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The FAR Fund Fellowship The FAR Fund Fellowship is designed to expose individuals to the use of philanthropy to improve social service programs and social welfare systems. The FAR Fund Fellow will be trained to work for change within one or more of the FAR Fund’s areas of focus. In addition, the Fellow will develop a funding proposal that will be considered for support by the FAR Fund. During the Fellowship the recipient will participate in the full range of activities of the FAR Fund. This includes review of proposals, site visits to grantees, participation in funding recommendations, preparation of the docket to the donor, and exposure to the management of grants and publications. In addition, the recipient will be able to participate in appropriate training seminars presented by the New York Regional Association of Grant Makers and other forums relevant to the Fellowship. During the Fellowship the intern will have the opportunity under the guidance of FAR Fund staff to design a project that may receive partial or full funding from the FAR Fund.
Michael John Carley was the first-ever FAR Fund Fellow. He used the Fellowship to found GRASP, the Global and Regional Asperger Syndrome Partnership. GRASP is the first major educational and advocacy organization that is not only working for individuals with Asperger Syndrome and High-Functioning Autism (AS/HFA), it is also run by individuals with AS/HFA. He used the Fellowship and grant for launching GRASP by focusing in on fundraising-studying the distinctions between foundation, corporate and individual fundraising and by looking at how the existing social services system works. He studied with a variety of mentors arranged by the FAR Fund, participated in site visits on their behalf, and he concluded his Fellowship by submitting finished grant proposals to foundations.
For nearly 20 years Gina Cheron has been helping to serve the Haitian community. She is the Board Chair and was a co-founder of Dwa Fanm, the only Haitian organization in the NYCity area focusing on women’s rights and domestic violence Her focus as a FAR Fund Fellow will be on launching a program of Dwa Fanm called Jistis Pou Fanm (Haitian Creole for “Justice for Women”). Jistis Pou Fanm will provide legal representation and advocacy for victims of domestic violence as well as an educational outlet so that young Haitian women will better know their rights as well as be able to advocate for themselves more effectively.
Diana McCourt used the FAR Fund Fellowship to develop One person at a Time, a project to implement sustainable, self-directed housing for individuals with developmental disabilities, including those on the autistic spectrum. One Person at a Time is guided by the “people-centered development” model, which believes development is a process by which members of a society increase their personal and institutional capacities to mobilize and manage resources to produce sustainable improvements in their quality of life. This model is based on the belief that creating change is most effective when done on a small, local scale. Spring-Summer 2005: Lawrence James Lawrence James is currently the executive director of the Grassroots Artists Movement (G.A.ME). G.A.ME was founded in 2001, to address the urgent need for economic development within disadvantaged communities by using hip hop and community organizing to engage young people. Currently, they run two programs, the G.A.M.E Healthcare Network and the Artists Union. As a FAR Fund Fellow he will create a youth development and leadership program. As many of the young members of G.A.ME are victims of violence, he plans to bring together and educate these young people on ways to empower themselves, to either break the cycle of violence or stay away from it all together.
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