The Community Foundation of Greater Fort Wayne will hold two public engagement Q&A sessions on October 17 to discuss the Knight Cities Challenge and answer the question: How would you make our city even better?
Knight Cities Challenge is a community development initiative seeking new ideas from civic innovators who want to make Fort Wayne and the other 25 communities where Knight invests more vibrant places to live and work. The challenge is offering $5 million for innovative projects that focus on one (or all) of three key drivers of city success: attracting and retaining talent, expanding economic opportunity, and creating a culture of robust civic engagement.
The first session will be held at 3 p.m. on October 17 at the Community Foundation of Greater Fort Wayne, located at 555 E. Wayne St., and a second evening session will be held at 6 p.m. that day at Wunderkammer Company, located at 3402 Fairfield Ave. Both sessions are open to the public and will offer information regarding the goals of the challenge, tips on preparing applications, and a chance to discuss how to craft a great submission with Knight staff.
Speakers will include Kyle Kutuchief, Akron Program Director, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and Réna Bradley, Community Development Coordinator, Bridge of Grace Compassionate Ministries Center and Fort Wayne resident, whose idea for designing a studio to engage local youth and create a solution for transforming vacant neighborhood lots was a 2016 Knight Cities Challenge winner.
The Community Foundation is asking for anyone with a big idea about how to make Fort Wayne even better to attend one of the two public Q&A sessions. Applications for the Knight Cities Challenge open Oct. 10 and will close at noon Nov. 3. The challenge is open to innovators of all types and is designed to help spur civic innovation at the city, neighborhood, and block level, and all sizes in between. Anyone can apply and the initial application consists of just three questions that should be answered in 100 words or less. Complete detailed information about the Knight Cities Challenge, including the initial application, can be found at knightcities.org.
The Community Foundation of Greater Fort Wayne is a public charitable foundation serving Allen County since 1922. The Community Foundation had assets of approximately $140 million at December 31, 2015, and awarded more than $6.5 million in charitable grants and scholarships in that year. The Community Foundation of Greater Fort Wayne exists to serve as a community leader to improve the quality of life by building permanent endowments, promoting effective grantmaking, fostering philanthropy, stimulating community dialogue and helping donors achieve their charitable goals.
About the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
Knight Foundation supports transformational ideas that promote quality journalism, advance media innovation, engage communities and foster the arts. We believe that democracy thrives when people and communities are informed and engaged. www.knightfoundation.org
