Federal funding cuts test resilience of Focus: Hope nonprofit
Focus: Hope CEO Portia Roberson talks to WDET about how federal funding cuts have threatened the reach of the nonprofit at a time their services are needed by more people.
Portia Roberson is the CEO of HOPE and a member of the Michigan Civil Rights Commission. She previously worked in the White House Domestic Policy Council.
Focus: Hope was founded in 1968 as a way to bring Black and white Detroiters together in the aftermath of the 1967 rebellion. The organization has grown and changed in the last six decades, but still faces challenges.
Portia Roberson is the President and CEO of Focus: Hope. She spoke with WDET’s Jerome Vaughn at the Mackinac Policy Conference last week.
Roberson says changes in federal funding priorities have made it harder for the non-profit to achieve its goals. The organization had its federal funding slashed for Head Start. She says those funding cuts endangered early learning opportunities for more than 200 families.
At the same time, Roberson says the Focus: Hope food program is growing because more people across the state are dealing with food insecurity. The non-profit is feeding between 45,000 and 50,000 Michigan seniors every month.
