The Roosevelt Island Public Purpose Fund at The New York Community Trust has announced $260,000 in one-year grants to 18 nonprofits working to benefit Roosevelt Island residents and enhance their quality of life.
Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation (RIOC) was created in 1984 by the State of New York to plan, design, develop, and maintain Roosevelt Island. RIOC asked The Trust to administer its public purpose grants and created the Roosevelt Island Public Purpose Fund at The Trust in 2022.
The Trust appointed an independent, five-person advisory committee of members of the Roosevelt Island community to review applications and make grant recommendations. Committee members live or work on the island and reflect a range of professional and community perspectives. Members remained anonymous during the review period to keep the process fair and confidential.
Advisory committee:
- Penny Gold, Roosevelt Island resident
- Deolinda Leitao-Greene, Roosevelt Island resident
- Frank Raffaele, co-owner of The Sanctuary
- Anna Scaglione, professor of electrical and computer engineering at Cornell Tech
- James Shafer, director of international student recruitment and enrollment at Touro University, Roosevelt Island resident
The awards program, which began in 1989, supports projects to make life on Roosevelt Island more enjoyable and equitable for all. Grants from this round will support education and youth development, services for older adults, environmental programming, arts and culture, and more for the Roosevelt Island community.
“Each year, the Public Purpose Fund helps strengthen the organizations that make Roosevelt Island such a unique and vibrant community,” said RIOC President and CEO B.J. Jones. “This year’s allocations reflect the incredible diversity of nonprofits serving our Island, with funds awarded for the arts, youth programming, environmental education, athletics, senior services, accessibility initiatives, and more. We are proud to support this outstanding group of community organizations and are grateful for the work they do every day to improve quality of life for Roosevelt Islanders. Our thanks to The New York Community Trust and this year’s advisory committee for their thoughtful work.”
The grant recipients are:
iDig2Learn: $10,000 for a series of environmental and nature-based workshops on Roosevelt Island.
Island Kids: $12,500 to provide summer camp scholarships.
Life Frames: $10,000 to build a native pollinator garden and host a community workshop series on Roosevelt Island.
Main Street Theatre and Dance Alliance: $20,000 to install an ADA-compliant looping system and energy-efficient lighting, and support work-study, internship, and scholarship programs.
Open Doors: $15,000 for Open Doors’ “Food Stories” program.
PIAZZOLLA100: $15,000 for a concert series and dance workshops on Roosevelt Island.
PTA PS/IS 217: $15,000 to provide dance arts education to PS/IS 217 students.
Roosevelt Island CERT: $10,000 to develop a Community Emergency Response Team on Roosevelt Island.
Roosevelt Island Chamber Music Society: $10,000 for a series of public concerts and educational outreach on Roosevelt Island.
Roosevelt Island Concerts: $15,000 for seven community concerts on Roosevelt Island.
Roosevelt Island Day Nursery: $10,000 to develop and teach new science curriculum.
Roosevelt Island Disabled Association: $25,000 to provide food, inclusive cultural and social programs, and accessible transportation to disabled and older adult communities on Roosevelt Island.
Roosevelt Island Historical Society: $15,000 for a lecture series, events celebrating Roosevelt Island landmarks, and ongoing visitor kiosk operations.
Roosevelt Island Senior Association: $20,000 to provide community events and weekend and evening classes for older adults.
Roosevelt Island Sports: $15,000 to establish a co-ed youth soccer league on Roosevelt Island.
Roosevelt Island Swimming: $10,000 to provide free summer and fall programming through the Learn to Swim program.
Roosevelt Island Visual Art Association: $20,000 for a yearlong series of exhibitions, community programs, and artist-led workshops on Roosevelt Island.
The Carter Burden Network: $12,500 to provide culturally responsive case management to Roosevelt Island older adults.
