Funded Projects

Strengthening a Foundation for Health and Justice across Wisconsin Communities

Awarded in 2026

Updated Jul 13, 2026

At a Glance

This project, Strengthening a Foundation for Health and Justice across Wisconsin Communities, led by the Wisconsin Prison Partnership is building on nearly 20 years of restorative justice programming established through the Prison Ministry Project (PMP) to create a sustainable, independent nonprofit that expands opportunities for healing for individuals, families and communities impacted by incarceration. Since 2006, PMP has facilitated more than 100 restorative justice groups in 10 Wisconsin prisons, bringing more than 1,500 incarcerated individuals into dialogue with community volunteers. As demand for programming has grown, the organization has expanded to two women’s prisons, supported book clubs for incarcerated peer support specialists in nine prisons and launched a restorative justice program for recently released women. Through this project, the Wisconsin Prison Partnership will strengthen its organizational foundation to sustain and grow this work while advancing partnerships that address incarceration as a social determinant of health.

The Challenge

The Prison Ministry Project has experienced significant growth in both the reach and demand for its restorative justice programming, expanding from an average of 5–6 groups annually before 2019 to 21 groups across 2024 and 2025, while serving individuals in 10 state prisons and launching new initiatives for women and peer support specialists. Building on this momentum, volunteers and supporters established the Wisconsin Prison Partnership as a new independent nonprofit to carry this work forward. However, as a newly formed organization, the Wisconsin Prison Partnership must build the organizational capacity needed to sustain and expand its impact. This includes developing a new organizational identity and structure, hiring an executive director and additional staff, establishing long-term financial sustainability and expanding partnerships and volunteer networks to meet the growing demand for restorative justice programming across Wisconsin.

Project Goals

To build a strong and sustainable foundation for the newly established Wisconsin Prison Partnership, the organization will strengthen its leadership, organizational systems, financial sustainability and partnerships. To accomplish this, the organization will implement a transition-planning process that ensures the successful transformation of the Prison Ministry Project into the Wisconsin Prison Partnership.

More Funded Projects

PERC Opportunity Grant

Awarded in 2026

The project, Partnership to Expand Education and Training Pathways in Clinical Research, is led by principal investigator Samuel Poore, MD, PhD, professor in the Department of Surgery at the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, and co-investigators Rafael Veintimilla, MD, senior director of the University of Wisconsin Clinical Trials Institute, and Marissa Winer, MA, dean of the School of Health Sciences at Madison College. This project aims to modernize how clinical research professionals are trained by replacing traditional degree requirements with focused, competency-based coursework and paid internships linked to career opportunities. Through collaboration with educational institutions, industry leaders and community organizations, the project will create accessible pathways into rewarding, high-demand careers for individuals from varying backgrounds and communities. In doing so, it aims to develop a clinical research workforce that broadly reflects Wisconsin’s population and health needs while strengthening the state’s research infrastructure and capacity to advance new medical treatments. Key partnership collaborators include Madison College (MC), University of Wisconsin (UW) Clinical Trials Institute (CTI), UW SMPH Office of Biohealth Industry Partnerships and Master of Science in Biotechnology, Industry Leaders (Exact Sciences), Community Engagement (South Madison Partnership, Sokaogon Chippewa Community Biohealth Incubator) and additional partners (BioForward, Biopharmaceutical Technology Center Institute (BTCI)).

community icon: shaking hands and group of people

Community Capacity Grant

Awarded in 2026

This project, Healthy Beginnings Outdoors: Strengthening the System for Nature-based Early Childhood Education, led by the Wisconsin Association for Environmental Education (WAEE) seeks to strengthen its organizational capacity to lead a statewide coalition advancing outdoor and nature-based early childhood education. Building on the merger of three grassroots organizations and partnerships across the environmental education, early childhood and public health sectors, the project focuses on strategic planning, coalition development and operational improvements. WAEE plans to recruit 10 early childhood education providers across all five Wisconsin Department of Children and Families regions to participate in a year-long planning process, while improving donor management systems, creating a statewide resource hub and map, and strengthening fundraising and leadership capacity to support healthier early care environments and expand equitable access to nature for children across Wisconsin.