Vernon L. Odom Fund awards more than $10,000 in grants

Several grants will support dance education programs

On Friday, March 6, the Vernon L. Odom Fund of Akron Community Foundation awarded $10,300 in grants to programs dedicated to enriching the quality of life among local communities of color. A prominent theme in this year's funding was youth programming, including a $450 grant to Urban Vision to support after-school dance electives.  

Rodney Matthews, Urban Vision's executive director, shared the benefits of dance for young girls. "The dance classes offered at Urban Vision provide a time for the girls to learn a new skill they enjoy, grow in their confidence, and bond as they practice and perform together. Our class focuses on teaching the girls to use dance as a way to express themselves, develop creativity and physical strength, and discover how dance can be a form of worship," he said.

The following is a complete list of the 14 organizations that received a grant from the Vernon L. Odom Fund in 2026:

Akron Black Artist Guild, to support the Outlined in Black Art Exhibition, an annual program that uplifts Black artists across Northeast Ohio by providing an opportunity to exhibit and sell their work, $500
Akron Children's Museum, to provide discounted admission for families who qualify for EBT or SNAP, $500
Akron Inner City Soccer Club, to support a year-round soccer program for families of low socioeconomic status in Akron, $1,000
Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Zeta Theta Omega Chapter, to support Perfecting Our Pearls, a one-day youth leadership program that provides girls from diverse backgrounds with education and mentorship, while improving their self-esteem, $1,000
Citizens Akron Church (The Vincent House), to provide boxing lesson scholarships through Popeye's Boxing Gym for children in the Middlebury neighborhood, $1,000
CuratedStorefront, to support the visiting artist program at the I Promise School, $450
DANCECleveland, to present Akron choreographer Dominic Moore-Dunson's new work, "Black by Nature," in the Summit Metro Parks, $1,000
Dancing Classrooms Northeast Ohio, to support a ballroom dance program that promotes social development and confidence, $400
Girls on the Run Northeast Ohio, to provide financial assistance to Akron-area girls for a program that combines physical activity with discussions about self-confidence, stress management and healthy relationships, $1,000
Limitless Ambition, to support community engagement events designed to strengthen relationships between parents and their daughters, $1,000
Marion F. Walker Queens Project, to support summer literacy programming and community engagement events, $500
South Street Ministries, to provide reentry services and peer-to-peer support groups for returning citizens, $1,000
Summit Artspace, to support an exhibition in the Main Gallery by an emerging local artist, $500
Urban Vision, to provide dance classes and uniforms for girls in the Set On Success after-school program, $450

About the Vernon L. Odom Fund
The Vernon L. Odom Fund was established in 1993 in honor of the late Vernon L. Odom Sr., a respected longtime leader of the Akron Urban League. Since its inception, the fund has grown to more than $280,000 while awarding more than $255,000 in grants to innovative programs that promote ethnic and racial harmony and improve the quality of life within Greater Akron's communities of color. For more information about the Vernon L. Odom Fund or to contribute, visit akroncf.org/Odom or call 330-376-8522.

About Akron Community Foundation
For 70 years, Akron Community Foundation has been our community's champion and generator of enduring philanthropy. In 1955, a $1 million bequest from the estate of Edwin Shaw established the community foundation. It is a philanthropic endowment of $350 million with a growing family of nearly 930 funds established by charitable people and organizations from all walks of life. The community foundation and its funds welcome gifts of all kinds, including cash, bequests, stock, real estate, life insurance and retirement assets, just to name a few. To date, the community foundation's funds have awarded $267 million in grants to qualified nonprofit organizations. For more information about Akron Community Foundation or to learn more about creating your own charitable fund, call 330-376-8522 or visit akroncf.org.