Aurora Women and Girls Foundation

What Aurora Women and Girls Foundation does

Aurora Women and Girls Foundation is a Connecticut-based 501(c)-style nonprofit foundation founded in 2000 by community leaders Leah Bailey Moon, Felice Gray-Kemp, Eileen Kraus, Paddi LeShane, and Marie O'Brien. Headquartered in West Hartford, it operates as the only freestanding foundation in Connecticut focused exclusively on women and girls, channeling resources into economic security, educational attainment, and leadership programs in the Greater Hartford region. Its programmatic portfolio includes College Success Programs (grants to five institutions such as Charter Oak State College, Hartford Public Library, University of Hartford, YWCA Hartford Region, and CT State Community College), the Young Women's Initiative (a 2024 launch with YWCA New Britain and the National Philanthropic Collaborative), the Women's Giving Circle, and the 100 Men Campaign.

The foundation's underlying technology layer is the Women and Girls Data Platform, an interactive online tool (womenandgirls.ctdata.org) built with Violane Tech that disaggregates publicly available data by gender and race at regional, city, and statewide levels. This platform underpins a longitudinal research publishing series — 'Essential Equity' (2021), 'Exposing CT's Eviction Crisis' (2022), 'Elusive Equity' (2023), and 'Toward Equity' (2025) — produced in collaboration with CTData Collaborative, IWPR, and the Community Fund for Women and Girls of the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven.

Aurora's revenue model is donor-dependent rather than commercial. It draws from individual donations, corporate sponsorships across multiple tiers ($1,500-$25,000), foundation grants including a landmark $1 million four-year award from the Charlotte and Hy Goode Family Fund Supporting Women's Potential at Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, and member-based pooled giving through the Women's Giving Circle. It distributes capital via competitive grants to regional nonprofits and educational institutions; it does not sell products or services.

Name

Aurora Women and Girls Foundation

Legal name

Aurora Women and Girls Foundation

Website

https://aurorafoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Aurora Women and Girls Foundation is a Connecticut nonprofit, founded in 2000 and based in West Hartford, that grants funds, runs College Success Programs and the Young Women's Initiative, and publishes gender- and race-disaggregated research to advance economic security, education, and leadership for women and girls in the Greater Hartford region.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Gender Equity Nonprofit Foundation

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Gender Equality & Women’s Empowerment (BPAGABAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Grantmaking & Philanthropic Funds (Institutional Donors) (BPADAOAB), Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK)

Keywords

• Women and girls philanthropy
• Gender lens grantmaking
• College success programs
• Nonprofit foundation grants
• Community based philanthropy

Headquarters

HQ city

Hartford

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: The foundation raises funds from individual donors through campaigns like the 100 Men Campaign (raised over $200,000 since 2016), direct donations, and event attendance.
2. Corporate Sponsorships: Annual operating support from corporate community partners at various sponsorship levels ($25,000 presenting sponsor, $10,000 visionary, $5,000 pillar, $2,500 innovator, $1,500 change agents).
3. Foundation Grants: The foundation receives grants including a landmark $1 million grant over four years from the Charlotte and Hy Goode Family Fund Supporting Women's Potential at Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, and collaborates with other women's funds for research reports.
4. Women's Giving Circle: Collective giving program where women pool resources and fund local organizations. Recent years raised $36,000 (2026 focus), $40,000 (2025), $30,000 (2024), with 100% of funds going to local organizations.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Aurora Women and Girls Foundation is a nonprofit grantmaking foundation that galvanizes resources to increase economic security, educational attainment, and leadership for women and girls in the Greater Hartford region. It delivers impact through targeted grantmaking to eligible nonprofits and educational institutions, data-driven research, and direct programs including College Success Programs and the Young Women's Initiative, funded by individual donations, corporate sponsorships, foundation grants, and collective giving circles.

Product overview

The Aurora Women and Girls Foundation is a nonprofit philanthropy organization that operates as a unified portfolio of programs rather than a traditional tech product. The core offerings include the Women and Girls Data Platform (an interactive data visualization tool), College Success Programs (grant-funded educational support), the Young Women's Initiative (youth development), Women's Giving Circle (collaborative grantmaking), 100 Men Campaign (male engagement), Research and Data Reports (evidence-based publications), Luminary Celebration (annual fundraiser), and Women's Leadership Forum (networking events). These programs work together to advance the Foundation's mission of increasing economic security, educational attainment, and leadership for women and girls in Greater Hartford.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Women and Girls Data Platform An interactive online platform providing access to publicly available data at regional, city, and statewide levels, disaggregated by gender and race, to drive informed decisions and equitable change for Connecticut's women and girls.
• College Success Programs Grant-funded programs providing women, especially low-income women, women of color, and first-generation students, with tools to navigate and pursue higher education through one-on-one counseling, mentoring, basic needs support, and wrap-around services.
• Young Women's Initiative (YWI) A collaboration among Aurora, YWCA New Britain, and the National Philanthropic Collaborative of Young Women's Initiatives that helps Black and Latina young women develop skills for success in school and workforce while implementing community improvement strategies.
• Women's Giving Circle A member-based collaborative grantmaking program where women pool resources and democratically vote to award grants to local nonprofits supporting women and girls in Greater Hartford.
• 100 Men Campaign A male engagement campaign inviting men to donate at least $100 and encourage gifts from others to support Aurora's mission for women and girls in Greater Hartford.
• Research and Data Reports Evidence-based research publications including 'Toward Equity' (2025), 'Elusive Equity' (2023), 'Essential Equity' (2021), and the Connecticut Women & Girls Data Hub that document the status and needs of women and girls in the region.
• Luminary Celebration Annual flagship fundraiser event celebrating women and girls whose lives are transformed through Aurora's support, featuring keynote speakers and community recognition.
• Women's Leadership Forum Annual networking event connecting Greater Hartford area college students with mentors and role models, featuring career advice panels and breakout sessions on professional development.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $760,000 in grants distributed since 2004 supporting thousands of women and girls
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and important.

• YWCA New BritaincoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 September 2024Primary partner for the Young Women's Initiative (YWI), hosting the program at House of Teens. The YWI is an exciting collaboration that brings a proven national model to Connecticut, developed by and for young women of color, focusing on education, career exploration, civic engagement, and financial skill building.
• National Philanthropic Collaborative of Young Women's Initiatives (The Collaborative)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 September 2024Consortium of 15 Women's Funds from across the country that brings national funding and proven program models to Connecticut through Aurora's partnership, enabling replication and refinement of the YWI program designed by and for young women of color.
• CTData CollaborativecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated on multiple research reports including 'Elusive Equity' (2023), 'Essential Equity' (2021), and 'Exposing CT's Eviction Crisis' (2022). CTData compiles and analyzes publicly available administrative and survey data disaggregated by sex, race, and ethnicity.
• Institute for Women's Policy Research (IWPR)importantStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partner for the 'Beyond Homework' report (February 2024) on supports needed for student mothers, showing that about one-fifth of college undergraduate students are raising children while enrolled.
• Violane TechimportantTechnology or IntegrationDesigned the Connecticut Women & Girls Data Hub, an interactive online platform providing access to publicly available data at regional, city, and statewide levels disaggregated by gender and race.
• CT PublicimportantStrategic or Co-development PartnerHosted live panel at Quinnipiac University for the 'Elusive Equity' data release, featuring 'Disrupted' podcast host Dr. Khalilah Brown-Dean in conversation about economic inequities faced by women, especially women of color.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves3 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• The New York Women's Foundation: A regional women's foundation focused on economic security, education, and leadership for women and girls in New York City. Directly comparable to Aurora as a place-based women's fund deploying targeted grantmaking, research, and donor-engagement programming with a similar mission profile.
• The Women's Foundation of Colorado: A statewide women's foundation running targeted grantmaking and research to advance economic self-sufficiency for women and girls in Colorado. Comparable to Aurora in mission, grantmaking model, and use of data-driven research reports to influence policy and donor behavior.
• Washington Area Women's Foundation: A regional foundation investing in the economic security of women and girls across the greater Washington, D.C. area. Comparable to Aurora in operating as a place-based women's fund combining research, grantmaking, and donor-education programming.
• Women's Fund of Western Massachusetts: A regional women's foundation in western Massachusetts focused on economic self-sufficiency, education, and leadership for women and girls. Highly comparable to Aurora in geographic scope, mission focus, and grantmaking/collective-giving model.
• The Women's Fund of Greater Cincinnati: A regional women's foundation advancing the economic well-being of women and girls in the Greater Cincinnati region through grantmaking, research, and community engagement. Directly comparable to Aurora's model of targeted local grantmaking paired with data-led advocacy.

Broad incumbents

• Ms. Foundation for Women: A national women's foundation funding efforts to end economic insecurity and advance women's power across the U.S. A broader, better-resourced incumbent in the same women's-fund space that competes with Aurora for national institutional dollars.

Emerging players

• Community Fund for Women and Girls of the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven: A regional women's fund within a larger community foundation serving the Greater New Haven area. Comparable to Aurora as a Connecticut women's fund and a research co-funder on reports such as 'Elusive Equity' and 'Essential Equity'.
• YWCA Hartford Region: A direct service and advocacy nonprofit serving women and girls in the Greater Hartford region, including as Aurora's primary partner on the Young Women's Initiative. Comparable as a community-level women's empowerment organization and grantee partner in the same region.

Regional players

• National Philanthropic Collaborative of Young Women's Initiatives: A national consortium of 15 Women's Funds advancing the Young Women's Initiative model. Comparable to Aurora as a coordinating body in the same women's-fund ecosystem and a direct program partner on YWI Connecticut.

Others

• Institute for Women's Policy Research (IWPR): A national research organization producing data-driven reports on women and families, including the 'Beyond Homework' report co-published with Aurora. Comparable as a research and data partner in the gender-equity policy space.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles20 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Aurora Women and Girls Foundation