Discover the compelling narrative of Mercy Center’s Familia Adelante/Family Forward initiative and the impact it has had on immigrant families in the South Bronx. This video includes the voices of families, staff, and an external evaluator who show how this Whole Family Approach effort is strengthening relationships, building financial stability and improving family health and well-being. Immerse yourself in the work of this partnership and their holistic approach that offers immigrant families a range of services to help them reach their goals.
Listening, Innovating and Advocating to Reduce Health Disparities and Improve Birth Outcomes
Since 2016, MetroHealth has implemented the nationally recognized Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) program in Northeast Ohio. NFP is a proven, evidence-based, community health model with a focus on reducing pre-term birth and infant mortality rates while promoting strong and healthy beginnings for families. NFP clients describe the challenges that first-time parents face and how relationships with NFP nurse home visitors provide the resources, trust, and self-confidence to create brighter futures for families.
Equity Means Access: Creating ‘No Wrong Door’ for Whole Family Transformation
The Centers creates transformative solutions for families in Northeast Ohio – no matter their background or current circumstances – so they can live healthier, more prosperous lives. As a multi-site provider of family, health, educational, youth residential, and employment services, The Centers is dismantling program silos and creating a ‘no wrong door’ system of intake and family service integration. Embedding a 2Gen/whole family framework and mindset across all departments, systems, and 650 staff reduces bureaucracy for clients and makes it easier for staff to connect families to the organization’s vast array of services and opportunities.
Collaboration | Building Resident Capacity and Strengthening Community for Young Families
The Family Partners initiative is the Sisters of Charity Foundation of Cleveland and Cleveland Central Promise Neighborhood’s collaborative approach for addressing the intergenerational cycle of poverty in the Central neighborhood. This initiative draws upon a network of community experts in early childhood and mental health to integrate early learning home visiting with mental health coaching, family supports, and peer connections. It brings together residents, schools, nonprofits, governmental agencies, and businesses who are committed to making Central Promise families safe, healthy, educated, financially secure, and rich in social capital.
[Podcast – November 2021]
In this episode, Leslie Perkul, President and CEO of the William J. and Dorothy K. O’Neill Foundation and Marjorie Sims, Managing Director of Ascend at the Aspen Institute in Washington, D.C. share why a whole family approach to family empowerment works and why resources allocated toward these efforts are as relevant as ever.
About the podcast:
Pascale Sykes Foundation presents, Working Together for Working Families, a series of timely discussions with leaders in the field of family services. Through engaging discussions, guests share the many applications of the Whole Family Approach in guiding families to achieve sustainable futures. The Whole Family Approach is a family-led strategy which provides adults and children with the tools to set, plan for, and achieve their goals together. For three decades the Pascale Sykes Foundation focused on empowering families to strengthen relationships, establish stability, and reach their goals. (Note: The Pascale Sykes Foundation closed its doors in 2022; however, their website offers a culmination of resources about the Whole Family Approach).
[Event Recording – February 2020]
As part of the “Resilient Families” series sponsored by the William J. and Dorothy K. O’Neill Foundation and Saint Luke’s Foundation, Anne Mosle, Vice President at the Aspen Institute and Executive Director of Ascend, spoke at the City Club of Cleveland. Learn about the core tenants of the two-generation approach, public opinion, and the lessons and opportunities for programs and policies that truly support families on a path to achieve their goals.
Publications:
