YWCA USA Receives $500K Grant from The Coca-Cola Foundation to Support Women’s Entrepreneurship

For Immediate Release:Tiffany Wangtwang@ywca.org | 202-467-0801

Washington, DC, October 9, 2018 – The Coca-Cola Foundation, the philanthropic arm of The Coca-Cola Company, is awarding a $500,000 grant to YWCA USA to help women overcome barriers to starting, growing, and sustaining businesses while providing women with educational tools that will increase the knowledge and confidence of women entrepreneurs. As part of YWCA USA’s ongoing mission to eliminate racism and empower women, this fund will support and strengthen our Women’s Empowerment 360⁰ (WE 360⁰) program.YWCA’s WE 360⁰ is designed to:

1. Increase the capacity of 16 existing YWCA entrepreneurship programs to identify and support more women entrepreneurs;
2. Create a scalable entrepreneurship curriculum and module based on best practices that incorporate wrap-around economic development services designed to create jobs, as well as increase the number of women and minority-owned businesses; and
3. Position YWCA as a key national entrepreneurial advocate and resource that assists with the incubation of new businesses while meeting the needs of existing entrepreneurial women.

The grant will expand and enhance YWCA’s ability to support successful women entrepreneurs and women-owned businesses. Women of all socio-economic backgrounds will be recruited to participate and succeed in WE 360⁰.“With this grant we will help women access independent sources of revenue, that allows them to create jobs, generate wealth, and support their families,” said Helen Smith Price, President of The Coca-Cola Foundation.“YWCA is proud to partner with Coca-Cola to highlight the importance of women’s empowerment and entrepreneurship, and to increase the economic security and self-sufficiency of women in the communities we serve,” said YWCA USA CEO Alejandra Y. Castillo. “YWCAs across the country provide empowerment and educational training to women, and this partnership will help us reach and support even more women and families.”The 16 existing YWCA entrepreneurship programs targeted for increased capacity are in Brooklyn, NY; Chicago, IL; Elizabeth, NJ; Greensboro, NC; Hackensack, NJ; Harrisburg, PA; Honolulu, HI; La Crosse, WI; Los Angeles, CA; Oklahoma City, OK; Rockford, IL; San Antonio, TX; Tucson, AZ; Wilmington, DE; and Youngstown, OH

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About YWCA USA

YWCA USA is on a mission to eliminate racism, empower women, stand up for social justice, help families, and strengthen communities. We are one of the oldest and largest women's organizations in the nation, serving over 2 million women, girls, and their families.YWCA has been at the forefront of the most pressing social movements for 160 years — from voting rights to civil rights, from affordable housing to pay equity, from violence prevention to health care reform. Today, we combine programming and advocacy to generate institutional change in three key areas: racial justice and civil rights, empowerment and economic advancement of women and girls, and health and safety of women and girls. Learn more at www.ywca.org.

About The Coca-Cola Foundation

The Coca-Cola Foundation is the global philanthropic arm of The Coca-Cola Company. Through more than 30 years of giving back, The Coca-Cola Foundation has granted more than $900 million to help protect the environment, promote recycling, empower women and enhance the overall well-being of communities. For more information about The Coca-Cola Foundation, please visit www.coca-colagivingback.com.