On the Scene: The McCormick Foundation Blog

by Molly Baltman-Leonard, Assistant Director/Grantmaking, Communities Program In May 2017, the Chicagoland Workforce Funders Alliance , a collaboration of foundations and corporate funders focused on employment equity, received a $1 million personal gift from President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama. The Obama’s donation will support an effort to open apprenticeship pathways into the building trades for adults, especially young adults, who have been underrepresented in the trades sector. In partnership with the Obama Foundation, the Chicago Jobs Council, and a variety of other foundations and corporate partners, the Obamas’ gift will help to identify and solve workforce challenges within the Building Trade Sector such as: Capturing better data on diversity and inclusion. Coordinating leadership from "construction buyers" to support shared solutions and track progress in the sector as a whole. Designing and supporting effective career pathways for y

A look at several community collaborations working together to serve veterans. by Megan Everett, Director, Veterans Program When veterans come home they do not return to federal agencies; they return to communities across the country. And many of these communities do not have the knowledge, capacity and/or resources to support veterans, especially those facing service-related challenges. While most veterans successfully transition into civilian life, those who need assistance find that the post-service process can be frustrating and support hard to come by. There are approximately 415,000 veterans in the Chicagoland area, 700,000 in the state of Illinois. The McCormick Foundation veterans program strives to make Illinois the best state for veterans and military families to thrive. One way we approach this mission is to support pathways and networks to coordinated outcome-based programs that provide transitioning service members, veterans and military families ease of access to