Nothing undermines a prescribed course of action more profoundly than a flawed diagnosis.
Because of the persistence of poverty, gang violence and lack of economic opportunity, which affect many young people in low-income communities today, many people think, and many grant makers act as if, nonprofit organizations are incapable of generating and implementing solutions to these and other social problems. The rich experience of many innovative organizations suggests that just the opposite is the case. Individuals and organizations see, and often fund, solutions that are having the impact they are supposed to have. The Rheedlen Center in Harlem integrates critical services for at-risk youth in Harlem, offering teaching, training, nutrition and mentoring services that have demonstrably transformed the lives of countless boys and girls. Mary's Center in Washington, DC, has reversed infant mortality statistics and poor maternal and child health statistics for thousands of families and has enabled their children to enter school healthy and ready to learn.