Nissan Foundation awards more than $700,000 in grants to promote cultural diversity in America

• Grants awarded to 29 nonprofit organizations that promote understanding and respect among cultural/ethnic groups

• Since 1992, the Nissan Foundation has awarded more than $10 million to more than 120 nonprofit organizations

• Celebrating its 25th anniversary, the Nissan Foundation annually awards grants to nonprofits in California, Georgia, Michigan, Mississippi, New York, Tennessee and Texas

NASHVILLE, TN - June 22, 2017: The Nissan Foundation will award more than $700,000 in grants to 29 U.S. nonprofit organizations that work to further cultural awareness and understanding. The grant recipients are located in Southern California, North Central Texas, Middle Tennessee, Central Mississippi, Southeastern Michigan and the New York and Atlanta metro areas.

Nissan Foundation President Scott Becker is recognizing the 2017 grantees at the annual convention of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) in Washington D.C.

"I am honored to announce the Nissan Foundation's 2017 grant recipients, all of which are committed to a world where racial, ethnic and cultural diversity is genuinely valued," said Becker, who also is senior vice president of Administration for Nissan North America, Inc. 

2017 marks the 25th anniversary of the Nissan Foundation, which was formed in response to the civil unrest that occurred near Nissan's then U.S. sales and marketing headquarters in Southern California following the Rodney King trial verdict. Since that time, the Foundation has annually awarded hundreds of thousands of dollars to organizations celebrating cultural diversity through arts, education and social and public programs.

"Our mission is to support local organizations offering educational programs that foster greater understanding and respect among the groups of people who live within that community," said Nissan Foundation Executive Director Vicki Smith.

How the grantee organizations meet that objective is as varied as the organizations themselves.

The Nashville Public Library Foundation, a 2016 Nissan Foundation grant recipient, has used its grant to fund its program titled, "Civil Rights and a Civil Society: Civil Rights Training for Nashville Enforcement Agencies and Beyond." Through archival images, oral histories and films, this civil rights program series connects history with today's prevailing issues affecting law enforcement and minority communities.

"With funding from the Nissan Foundation, we provided training sessions to more than 900 law enforcement officers around the state and to more than 1,500 members of the community, including students, senior citizens and civic group members," said Andrea Blackman, division head for Education Outreach and Special Collections at the Nashville Public Library.

Another Nissan Foundation grantee is the Japanese American National Museum (JANM) based in Los Angeles, which used its grant to help fund its School Visits program. The program centers around docent-led tours of the museum's permanent exhibition "Common Ground: The Heart of Community," with focus on the Japanese American experience during World War II. The program serves approximately 12,000 K-12 students from primarily Title I schools each year.

"The Japanese American National Museum has been able to serve thousands of ethnically diverse young people thanks to support from the Nissan Foundation," said Ann Burroughs, president and CEO of JANM. "When schoolchildren visit, they are given the opportunity to draw parallels, examine differences and explore intersections between the Japanese American experience and their own. Our tours and educational activities foster empathy and inspire students to value diversity, heritage, and history, which is at the very core of our institutional mission."

Over the past 25 years, the Nissan Foundation has awarded more than $10 million to more than 120 nonprofit organizations. The Nissan Foundation board reviewed 34 proposals from nonprofits in seven U.S. communities where Nissan operates before awarding its 2017 grants to the following organizations.

2017 Grant Recipients

California

• Autry National Center of the American West, "Voices of America" - $15,000
• Connecting Cultures Mobile Museum, "CCMM-in-Schools" - $10,000
• Japanese American National Museum, "School Visits and Public Programs" - $20,000
• San Diego Children's Discovery Museum, "Roots Series" - $10,000
• San Diego Museum of Man, "Making San Diego Safe for Human Differences" - $10,000

 
Georgia

• Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Atlanta, "Refugee Education and Engagement Project" - $10,000
• Fernbank Inc., "Winter Wonderland: Celebrations and Traditions Around the World" - $10,000
• National Center for Civil and Human Rights, "NCCHR Diversity and Multicultural Programming" - $25,000

Michigan

• The Community House, "Race Relations and Diversity Task Force" - $15,000
• U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, Inc., "Neighbor to Neighbor Project" - $25,000

Mississippi

• Jobs for Mississippi Graduates, "Diversity: Fostering Mutual Respect in our Global Market" - $50,000
• Smith Robertson Museum and Cultural Center, "Those Who Stayed: African Americans in the Mississippi South" - $20,000
• William Winter Institute for Racial Reconciliation, "underSTAND" - $20,000

New York

• Brooklyn Historical Society, "Muslims in Brooklyn," - $15,000"
• Japan Society, "Japan's Annual Festivities," - $20,000
• Jewish Children's Museum, "Public School Initiative," - $20,000
• Jewish Museum, "Movies that Matter" - $15,000
• One to World Inc., "Expanding One to World's Understanding Programs" - $25,000
• Tanenbaum Center for Interreligious Understanding, "Education Resources on Religious and Cultural Diversity" - $30,000

Tennessee

• Children's Museum Corporation of Rutherford County, "Kids First – Cultural Initiatives" - $55,000
• Global Education Center, "Passport to Understanding," - $25,000
• Nashville Public Library Foundation, "Civil Rights and a Civil Society: Civil Rights Training for Nashville Enforcement Agencies and Beyond" - $30,000
• Nashville Public Television, "Next Door Neighbors" - $75,000
• Native American Indian Association of Tennessee, "Enhancing diversity in elementary, middle and high school students and teachers" - $10,000
• Oasis Center, "Building Bridges," – $50,000
• STARS Nashville, "Understanding Bullying Prevention Through the Lens of Cultural Competence" - $15,000
• Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition, "Welcoming Tennessee Initiative," - $30,000

Texas

• International Museum of Cultures, "One Museum-Many Cultures-New Horizons" - $30,000
• National Multicultural Western Heritage Museum, "Cultural Heritage Youth Workshops and School Assembly Project" - $25,000

The Nissan Foundation will begin accepting Letters of Intent from 2018 grant applicants in October 2017.

A new look
In celebration of its 25th anniversary, the Nissan Foundation unveiled a new logo at the NNPA luncheon. The logo's geometric patterns, which represent inclusion and movement, are connected in the middle, creating a unified whole. The many colors represent the celebration of cultural diversity inherent in the foundation's mission.

"The new logo aligns well with the Nissan Foundation's mission," said Smith. "Its timeless design should hold up well over the next 25 years."

About the Nissan Foundation
Established in 1992, the mission of the Nissan Foundation is to build community through valuing cultural diversity. The Nissan Foundation is part of Nissan North America's commitment to "enrich people's lives" by helping to meet the needs of communities throughout the U.S. through philanthropic investments, corporate outreach sponsorships, in-kind donations and other charitable contributions. During its 25th anniversary year, the Nissan Foundation is sharing the powerful stories of the nonprofits it supports in a shared commitment to promoting cultural diversity. Follow along at #NissanCommunity.