Amplifying Maternal Health for Black and Brown communities.

Since its inception, and thanks to the generosity of past benefactors, DFC had the privilege to engage in work that empowered families in low-income households and promoted community well-being through primary care, maternity and newborn care, social services, and early childhood development services. DFC supported several community and program related investments:

The outcomes of these investments helped inform the Priority Areas of the Developing Families Maternal Health Fund at the Greater Washington Community Foundation. 

We bring funding and thought leadership to strengthen collective impact.

Success Stories

  • Breastfeeding 101 was funded by the DFC and conducted by Community of Hope (COH) to bring increased awareness of the benefits of breastfeeding, and to foster positive support for breastfeeding by providing clearly identified resources and trainings to women.

  • The DFC sponsored a community needs assessment conducted by the George Washington University Center of Excellence for Maternal and Child Health to understand the assets and needs in the District of Columbia to support maternal health for Black and Brown women.

  • The Midwifery Clinical Education Empowerment Program was conceived and funded by the DFC in collaboration with the American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM). The vision of the Midwifery Clinical Education Empowerment Program was to increase the capacity of the District of Columbia to support quality full scope clinical education experiences for midwifery students representing diverse or historically marginalized populations.

  • The DFC, through its talented staff, is directly engaged in Safe Babies Safe Moms Strategic Advisory Board and related education and maternal health advocacy programs.

Our 2023 Awardees

Responding to the findings from the community needs assessment, the Developing Families Center granted $1.5M in Catalytic Funding for 2023. The following initiatives are investments by the Developing Families Center to catalyze community-based organizations on the frontline of maternal care, advocacy, and education for Women of Color.

SUPPORT OUR INITIATIVES

Community of Hope Family Health & Birthing Center
Capital support to continue and expand maternal and infant health services in the new and integrated Family Health and Birth Center in Ward 5. 

DCHA Program Company Services
Address the combined impact of trauma on both staff and patients to strengthen respectful care and reduce care inequities by implementing an evidenced-based program focused on expecting and birthing mothers, including a critical incident support program for clinical staff based on the Prevention of PTSD in Midwifery (POPPY) model.

Edward C. Mazique Parent Child Center
Support the physical relocation of the education and child development center and create a trauma-informed care workforce to continue to provide high-quality development and education to families with young children in low-income households.

GWU Center of Excellence for Maternal Health
Partner with Developing Families and its grant awardees to conduct formative research to examine the changing maternal health landscape in Washington, DC as a result of funding initiatives and disseminate research and findings.

Mamatoto Village, Inc.
Support the Perinatal Health Worker Training (PHWT) to prepare Black women to serve within their community in various capacities, including direct perinatal care and support, advocacy and policy engagement, and entry-level social work and public health careers.

National Association to Advance Black Birth
Accelerate the NAABB Midwifery Scholarship program by supporting 8 midwifery student scholarships to equip Black midwives with the practical tools and education they need to improve maternal health outcomes for Black women.

Volunteers of America Chesapeake & Carolinas
Launch the Hope Has A Home™ Women’s Program—the first medical respite initiative of its kind in the District to offer homeless women of child-bearing age access to primary care, including gynecology, prenatal, mammograms, and other services; behavioral health; substance use recovery; and housing assistance and placement. Inform a future care delivery model for pregnant women living with addiction by leveraging the knowledge and expertise of other innovative programs and services through learning collaboratives/journeys.

Our Legacy Funders & Supporters

Thanks to the generosity of past benefactors, we have had the privilege to engage in work that strengthens the community organizations on the frontline of maternal health for Women of Color in the District of Columbia.

We received funding from various sources, including public, private, and business communities. The land and building were donated by Hechinger Enterprises, and building renovation and programs were financed by the DC Department of Housing and Community Development and private donations.

Our work—past, present, and future—was built on legacy funders and supporters, notably:

  • Annie E. Casey Foundation

  • Bristol-Myers Squibb Company

  • Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation

  • Philip L. Graham Fund

  • Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

  • W.K. Kellogg Foundation

  • MCA Foundation

  • Eugene and Agnes E. Meyer Foundation

  • Henry and Anne S. Reich Family Foundation

  • Public Welfare Foundation

  • Naomi and Nehemiah Cohen Foundation

  • John and Mildred Holmes Family Foundation

  • Weissberg Foundation

  • Marpat Foundation

  • Clark Winchole Foundation

  • Joan and David Maxwell Advised Fund

  • Freddie Mac Foundation

  • Max and Victoria Dreyfus Foundation

  • Roland Karlen Foundation

Our Legacy Partners

Over the decades, several organizations and entities partnered with the Developing Families Center. These include:

  • Advanced Digital Systems

  • American Association of Birth Centers

  • American College of Nurse-Midwives

  • Capital Area Food Bank and Operation Frontline

  • Carver Terrace Tenants and Civic Association

  • Casey Trees

  • Childbirth Connection (formerly known as the Maternity Center Association)

  • Community of Hope

  • Council of the District of Columbia

  • Davis Developments, Inc

  • Dewey LeBoeuf LLP

  • DC Affiliate, American College of Nurse-Midwives

  • DC Primary Care Association

  • DC Ward 8 Health Council

  • Edward C. Mazique Parent Child Center, Inc.

  • Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobsen

  • H Street Community Development Corporation

  • Health Communication Connection, LLC

  • Hogan & Lovells US LLP

  • Kagan Lubic Lepper Finkelstein & Gold, LLP

  • KBE construction

  • KaBoom Playgrounds

  • National Academy of Science

  • Office of the Deputy Mayor for Children

  • Rodham Institute

  • Safeway in the Hechinger Mall

  • The Sanchez Law Firm

  • Trinidad Concerned Citizens for Reform

  • U.S. Department of Energy

  • U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Energy Star Program

  • Ward 5 Advisory Neighborhood Commission

  • Washington Youth Garden

  • Women’s Health Improvement Collaborative & Innovation Lab

Many other individuals, organizations, companies, and foundations have contributed to the Developing Families Center’s work.