Impact

Blue Shield of California Foundation believes that examining the impact of our work is critical to achieving our goals: making health care accessible, effective, and affordable, and ending domestic violence. Through external evaluations of our grantmaking, we are gaining a clearer picture of how our funding affects grantees and the populations they serve. Through this process of learning and evaluation, we are better equipped to respond to urgent needs, while making the most of each dollar.

But, impact is not measured solely in the number of dollars distributed. By understanding our own, as well as our grantees’ accomplishments, impact, and challenges, Blue Shield of California Foundation aims to inform the fields we care about, and shape policy and practice to support our goals.

The impact of our grantmaking is felt by families and individuals across California. That includes Latina and immigrant communities like the one served by East LA Women’s Center (ELAWC). Foundation support for their landmark “promotoras” program is helping ELAWC reach isolated or non-english-speaking survivors of domestic violence and connect them to the services and support they need. Together with our grantees — like ELAWC — we’re working to end domestic violence; one woman, one family, one community at a time.

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For low-income Californians, community health centers are critical frontline providers in neighborhoods where few other supports are available. In these communities, the Foundation is helping to generate on the ground impact for those most in need. By funding organizations like Tiburcio Vasques Health Center to improve the way that care is delivered and strengthen their connections to the community, we’re working to ensure access to high-quality care for low-income Californians and create greater health equity across the state.

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Impact Reports

Funding With an Oversized Impact — Blue Shield Against Violence Core Support Initiative 2008-2010

May, 2011
This report, prepared for Blue Shield of California Foundation by Touchstone Consulting, explores both how and why BSAV core support funding has had an impact on domestic violence service providers. Information for this report was drawn from reports submitted by 2008 – 2010 BSAV Core Support Initiative grantees. This report paints a dramatic picture of the needs of domestic violence service providers and the important impact that even modest investments of private funding can make for agencies that provide essential safety net services. Read the report

Community Clinic Core Support Initiative: 2011 Evaluation Findings

July, 2012
In 2007, The Foundation engaged LFA Group: Learning for Action to create a multi-year evaluation plan and conduct a baseline assessment of community health center and parent corporation grantees. In 2009, and again in 2011, LFA Group conducted follow-up assessments to capture trends over time within the field of community health centers in California and to inform the field of philanthropy about the impact that core operating support can have over time.

This report focuses on the themes and findings from the 2011 evaluation, which includes community health centers that received Core Support grants in 2010. Please reference the reports completed in 2007 and 2009 for detailed questions about the methods and findings from those years. Read the report


Strategic Plan

Health Means Everything

June, 2013
Blue Shield of California Foundation's "blueprint for change" provides a fresh look at the Foundation's grantmaking strategy. Over the next three years, this plan will help guide our work and bring us closer to achieving our mission. View our Strategic Plan


Grantee Perception Reports

In order to collect anonymous grantee feedback, BSCF has used the Grantee Perception Report® (GPR), administered by The Center for Effective Philanthropy, bi-annually since 2006. This survey tool provides us feedback on how grantees perceive their relationship with BSCF and how we compare with other foundations. Our performance is compared with our past performance (via previous GPRs) and that of other foundations similar in size and scope to BSCF. We believe it is our responsibility to publically share these results as part of our commitment to being a learning organization and so that grantees see the information collected and the action steps that will result from this important feedback.