Funded Partner Spotlight: Community Tampa Bay
Back in 2017, the Foundation issued its first grant to Community Tampa Bay, to support curriculum revision for their Camp ANYTOWN program, which brings together diverse high school students who look differently, live differently, and love differently to build a more diverse and inclusive community from the ground up.
Through the years, we continued to support Community Tampa Bay’s work with additional funds to build capacity, deepen the group’s youth leadership and advocacy work, increase programming, and more. In 2024, Community Tampa Bay used Foundation capacity-building funds to invest in strengthening their communications strategy and staff professional development.
Now, Community Tampa Bay is launching a new program: ANYTOWN for Adults. Building on the principles of their award-winning ANYTOWN youth program, ANYTOWN for Adults will equip participants with the tools to become stronger leaders in the personal & professional lives, while fostering connections across diverse backgrounds.
“There’s such a great need for adults to lead with curiosity and engage in meaningful dialogue so that we may have a better understanding of the peole we interact with everyday,” said Program Director Quenita Oats. “It’s been years in the making, and now is the time.”
The group is looking to recruit a class of about 10 to 15 adults for their first session, which will be held from September 10-12 in Tampa over three days and two nights. While ANYTOWN youth programming is largely free for participants, the ANYTOWN for Adults program fee ranges from $950 to $1,750.
“We’re hoping employers see this is as a valuable professional development opportunity,” Oats explained.
Learn more on the Community Tampa website at https://www.communitytampabay.org/adult-anytown/.