July 2010
$1 Million for Hartford’s Children and Families
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Children and seniors enjoy an afternoon of learning and sharing at a Brighter Futures Family Center program.

Children and seniors enjoy an afternoon of learning and sharing at a Brighter Futures Family Center program.
[Photo: Courtesy of Catholic Charities Institute for the Hispanic Family]

Grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation strengthens Hartford Foundation's Brighter Futures Initiative

A national foundation dedicated to promoting “the health, happiness and well-being of children” has awarded $1 million to the Hartford Foundation to strengthen a program that prepares children in Hartford for school and supports them in the early grades.

The grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation – established in 1930 by breakfast cereal pioneer W.K. Kellogg – is for the Hartford Foundation’s Brighter Futures Initiative, a $25-million program begun in 1990. 

“This collaboration between the Hartford Foundation and the Kellogg Foundation, which is highly regarded nationally for its early childhood funding, will help us strengthen and expand services for Hartford’s children from birth to age eight,” said Linda J. Kelly, president of the Hartford Foundation. “It will also strengthen collaboration on issues affecting school readiness and quality of life for Hartford’s children and their families.”

“Since their inception with funding from the Hartford Foundation, Family Centers have broadened their reach into the community and developed numerous collaborative programs that have resulted in a diversified funding base,” said Chris Hall, vice president for planning and strategy.

Five Family Centers in Hartford each serve approximately 200 families a year.  The centers provide educational activities and support services, including early childhood education, parent advocacy and leadership development and adult education, as well as basic human needs.

The Kellogg funding will be used to:

  • Increase the availability of adult education programs offered by Family Centers, while at the same time providing on-site educational programs for their children.
  • Promote parental engagement, leadership development and advocacy.
  • Work with the Hartford Office for Young Children to improve its ability to plan, innovate and track approximately $35 million in annual expenditures that the city and the schools dedicate to early childcare and education.
  • Work with state and local officials to improve continuity between policies for young children, maximize federal funding, and reduce the number of low birth weight babies through increased enrollment in the Women, Infants and Children program by boosting a partnership between the Hartford Office for Young Children and Connecticut Commission on Children.

Learn more about the Brighter Futures Initiative >>