In keeping with our mission, the Women’s Fund accepts concept briefs that provide programs and/or advocacy for women’s economic security. Although we define economic security broadly, a few examples include the following: building the financial literacy and assets of low-income women, increasing the number of women enrolled in non-traditional fields, and research/data collection on public policies to support economic security. In addition, WFM funds efforts in the following focus areas.

Early Childhood Care and Education

Successful grant applications in this issue area will seek to do one or more of the following:

  • Increase access to affordable child care for working families
  • Promote healthy prenatal care for pregnant women, therefore enhancing the development of very young children
  • Improve the academic achievement of young children and their parents through early childhood education and parenting education
  • Ensure a coordinated and comprehensive system of early intervention services for infants and toddlers and their families
  • Advocate for a more effective, affordable, publicly-financed child care system that meets the needs of working women and families
  • Research/data collection to support the activities listed above

Teen Health

Successful grant applications in this issue area will seek to do one or more of the following:

  • Decrease rates of teen pregnancy and STDs among teens, especially girls of color
  • Increase access to full reproductive health services, dental care, maternal health services, and chemical dependency services among teen girls, particularly low income teens
  • Provide advocacy on the need for comprehensive sex education in Mississippi schools
  • Research/data collection to support the activities listed above

Prevention of Violence against Women

Successful grant applications in this issue area will seek to do one or more of the following:

  • Reframe domestic violence as a community problem, not a family problem
  • Engage men in decreasing violence against women
  • Outreach to immigrant women
  • Provide evidence-based prevention programs, such as the Duluth Model
  • Advocate for stronger domestic violence-related laws and penalties
  • Research/data collection to support the activities listed above

Vulnerable Children

(defined as children, prenatal through 6th grade, who are eligible for any type of public assistance)
 Successful grant applications in this issue area will seek to do one or more of the following:

  • Increase access to high quality, developmentally appropriate, safe child care
  • Increase access to services for children with severe developmental and behavioral disorders
  • Create high quality, effective initiatives that link the education and health sectors to improve child health and increase school success for young children
  • Research/data collection to support the activities listed above