Bingham Fellows Class of 2024 Announces Projects to Address Louisville’s Safety

The Bingham Fellows program is the advanced leadership program of the Leadership Louisville Center, created in 1988 to gather a diverse group of leaders to develop dynamic and innovative solutions to our community’s most pressing challenges. Every year, the Leadership Louisville Center selects a class of experts, influencers, and creative thinkers to address the most pertinent issue facing our city. Forty-four members of the Bingham Fellows Class of 2024 are launching several initiatives focused on the topic, “Safer City: Creating a Thriving City for All.”

During their time in the Bingham Fellows program, participants focused on the challenges of public safety and the social, cultural, and economic implications our community faces. In order to meaningfully impact this critical need, the Center partnered with the Community Foundation of Louisville and the Greater Louisville Project’s (GLP) 2023 “Safer City By Design” report. The report presented data on the state of violence in Louisville, how it can be addressed using a public health approach, and funding challenges for current evidence-based and community-informed violence intervention and prevention strategies.  

As the class comes to a close, the participants have developed actionable strategies to support the systems surrounding the reduction of gun violence. The 2024 Bingham Fellows are launching projects to reduce crime by focusing on repeat offenders, responsible for 60% of violent crime, and address root causes that lead to violence by supporting youth, Black males, and families. 

As a general warning, the following videos contain violent content which may be too intense for some viewers. Viewer discretion is advised. 

HOPE UNITED FELLOWSHIP
We can create a safer city through investing in opportunity youth, especially Black males. These young men are powerful assets but need guidance to positively impact themselves and the collective community. To champion this root cause solution, the H.O.P.E. United Fellowship is designed to provide systems of support that promote HOPE: Health, Opportunity, Prosperity & Empowerment. This program aims to reduce gun violence by offering a lifeline to young Black men, 18-24 years old. As part of our recurring fellowship program, we provide a salary, personalized educational programming, ongoing health support, empowering mentorship, critical employability skills, and customized job opportunities to a class of young Black males, which will provide the foundation of support and skills needed to build a brighter future for themselves and their families.
LEARN MORE ABOUT HOPE UNITED FELLOWSHIP HERE 

VILLAGE STRONG
Raising a child is a journey. Daily stressors can slow a family down and can be a source of emotional turbulence. Louisville is a compassionate city with organizations that support families and provide help when needed to enable everyone to succeed – the challenge is how to make those connections to provide the village that families need. Village Strong is a community event that invites families with elementary-age students to come and receive support from local service providers who specialize in social, emotional, and mental well-being needs. By providing on-site, immediate support, as well as the opportunity to continue consultation with local resources, Village Strong strives to provide meaningful and impactful connections. We know schedules are busy, so there will be food and childcare with activities for younger family members to allow parents time to have discussions with local support agencies. It takes a village to raise a child, we invite Louisville families to come and meet theirs.
LEARN MORE ABOUT VILLAGE STRONG HERE 

SUPPORT PROMOTE FUND YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
Louisville youth ages 15-24 are 12% of our population but nearly a third of homicide victims. Thankfully, an ecosystem of institutions, organizations, and individuals is working to address this public health crisis. The Support Promote Fund is gathering funds to support the Community Foundation of Louisville’s Community Safety & Healing Fund to strengthen and expand that ecosystem of problem solvers and peacemakers. 

Through a series of curated events, we’ll introduce local leaders of small and medium-sized businesses to area nonprofit leaders engaged in youth development work as a method of violence prevention. We’ll present a strong business case for sustained unrestricted investment in these organizations as an innovative solution to Louisville’s gun violence epidemic. We’ll invite them to boldly invest in these nonprofits joining public officials, funders, corporate leaders, educators, law enforcement, faith leaders, and youth in building a safe, healthy, and thriving community for everyone who calls Louisville home.
LEARN MORE ABOUT SUPPORT PROMOTE FUND YOUTH DEVELOPMENT 

REPEAT OFFENDER INITIATIVE
The Repeat Offender Initiative, or ROI, is a multi-institutional effort to reduce the crime rate of repeat offenders who are estimated to be responsible for more than 60% of the violent crime in the U.S. This new initiative will help improve the safety of the community by connecting criminal justice agencies and their data, creating transparency and consistency of relevant information on arrestees, which will lead to better-informed decisions and a more efficient criminal justice system. 

Using Atlanta’s Repeat Offender Commission as a model, ROI will enable a new way to view data and trends, allowing LMPD to refine investigative and enforcement strategies and judges to get real-time data for sentencing and disciplinary measures. An annual report will highlight key crime trends, areas of concern, and possible changes in policy or law.
LEARN MORE ABOUT ROI HERE 

 
The challenges facing our community’s safety are complex, but the 2024 Bingham Fellows haven’t shied away from them. They’ve identified real issues, developed practical solutions, and are now actively working to make them a reality. Through these four exciting projects, they’re paving the way for a safer Louisville – creating a thriving city for all. 

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About the Bingham Fellows program:  

The Bingham Fellows program is the advanced leadership program of the Leadership Louisville Center. Created in 1988 through a $500,000 endowment from the Mary and Barry Bingham Sr. Fund, the Fellows are social entrepreneurs who have the imagination and talent needed to gather critical resources and create social change. Side by side with peers, participants work to develop dynamic and innovative solutions to our community’s most pressing challenges. The 2024 cohort was the 32nd class, and the Bingham Fellows have had an impressive track record of providing community issues with visibility and momentum. 

The Fellows don’t ponder what might be. They roll up their sleeves, shine a spotlight on an issue, and put new ideas to work. Their recent impact includes projects such as CitySpots, which is turning spaces into places to create a more vibrant downtown, and You Decide, Kentucky!, a statewide initiative working to empower local governments to decide what revenue streams will improve the quality of life in their communities. Some additional high impact projects since program’s creation include the West Louisville community development organization OneWest, regular Café Louie conversations with elected officials at Louisville Free Public Library locations, a sustainable model for neighborhood ‘Little Free Libraries,’ and City Champs, a talent attraction and retention program now managed by Greater Louisville Inc. The impact of the Fellows goes back to the 1990s with the creation of The Housing Partnership, construction of the Presbyterian Community Center, growth of local farmers’ markets, and numerous other positive outcomes.   

Leadership Louisville Center 

The Leadership Louisville Center is the region’s most valuable resource for leadership development and civic engagement. With a purpose to inspire and equip leaders to be better and do better, it has graduated over 15,000 through its programs since 1979. The Center is recognized as a national best practice and is known for its dynamic programming and strong community connections. Programming includes five social impact leadership programs (Leadership Louisville, Focus Louisville, Ignite Louisville, Bingham Fellows, and Encore Louisville), the Alice Houston Women’s Leadership Program, leadership skills training courses presented through partner brand LeadingBetter™, and events designed to connect leaders and motivate positive change. Learn more at www.leadershiplouisville.org. 

Community Foundation of Louisville 

Founded in 1984, the Community Foundation of Louisville mobilizes people, networks, and capital to spark meaningful change in and beyond Louisville. With nearly $800 million in assets, over 2,200 charitable funds, and collaborations with hundreds of local partners, we connect real investments with relevant causes. In addition, key priorities of the Foundation’s mission are to advance racial equity and open opportunity for all. Working with neighbors, changemakers, and community investors, we’re inspiring greater generosity to move us all forward. 

 
About Greater Louisville Project 
After 20 years of benchmarking Louisville’s performance against its peer cities with research, data and insightful analysis; the Greater Louisville Project sunset to make way for new organizations and initiatives leaving the Greater Louisville Project legacy to the Community Foundation of Louisville. The Community Foundation of Louisville continues to make Greater Louisville Project data available to the public while mobilizing action to address the persistent community challenges documented in the Greater Louisville Project’s 20 years of regional data. 
 
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