Folsom Lake College among recipients with $100,000 grant awarded
Dignity Health announced today it has awarded $1,017,000 in grants to nonprofit organizations across the Greater Sacramento Region. The grants, part of the CommonSpirit Health Community Health Improvement Grants program, are dedicated to improving the health and well-being of vulnerable and underserved populations.
“Dignity Health is committed to improving the health of our community beyond our hospital and clinic walls,” said Dr. Tina Johnson, Dignity Health Sacramento Market President. “These grants are a reflection of our work toward a healthier future for all, and support the great work being done by our community nonprofits to bring critical programs and services into the Sacramento Region. It is helping ensure individuals and families are able to access the services they need.”
The grant program helps to improve community health and health equity, and enhance local service systems, via restricted charitable contributions for defined projects. Collaborating 501(c)3 non-profit organizations applied to receive grant funds to address significant issues identified in the hospitals’ community health needs assessments. These can include improving behavioral health, homelessness, substance abuse services, food insecurity, basic needs such as housing, jobs, and food, and more.
The following organizations received grants to support program activities between March 2025 and February 2026:
Folsom Lake College MESA Program will offer a robust Mathematics Engineering Science Achievement (MESA) program. MESA is dedicated to supporting women, low-income individuals, and people of color by providing tailored academic resources, mentorship, and opportunities to excel in STEM fields with a focus on diversifying the Allied Health Field. By providing comprehensive academic support, professional development opportunities, and a nurturing community, they aim to empower students to achieve their full potential. Lead Organization: Los Rios Colleges Foundation. Collaborators: CSU Sacramento/Black Honors College, El Dorado County Office of Education, and Folsom Cordova Unified School District. Grant Award: $100,000.
ACC Telephone Reassurance & Companionship Services meets a growing demand to reduce isolation, promotes physical activity, improves access to health and social services, and increases social interactions in the older Asian American/Pacific Islander adult community. ACC will recruit and train volunteers for this project and two existing programs for vulnerable seniors: Senior Escort and Friendly Visitor. These three programs will provide companionship and socialization for seniors of diverse ability levels. Trained volunteers are used to interact with community members to improve health literacy and reduce anxiety and depression in family caregivers. Lead Organization: Asian Community Center of Sacramento Valley Inc., dba ACC Senior Services. Collaborators: Meals on Wheels, Society for the Blind, Agency on Aging Area 4, and Resources for Independent Living. Grant Award: $78,500.
Bridging House for Women and Children Experiencing Homelessness Due to Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, and Human Trafficking will assist families and individuals experiencing homelessness due to domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking. They plan to support them with shelter for a 3-6 month period while facilitating their transition to rental assistance through the BII housing program. Additional services include motel voucher services and referrals to the continuum of care network. Lead Organization: Bridging Initiatives International (BII). Collaborators: Sacramento Steps Forward, Carmichael HART, and Mercy Holistic Ministry. Grant Award: $100,000.
Foster Youth Success partners with Interns to Pros and Hearts & Hands Counseling to provide comprehensive support to former foster youth, focusing on college success, career readiness, emotional well-being, and life skills. This initiative strives to guide successful transitions from college to impactful lives. Mentorship, counseling, career pathways, and workshops aim to enhance personal and professional success. An incentivized scholarship process covering housing, tuition, and food eliminates the basic need barriers for foster youth students to succeed in college. Lead Organization: Fostering Success & Significance. Collaborators: Interns 2 Pros (I2P) and Hearts & Hands Counseling. Grant Award: $43,000.
Cut to the Chase is a program for Black men and women to meet up to discuss the daily challenges and issues they face to improve their mental health in Del Paso Heights and Oak Park. To eliminate the stigma around seeking mental-emotional support in the Black community, this program provides therapy in spaces in the barbershops and beauty salons that Black men and women already comfortably frequent throughout the community. This program is expanding with partnering organizations to include Medical Moments, a segment in each group therapy session to include health education. Lead Organization: Greater Sacramento Urban League. Collaborators: Capitol City Black Nurses Association and Heart of the Matter Counseling. Grant Award: $100,000.
Young Adults Lift and Youth Activities Programs provide basic needs, transition support, and positive development for vulnerable and at-risk youth/young adults. Targeted youth from economically disadvantaged communities will be provided opportunities to participate in youth sports, camps, and STEM programs for positive development. Young adults transitioning back into the community from the Sacramento County Probation’s Youth Detention Facility will be assisted with immediate needs and insecurities, including provision of monthly groceries and clothing, while offering a structured curriculum of financial literacy workshops, goal development, and career planning. Lead Organization: HERB Nonprofit. Collaborators: Sacramento County Probation’s Youth Detention Juvenile Justice Chaplaincy, Turning Point Community Programs (TPCP), and Safe Credit Union. Grant Award: $100,000.
Mercy Holistic Showers for the Homeless project provides mobile on-site showers to the homeless population in different locations throughout Sacramento. The program also addresses the health and well-being of the unhoused by providing hygiene kits, haircuts, clean undergarments, food, jobs, counseling, and housing voucher leads. Lead Organization: Mercy Holistic Ministries. Collaborators: Town and Country Lutheran Church, Mt. Calvary Baptist Church, Faith Presbyterian Church, and Harvest Missionary Church. Grant Award: $75,000.
In Yolo County, $123,500 in community grants have been awarded to three community projects, including the Resilient Futures Fund, Employment Support for Parents (ESP), and the Yolo Food Bank. Each initiative provides support for underserved populations, addressing key needs such as employment assistance, food security, and financial stability.
About Dignity Health: Dignity Health is a multi-state nonprofit network of 10,000 physicians, more than 60,000 employees, 41 acute care hospitals, and 400-plus care centers, including community hospitals, urgent care, surgery and imaging centers, home health, and primary care clinics in Arizona, California, and Nevada. Dignity Health is dedicated to providing compassionate, high-quality, and affordable patient-centered care with special attention to the poor and underserved. Dignity Health is a part of CommonSpirit Health, a nonprofit health system committed to advancing health for all people and dedicated to serving the common good. For more information, please visit www.DignityHealth.org.
