Accelerator for America receives multi-year grant from Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation

Accelerator for America (AFA) is proud to announce that we have been awarded a three-year grant from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.

This funding will support a workforce and career development initiative designed to foster and strengthen connections between workforce and training providers in the skilled trades and advanced manufacturing sectors across the Kansas City region. Ultimately, the goal of this initiative is to produce a measurable increase in the participation of women and people of color in job training programs and to enable training participants to obtain job placements and retain employment in high-paying, high-demand careers.

The grant will also provide critical support for Heartland Women in Trades, a nonprofit dedicated to advancing opportunities for women in construction through apprenticeship programs and career development.

“As many initiatives that support historically marginalized communities face budget reductions or outright elimination, philanthropy plays an increasingly vital role in supporting efforts that drive economic mobility,” said Mary Ellen Wiederwohl, President and CEO of Accelerator for America. “We are grateful to the Kauffman Foundation for the opportunity to work with local workforce leaders to create and expand career pathways and help Heartland Women in Trades scale the work they are doing in Kansas City.”

Heartland Women in Trades will use grant funds to strengthen their organization’s capacity, including hiring their first full-time paid staff member who will advance the organization’s work to broaden awareness of opportunities and increase the number of women working and retained in the skilled trades. 

“This partnership with Accelerator for America, made possible through the generous support of the Kauffman Foundation, marks a transformative moment for Heartland Women in Trades. With their support, we are not only building our organization’s capacity, including hiring our first executive director, but also tackling the systemic barriers that are keeping many women from thriving in the construction trades. Together, we’re advancing equity and creating real pathways to high-demand, high-wage careers for women in our community and across the region,” said Heartland Women in Trades President Emily Snyder.

AFA is one of 27 organizations working in Kansas City to help close gaps in economic mobility that received a Kauffman Foundation Project grant. Funded organizations are expected to design and implement or scale a multi-year project in alignment with the Foundation’s strategic priorities, focusing on scaling existing approaches in the Kansas City region or launching new approaches that have a strong research basis or success in peer cities.

“This funding acknowledges the importance of bold, strategic efforts,” said Dr. DeAngela Burns-Wallace, President and CEO of the Kauffman Foundation. “Project grants allow organizations to pilot new ideas, scale proven models, and create momentum around programs that support long-term community transformation. They serve as catalytic investments – fueling innovation, fostering collaboration, and amplifying the impact of initiatives that are deeply rooted in the needs and strengths of the communities they serve.”

AFA has enjoyed partnering with the Kauffman Foundation to advance economic mobility in the Kansas City region for many years and looks forward to accelerating workforce opportunities with this grant.

AFA works with local leaders and practitioners to tackle workforce challenges and create pathways for high quality jobs – those that provide family-sustaining wages, benefits, and opportunities for economic mobility. Through targeted place-based initiatives, like the one this grant will fund, AFA connects underserved communities with job training, apprenticeships and career opportunities, while also working to remove barriers like the lack of childcare, which impede people’s ability to learn and work.

For more information about AFA’s workforce initiatives, visit AcceleratorforAmerica.org.