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Investments in Families

Since our founding in 1951, children and families have long been the focus of our work to cultivate communities where everyone can participate, grow, and flourish.

Over the years, our strategy for supporting children and families has varied and often included programmatic support for families acclimating to new life in America, parent and child intensive mentoring and therapeutic support for young people engaged in the juvenile justice system, and early-childhood education and out-of-school time programming that supports whole child, whole day, and whole year learning and enrichment opportunities. Recognizing that children grow and flourish within the context of families and communities, we’ve increasingly prioritized two-generation (2Gen) approaches that acknowledge the interconnected needs of adults and the developmental journeys of children.

After years of listening, research, and preparation, in 2024, the Steelcase Foundation launched a 10-year, $10 million participatory research initiative partnering with family leaders, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, DataWise Consulting, and the Women’s Resource Center to disrupt systems and shift narratives that negatively impact families in Michigan. The initiative explores how targeted wraparound supports and solutions designed with family leaders can improve well-being, identify and remove structural barriers, and create scalable policy and philanthropic solutions.

Working in partnership with a cohort of 30 family leaders in Kent County with at least one child under the age of 12, the initiative supports families as they work to achieve self-determined goals, increase economic stability and supportive social networks, and enhance overall family well-being. Cohort members receive monthly income stipends, investments in health and child savings accounts, dedicated support to create and advance personal goals and navigate resources and systems as needs arise, transformational group learning and relationship building, and opportunities to inform the initiative itself through participation on the narrative advisory group, research and evaluation committee and planning committee for cohort gatherings.