How a Public/Private Partnership Brought $30 Million and 6,650 Jobs to Connecticut

Publication date: 
July, 2012
Source(s): 
Connecticut Council for Philanthropy

It could have been a missed opportunity to bring millions in federal stimulus funds to needy Connecticut families. But, in 2010, deep into a recession, the state’s philanthropic community – guided by the Connecticut Council for Philanthropy – worked with government representatives assembled by then-governor M. Jodi Rell and nonprofi t advocates to orchestrate a coordinated public/private partnership to help bring extra relief to ease the suffering for their low-income families. The funds were available through the Emergency Contingency Fund of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. The deadline was tight, but it was met. Work started in January; funds were approved in July 2010. The results are impressive. One example: 36,500 families received more than $18 million in emergency benefi ts and aid. The full story is a blueprint for future partnerships.