We work to build flourishing communities through leadership and economic development, creating a stronger culture of organizing and advocacy, and by re-envisioning public safety through community-based models.
Our dream for Tulsa is one where neighbors know and support one another, conflict and crisis are rare and taken care of within community, and everyone has their needs met because resources are abundant and shared. Most importantly, our vision for Tulsa is one where currently oppressed communities have autonomy over their lives and their futures, instead of state actors, external service providers, or outside entities.
Read more about our strategies for action towards community safety in our comprehensive report.
MISSION STATEMENT:
The mission of the Tulsa Black Mental Health Alliance, powered by the Terence Crutcher Foundation, is to engage the underserved, educate the underrepresented, and equip under-resourced communities to disrupt systemic oppression and the stigma of black mental health.
VISION STATEMENT:
We envision the Tulsa Black Mental Health Alliance to be a catalyst of healing and a beacon of light to activate liberated futures and bring restoration to communities of color.
The Terence Crutcher Foundation is invested in the growth and development of a funding apparatus that will self-govern a portion of grant-making and reduce the racial equity gap in philanthropy. The Movement Catalyst Collective will fund Tulsa County 501(c)3 organizations (or organizations fiscally sponsored)working in Tulsa. The organization must have an emphasis on engaging Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) in providing services and/or strengthening movements.
Project L.E.A.D. (Leadership, Excellence, Achievement, and Development) empowers young people to proactively engage in political and community activism and to find their passion in the work towards liberation. This program uses evidence-based models to address systemic issues through lifting up and standing with young people who some may call at-risk; but we call at-power.
R.I.S.E. (Resilience, Inclusion, Social Awareness, Education) is a program curated by the Terence Crutcher Foundation and the USA BMX Foundation. R.I.S.E. brings mentorship, history, STEAM education, inclusion, and awareness to the youth of our community. This 12-week program is free to all students residing within North Tulsa ZIP codes!
Upon graduation, students participating in the program will earn a custom R.I.S.E. jersey, BMX bike & helmet and a lifetime membership at USA BMX. Students will also have the opportunity to attend the USA BMX Grand Nationals in November during Thanksgiving weekend, and a few may have the opportunity to participate in the big race!
Project T.E.A.C.H. (Transforming Educational Achievers through Community Healing) is an no-cost educational intervention program for students struggling in Tulsa Public Schools. This pilot program is a high-dosage tutoring program serving rising second and third-grade North Tulsa students with reading, mental health, arts, and yoga programming. It provides wrap-around services geared towards healing the whole of the student mentally, physically, and emotionally so their performance in the classroom will improve above and beyond standards. Research shows that in the long-term, interventions provided in Project T.E.A.C.H. will improve the economic and health outcomes for these students while also lessening their chances of becoming involved in the school-to-prison pipeline and the criminal legal system as a whole.
The late Mrs. Leanna Crutcher, co-founder of Terence Crutcher Foundation and mother of our namesake, started the initiative known as “A Mother’s Love”, a trauma-informed program to support mothers who have lost children to gun violence, police brutality, and have been impacted by the criminal legal system. A Mother’s Love supports, uplifts, and provides resources to these mothers in the spirit embodied by Mrs. Crutcher throughout her life.
From sending mothers who have lost children to the mother of Trayvon Martin, Sabrina Fulton's, Florida retreat to paying off the legal fines and fees of system-impacted mothers, this program is multi-faceted but always rooted in love.
Because of the hyper-policing in our communities, the Restorative Justice Institute of Oklahoma and Terence Crutcher Foundation, as an initiative of ProsperOK, launched a Transformative Justice Pilot Program in 2021. This program aims to demonstrate the cost-effective human benefit of utilizing transformative justice measures rather than the criminal legal system to address crime and conflict. It's a process led by trained facilitators and the harmed party/parties that seeks to heal and repair individuals and relationships. It is evidence and trauma-informed, and research shows it is highly effective in ameliorating many forms of harm.
It is our desire to change the narrative that perceives black men as BAD DUDES and pipeline them into a "community of achievers" through personal growth, education, and attainable resources. We give yearly scholarships to Black youth to provide pathways for their future.
Terence Crutcher was trying to better his life through music and education. The Terence Crutcher Foundation has partnered with Tulsa Community College to help students who are determined to further their education and who may have a special interest in music and the arts.
