On Wednesday night, Bloomington’s city council approved the allocation of $323,000 in social services grants to 32 different agency programs.
Those were the recommended allocations made by the seven-member Jack Hopkins committee after reviewing about $965,000 in grant requests from about 45 different agency programs.
Last year the total amount requested was $557,000.
The top five awards this year were to Hoosier Hills Food Bank ($27,341), New Hope Family Shelter ($21,711), Community Justice and Mediation Center ($21,283), Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard ($17,555), and Monroe County CASA, Inc. ($17,517). Included below is a table with all the awards, with a description of the projects to be funded.
From the public mic came criticism of awards to Planned Parenthood and All-Options Pregnancy Resource Center, based on their provision abortion services or referral to such services. The grant awards to those agencies this year, as in past years, involve projects that are not abortion services.
On the council’s side, speaking in defense of the awards were councilmembers Jim Sims and Susan Sandberg. Continue reading “Bloomington OKs $323K in social services funding to nonprofits, including Planned Parenthood”