An Arkansas Philanthropic Partnership Strengthens Rural Communities!

The mission of Arkansas' Rural Community Alliance (RCA) is to help rural schools and communities survive and thrive. The organization consists of 64 chapters and more than 1,800 members in small, low-wealth rural communities. Members advocate for education policy on the local, state, and national levels while locally building social and financial capital to improve opportunities for their rural communities. RCA is a founding partner of the Rural Schools Collaborative.

Through the years RCA has received wonderful support and guidance from the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, which is based out of Little Rock. For more than 40 years, the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation has worked to make a difference by helping to build and sustain the organizations that serve and strengthen Arkansas. Through grantmaking and strategic partnerships, they work to help close the economic and educational gaps that leave too many Arkansas families in persistent poverty. The Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation believes that by "working together, the needle can and must move from poverty to prosperity for all Arkansans."

Candace Williams, executive director of the Rural Community Alliance and a Rural Schools Collaborative advocate, believes her organization's partnership with the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation has been integral to RCA's success.

Williams noted, "The support that the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation has provided to RCA has allowed us to take our work and outreach to another level." She then added, "We are now better equipped to serve the rural communities which we represent and advocate for."

Candace Williams is executive director of the Rural Community Alliance.

Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation's history of support funding for the Rural Community Alliance is listed below:

2016--To carry out the organization's mission to help rural schools and communities thrive through resident engagement, education advocacy, community revitalization, policy development, and leadership development.

2014--To carry out the organization's mission to help rural schools and communities thrive through community revitalization, leadership development, youth development, and education advocacy.

2013--To support RCA’s mission to develop grass-roots led community revitalization projects in low-wealth rural communities, provide training to its members, and support youth development projects.

2012--To establish a community theater in Elaine, Arkansas as a community engagement and economic development strategy.

2011--To support the implementation of resident-focused community development processes in low-wealth communities across Arkansas.

2010--To support efforts to engage Arkansas citizens in the Formula Fairness Campaign focused on ensuring that rural communities receive a more equitable share of federal Title I education funds.

Learn more at: http://www.wrfoundation.org/how-we-work/grants/rec...