Meet the 5 Nonprofits to Watch in 2024

"Central Ohio absolutely can solve its affordable housing puzzle. And we must. Because housing is essential to expanding our quality of life, to protecting our children’s education, to creating healthy bodies and minds, and to ensuring our region leads the economy of the future.

Today, 52,000 Franklin County families—about 1 in 10 of our neighbors—face extreme housing insecurity. If we don’t act soon, that number will grow by another 20,000 households in less than a generation.

Closing this housing gap is possible, but it requires hyper-local data and research. It requires experts all working together to solve big problems. It requires sustainable resources and modern laws that build our communities up. And it requires tireless advocates. These are the tools and services the Affordable Housing Alliance of Central Ohio shares with our community. Through collaboration, respect, and persistence, we will fix this problem together."

"Franklinton Farms’ mission is to nourish neighborhood well-being and connection through farming, gardening, and education. We make nourishment accessible by growing and delivering affordable, hyperlocal produce. We operate on 12 scattered sites—formerly blighted lots—where we grow food, native plants, and flowers to help the neighborhood feel as welcoming as the neighbors.

Franklinton Farms also empowers community members to grow their own food and develop their own sense of connection to nature through free garden education programs, offered in collaboration with community partners and local schools. We promote social connectedness and belonging by hosting community events weekly and two annual festival—all of which are free and fun for all ages!

We are humbled by the involvement and feedback of our community, and are dedicated to evolving according to their needs and goals, and it is an honor to be part of Franklinton’s story."

"Mansion Day School’s history of educating a diverse population of students with cultural competence to become positive contributors to society is unparalleled. We endeavor to sharpen the mind, expand academic knowledge, and stretch intellectual reach, while developing skills as independent thinkers and confident communicators.

"As the only viable urban Indian center in Ohio, NAICCO’s presence serves as a critical mainstay in the lives of numerous Native American individuals and families. For Native People, many who are far from their ancestral homelands, NAICCO serves as a home away from home. It’s a place in Ohio where Native People can come together and grow as an intertribal community. By holding space and providing authentic programming unique to our People’s expressed areas of need and concern, we are helping instill a genuine sense of belonging and identity.

At the end of the day, NAICCO is ultimately helping strengthen our Native People’s healing journey going forward—interlacing identity, pride, family, community, history, culture and traditions, connection to place, values, visibility, balance and harmony, and overall holistic wellbeing."

"Our vision is to heal communities through creative expression. We try to accomplish that by creating safe spaces for groups of people from all different backgrounds and ages to come together and make things together with guidance from professional artists who are passionate about our mission.

We have seen a lot of good magic happen when people come together to share their stories and be vulnerable with each other for a collective creative goal. Especially since COVID we have observed a real hunger for authentic community, those special third spaces outside of home or work where people feel seen, known, and loved. We want to create as many of those spaces as we can, and we believe the potential of what good can come from them is unlimited."