‘Perfect storm’: Charlotte nonprofits face financial crisis amid funding cuts

CHARLOTTE — Earlier this year, the federal government cut or froze funding to nonprofit organizations around the country. Now, several local organizations say those cuts have hit them hard.

Local leaders are sounding the alarm that the safety nets many people turn to in times of need are losing safety nets themselves.

Kellie Cartwright is the former CEO of Meck ED — former, because the nonprofit shut down this summer after losing $600,000 in federal funding.

Cartwright says corporate donors blamed the lack of funds on uncertain impacts of tariffs on their bottom line.

“Federal policies have been a huge, huge issue, directly and indirectly,” Cartwright told Channel 9’s Deneige Broom. “So, that’s kind of the perfect storm that has come.”

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It’s a storm that’s been brewing across the country. The Urban Institute released a study in October noting one-third of nonprofits in the U.S. had their government funding paused, frozen or cut this year.

“You know, for some organizations, this is 30, 40, 50 or more percent of their budget,” David Heinen, with the North Carolina Center for Nonprofits, said.

Heinen says this economic crunch is different than what we saw in 2007 and even the Covid pandemic.

“During recessions, private giving goes down, but, you know, the government kind of makes up for it,” he said. “During the pandemic, as you noted, you know, there were so many, between PPP loans and employee retention tax credits that there were a lot of federal resources that were going to nonprofits.”

That story is different today. Meck Ed had to close. The Ada Jenkins Center is filling the need of others that closed. Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Carolinas and Crisis Assistance Ministry can’t help as many people as they’d like, and Communities in Schools has had to lay off staff.

“I think one of the hardest decisions in my career has been actually telling a person who has dedicated their life to this work, who believes in the mission, who’s sacrificed to be an employee here and help us support students, that their position is being eliminated,” Communities in Schools’ CEO Men Tchaas Ari said.

As they all fight their hardest to weather this storm, they have a message.

“Dig deep inside of yourself, and find out what it is that you want to support,” Harold Rice, CEO of the Ada Jenkins Center, said. “Look around you and just get involved, because doing nothing is not solving the issue.”

Watch the full interviews with the CEOs below for more on how they serve the community and how you can help them.

VIDEO: Interview with Ada Jenkins Center CEO Harold Rice