The Foundation Receives $50,000 in Grant Support and Leadership Training to Advance Economic Mobility in El Paso
El Paso, TX (February 8, 2024) – Today, Bank of America announced El Paso Community Foundation as a 2023 Neighborhood Champion® at a press event held at the El Paso Community Foundation. Through this multi-year grant funding and leadership training for the organization’s leadership, the Foundation will support Borderplex Connect, a regional nonprofit supported by the El Paso Community Foundation.
As part of the bank’s Neighborhood Builders program, one of the largest philanthropic investments into nonprofit leadership development in the nation, Neighborhood Champions provides funding and leadership training to nonprofits that are advancing economic mobility and addressing local challenges.
Through the program, the El Paso Community Foundation will receive the opportunity to participate in virtual leadership training delivered by experts in the nonprofit sector on topics like human capital management, increasing financial sustainability and storytelling, along with a $50,000 grant over two years.
El Paso Community Foundation provides grants and scholarships, manages charitable funds, and connects the community to information and resources in El Paso, Southern New Mexico, and the Ciudad Juárez region. This new grant funding will be used to grow Borderplex Connect and hire a CEO to lead future efforts for digital inclusion within the region.
“Our community is resilient and resourceful, but there is a vast portion of the borderland community that does not have access to something most of us might take for granted – internet services,” said Eric Pearson, El Paso Community Foundation president and CEO. “The El Paso Community Foundation supports Borderplex Connect and the mission to provide access to broadband internet to underserved, economically challenged areas in our region. Thanks to Bank of America and the funds awarded through the 2023 Neighborhood Champion program, Borderplex Connect can expedite growth and acquire leadership to strategically assist those individuals that want nothing more than to be as connected as everyone else.”
The invitation-only program is highly competitive, and nonprofits are selected by a committee comprised of community leaders and past awardees. Five nonprofits have been selected as Champions in El Paso since 2019, with the bank investing $250,000 into these local nonprofits.
“El Paso Community Foundation is a pillar of our region that empowers our vibrant, multicultural community and makes our city a better place to work, play and live,” said Kristi Marcum, Bank of America El Paso president. “The Neighborhood Champion award opens doors to creating real change in our city. We are thrilled to see how the grant and leadership training makes an impact on Borderplex Connect this year and for years to come.”
Since 2004, Bank of America has invested more than $300 million in nearly 100 communities across the U.S., partnered with more than 1,600 nonprofits, and helped more than 3,000 nonprofit leaders strengthen their leadership skills through the Neighborhood Builders and Champions program.
Bank of America
Bank of America is one of the world’s leading financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving approximately 69 million consumer and small business clients with approximately 3,800 retail financial centers, approximately 15,000 ATMs (automated teller machines) and award-winning digital banking with approximately 57 million verified digital users. Bank of America is a global leader in wealth management, corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to approximately 4 million small business households through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations across the United States, its territories and more than 35 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BAC).
El Paso Community Foundation
Founded in 1977 as a permanent endowment for El Paso and the surrounding borderland region, the El Paso Community Foundation provides grants and scholarships, manages charitable funds, and connects the community to information and resources. The Community Foundation has given back more than $249 million to a wide variety of organizations and projects in education, health, human services, arts, environment, and animals. The mission of the El Paso Community Foundation is to establish permanent charitable endowments, to provide a vehicle for donor’s varied interests, to promote local philanthropy, and to provide leadership and resources in addressing local challenges and opportunities.
Borderplex Connect
Founded In 2022, the existing digital inclusion collaboratives, Digital El Paso and Doña Ana Broadband were merged to form a regional coalition of partners across two states, two community foundations, two counties, and a cross-sector of public and private partners. The regional coalition is working together to launch and manage projects to close the digital divide and create a Borderplex Region that is a leader in digital inclusion, accessibility, and broadband affordability.
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