Empowering Women

This month, Women’s Fund of Central Indiana becomes the Women’s Foundation of Indiana, pivoting to a statewide scope with a bolder commitment.

We are convinced that Indiana’s prosperity relies on dramatically improving outcomes for women and families. That includes better access to quality healthcare, affordable childcare, economic mobility, and safer homes. Because that goal affects every household in our state, we also believe it transcends geography, gender, and politics.

Why now?

Today, Hoosier nonprofits that address challenges primarily faced by women report an increase in demand for services alongside a decrease in their capacity to serve. In part, that’s because Indiana nonprofits offering targeted services to women and girls have lost significant state and federal funding.

Those cuts landed in an already-troubling era:

• Over the last decade, Indiana’s infant and maternal metrics have become some of the nation’s most challenging, including higher mortality, lower access to prenatal care, and higher rates of pre-term birth.
• Indiana’s rate of domestic violence frequently ranks in the top ten of states.
• Rates of poverty have increased for Hoosier women and children, even as they decline for men. In part, that’s down to Indiana’s larger-than-average gender wage gap and Hoosier single mothers’ higher likelihood of eviction.

Though some of these metrics have begun to improve, funding cuts threaten that progress. Given the above, a longstanding philanthropic funding deficit for women-serving nonprofits, and women’s unique value as both donors and recipients of philanthropy, we are committed to a statewide push for greater investment. 

Adovcacy

However, philanthropy alone is not nearly enough; advancing better policy should be a priority for any organization working to improve outcomes.

To that end, and while we maintain our partnership with Central Indiana Community Foundation, we have recently become an independent nonprofit. This strengthens our ability to convene, research, and engage policymakers. In other words: advocate.

Our goal is to inform better decision-making and resource allocation to achieve lasting change, ensuring that all women and girls have the power to shape their own lives.

Importantly, while our advocacy will always be nonpartisan, it will never be non-principled. We are eager to join forces with anyone committed to proven-effective solutions; we will also continue to represent women and girls in all the ways they show up in the world. Full stop.

Going statewide: listening, learning, fundraising

But before we advocate, we listen. Indiana’s communities are diverse, and our approach reflects differences in opportunity, infrastructure, and access.

This year, we’ll embark on a listening tour of 11 communities across the state. We want to hear from residents, nonprofit leaders, employers, educators, legislators, and other local partners.

Second, we’ll pair those testimonies with research and data. Our 2024 State of Women in Central Indiana Report showed us how this combination informs more effective decisions. We want to ensure every region in the state has access to that level of information about itself.

But ultimately, this work isn’t possible without funding. The third component of our statewide pivot is the Indiana Fund. It’s what allows us to make grants beyond our home region of Central Indiana. Thanks to the generous partnership of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Indiana, we have already administered $75,000 in grants to five women’s health organizations in towns that stretch from the shores of Lake Michigan to the banks of the Ohio River.

To reassure our longtime partners in the Indy Metro: We’ve planned for this moment by strengthening both our fundraising and our long-term sustainability; we can expand statewide without shifting any of our Central Indiana endowment dollars away from the community that built them.

Anniversary 

Finally, this year is a major milestone for us. 30 years ago, a group of women led by Dr. Diane Brashear founded the Women’s Fund of Central Indiana. This group understood that, given women’s load-bearing role in many households and communities, when they succeed, everyone benefits – from longer lives to safer homes to stronger economies.

But most importantly, they understood the significance of empowering women and girls to live more fulfilling, secure, and prosperous lives in Indiana.

If you are a leader at a nonprofit or business, if you’re a lawmaker or someone who simply cares about Indiana’s future, join us at an upcoming event near you. We’ll be listening.