South Dallas Fair Park Opportunity Fund board approves four full grants, splits remaining $17,200 between Abide and Dallas Free Press

The Sound Dallas Fair Park Opportunity Fund Board approved funding on May 19 for six human-development projects after reviewing applications that scored 80 or higher in the most recent cycle. The board fully funded four organizations and split the remaining available funds between two others, with staff to review amended scopes before contracts are finalized.

Board members voted to fully fund these applications: After School Opportunity Lab ($25,000); After 8 to Educate ($29,700); Together We Thrive ($20,000); and the South Dallas Fair Park Inner City Community Development Corporation (ICDC) Business Assistance Center ($25,000). That sequence used $99,700 of the board’s remaining $116,900 for the fiscal year. The board then approved splitting the remaining $17,200 evenly between Abide Women’s Health Services and the Dallas Free Press, awarding each organization $8,600.

Why it matters: the grants fund new or expanded services intended to improve education, workforce readiness, small-business capacity and maternal health in the South Dallas Fair Park Opportunity Fund service area. Several board members said they preferred to fund applicants at the full requested amount where possible because applicants indicated they would rather receive full funding or none, rather than operate with a reduced budget.

Most important votes and amounts

- After School Opportunity Lab — approved for $25,000. Motion by Trent Hughes (District 12), seconded by (recorded second). Vote: ayes noted, no opposed voices recorded. The program proposes a literacy-focused after-school intervention for 60 elementary students at Paul Dunbar Learning Center and budgeted $15,000 for personnel and $10,000 for transportation.

- After 8 to Educate — approved for $29,700. Motion by Trent Hughes (District 12), seconded by B. Brooks. The organization provides a 10-week workforce-development and case-management program for unsheltered youth ages 14–21.

- Together We Thrive — approved for $20,000. Motion by Bill Dawkins (District 10), seconded by Trent Hughes. The request will support a summer middle-school social-emotional learning and life-coaching program.

- South Dallas Fair Park ICDC Business Assistance Center — approved for $25,000. Motion by Trent Hughes (District 12), seconded by Chairman Carl Enriquez (District 13). The Business Assistance Center provides hands-on coaching to help small businesses become bankable and scale operations.

- Abide Women’s Health Services — awarded $8,600 (partial). Abide requested $99,996 to expand midwifery-led home-birth services, Medicaid billing capacity and prenatal/postpartum access; the board awarded a portion of available funds and directed staff to obtain an amended scope if the organization accepts partial funding.

- Dallas Free Press — awarded $8,600 (partial). The Free Press requested $60,000 to expand its Dallas Documenters journalism pathway, summer camps and internships; the board awarded a partial amount and requested a revised scope of work for contract attachment.

Board discussion and process

Staff presenters Heather (Opportunity Fund staff) and Nicholas (staff presenter) walked the board through scores and ranked recommendations for eight applicants that scored 80 or higher. Heather told the board the applicants had indicated in feedback sessions that “they would prefer to be funded at the full amount rather than a reduced amount” so they could operate the program as proposed.

Board members debated two principal approaches: fund as many programs as possible at the full amounts until funds run out, or partially fund more applicants to spread resources. Several members — including Cece Encarnacion and Chairman Carl Enriquez — proposed fully funding four programs that together used most of the remaining funds, leaving a $17,200 balance for partial awards. Other members advocated for splitting the balance among all remaining applicants; the board ultimately settled on a 50/50 split between Abide and the Dallas Free Press.

City attorney office staff (Brady) advised that formal votes require a clear dollar amount in the motion; the board therefore advanced motions that specified the funding amount for each approved application. The board also agreed that if a partial award substantially changes an applicant’s scope of work, the amended scope would be brought back to the board for review. Staff said smaller scope changes could be processed administratively.

Outcomes not advanced

The board did not advance full awards for Prism Health North Texas (listed in the packet as AIDS Arms / PRISM North Texas) or Volunteers of America Texas at this meeting; those applicants remain unfunded from this allocation.

Subcommittee reports and next steps

Board members reported work from two standing subcommittees. The business-development subcommittee described an “applicant engagement initiative” — a proposed outreach and resource program to increase future applicant readiness — and asked staff to review branding before public circulation. The marketing subcommittee reported plans to pursue tabling and awareness opportunities, including a no-cost vendor invitation for the board at an Amplify event on Juneteenth (June 19) at the DEC Network at Redbird.

The board set a condition for the two partial awards: staff will request revised budgets and scopes of work and return materially changed scopes to the board for approval. The Opportunity Fund’s next regular meeting was scheduled for June 30.

Votes at a glance

- After School Opportunity Lab — $25,000 — approved (motion: Trent Hughes; second recorded). - After 8 to Educate — $29,700 — approved (motion: Trent Hughes; second: B. Brooks). - Together We Thrive — $20,000 — approved (motion: Bill Dawkins; second: Trent Hughes). - South Dallas Fair Park ICDC Business Assistance Center — $25,000 — approved (motion: Trent Hughes; second: Carl Enriquez). - Abide Women’s Health Services — $8,600 (partial) — approved conditionally; amended scope required if partial award accepted. - Dallas Free Press — $8,600 (partial) — approved conditionally; amended scope required if partial award accepted.

What the board said

Heather, Opportunity Fund staff, summarized scoring and staff recommendations and said the board’s role was deliberative: “we don't want to tell you exactly what to do, but we do want to give you the scores and what our recommendations are, where our money runs out.” Nicholas, the staff presenter, reviewed program details and budgets for each applicant and confirmed that Prism Health North Texas’s request included an $80,000 match.

Chairman Carl Enriquez and other board members highlighted education and small-business capacity building as priorities that align with recent board projects. Several board members expressed a preference for full funding where practicable, citing applicants’ stated need for complete awards to operate as proposed.

Ending

The board adjourned after approving the allocations and hearing subcommittee updates. Staff will return revised scopes and contract documents where partial funding materially changes program outcomes. The board’s next meeting was set for June 30.