TRANSFORMATION STORIES
AND HUMAN OUTCOMES
Asking how we can best alleviate poverty has not caused our community to flourish. Instead our goal is to ask, what creates wealth and human flourishing? It is our goal for individuals and businesses to have the opportunities and access they need for sustainable success. We measure our work through overall human ROI — real outcomes of flourishing lives across multiple bottom lines.
OUR STORY
This great city belongs to us all.
Its gateways of education and employment.
Its houses of culture, worship, and recreation.
Its highways of innovation and entrepreneurship.
But for so many there has been no seat at the table, only barriers along the way.
We are the Grand Rapids Center for Community Transformation.
Grand Rapids is our home, the 49507 community is our heart.
In our eyes, every human being is endowed with dignity, creativity, and talent.
It’s clear to us that the deep-rooted inequality in our society is primed for disruption.
And we are re-imagining not just our city, but enterprise itself.
We’re a collaborative of businesses and passionate organizations.
Relational and outcomes-focused.
An eco-system for social innovation, enterprise, investment, and career and entrepreneurial development.
A platform for flourishing lives.
Why?
Because unhindered access to opportunity is the only road to a city of vitality.
A city of inspiration. A city for us all.
STORIES OF TRANSFORMATION
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"The GRCCT embraces students’ individuality, and allows them to feel like it’s never too late to change and contribute to the community.”
Ka’Vin Jones
Assistant Teacher at YouthBuild -
“I love the GRCCT. Everyday in class I learn not to just exist, but to live.”
Quentin Webb
YouthBuild Alumnus -
"If our community's youth is an engine, the GRCCT is the gas that motivates them to move forward.”
Michelle McGlaun
GRCCT Curriculum Coordinator -
"At Lumbermen's, we share the GRCCT's vision of helping our employees, their families, & our community flourish.'
Henry Bouma
Vice President of Corporate & Cultural Development at Lumbermen’s Inc. -
"I went from an employee to an owner/operator with the skills and experience I developed from being at the center."
Tino Scott
Owner of ScottServices Property Maintenance -
"We believe that the GRCCT will creatively and strategically invest in programs, people, and the community in a way that maximizes the return on investment."
Peter Baldwin
President of AMDG Construction