AIDS Foundation of Chicago Announces
$1.2 Million in Grant Awards

CHICAGO -- The AIDS Foundation of Chicago (AFC) announced today the award of nearly $1.2 million in grant funding to more than 55 Chicago-area organizations for HIV/AIDS prevention, care, education, evaluation, and healthcare advocacy activities.

"In light of the difficult economic times, we are proud to be able to provide much needed funding for local efforts against AIDS," said AFC's Executive Director Mark Ishaug. "AFC's private grants program fills a critical niche in helping to sustain, expand, and improve the system of AIDS-related services."

AFC awarded 52 organizations $650,000 in one-time grants for HIV prevention, care, advocacy, and general operating support. AFC granted another $434,500 in continuation funding to 15 organizations as part of its Prevention for Positives, Healthcare Access, evaluation, and perinatal case management programs. In addition, AFC authorized a $12,000 matching grant to the National AIDS Fund to support the local AmeriCorps program in 2003-04, and an unprecedented $100,000 to support research and evaluation activities for a model housing and healthcare project serving chronically ill homeless individuals, including many with HIV/AIDS.

AFC's Board of Directors will honor grant recipients on June 26 at a special recognition breakfast sponsored by Marshall Field's at its State Street store.

More than one-third of all awards (39%) this year will support primary and secondary HIV prevention activities, including street outreach, needle exchange, and risk-reduction interventions for HIV-positive people. A quarter of all awards will support direct care services for people living with HIV/AIDS. Eleven percent of funds will support healthcare advocacy activities, with the remainder supporting organizational capacity building.

More than 35% of funds awarded this year will support continuation grants. For example, AFC awarded a total of $187,500 to seven community-based organization for second-year activities in AFC's Prevention for Positives project, which is working to develop new models of HIV prevention by engaging HIV-positive people in risk-reduction activities. AFC awarded three healthcare advocacy and legal groups a total of $60,000 to continue activities pursuing Medicaid benefits for non-disabled and low-income HIV-positive Illinoisans who are currently ineligible for Medicaid coverage. AFC will also continue its AmeriCorps human resource grants to community-based organizations, and support two groups to provide intensive case management services for HIV-positive, pregnant women through a collaboration with the Pediatric AIDS Chicago Prevention Initiative.

Funding designated to support research and evaluation activities will help demonstrate the merits and costs of interventions for chronically ill homeless populations that pair healthcare services with housing as a means of promoting stability, independence, and improved health outcomes. The results of the multi-year evaluation, part of AFC's Chicago Housing for Health Partnership, are expected to shape the future of such interventions nationally.

Since 1992, AFC has given funding priority to qualified organizations that meet AFC's strict definition of community of color organizations. Nearly half of the agencies funded in 2003 were organizations serving and governed by communities of color.

For its one-time grants, AFC considered 79 funding proposals requesting nearly $2 million in funding. AFC thanks the National AIDS Fund, the Elton John AIDS Foundation, the Pediatric AIDS Chicago Prevention Initiative, the Children Affected by AIDS Foundation, Chicago Dancers United, the federal Office of Minority Health, participants of the 2002 AIDS Run & Walk, and all of AFC's generous donors and supporters for making this year's awards possible.

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Established in 1985, the AIDS Foundation of Chicago is the Midwest's largest source of private philanthropic support for HIV/AIDS prevention and care programs. Since it began making grants in 1988, AFC has given away nearly $13 million to support AIDS prevention, education, care, and advocacy programs. In addition, AFC helps to coordinate the delivery of essential HIV/AIDS services, maintains a 135-member Service Providers Council, and promotes sound HIV/AIDS policy and law at the local, state, and federal level.

2003 Grant list