Funder FAQ

Yes. The Nash Group Community Foundation is a federally recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, incorporated in the State of Missouri in November 2025. Our EIN is 36-5158652. All donations are tax-deductible to the fullest extent permitted by law.

TNGCF is governed by a Board of Directors that provides strategic oversight with fiduciary responsibility. Board approval is required for all expenditures exceeding $5,000. All board members and staff file annual conflict of interest disclosures. Our organizational bylaws, governance policies, and financial controls are detailed on our Leadership and Financials pages.

Dr. Troy Nash, CEO & Founder — Doctorate from the University of Southern California. 30+ years of executive leadership experience spanning healthcare, housing, community development, banking, and higher education. Former board member of Arvest Bank ($20B financial institution), University Health, UMKC Trustees, Samuel U. Rodgers Health Center, and the Missouri Housing Development Commission. Executive in Residence and Assistant Teaching Professor at UMKC.

Arielle Nash, COO — Brown University graduate representing the next generation of leadership in the foundation's multi-generational mission.

TNGCF was incorporated in November 2025, but the work behind it spans 30+ years. The Foundation is the formalization of three decades of community work by Dr. Troy Nash in Kansas City — including executive roles in healthcare, banking, housing, and education, and service on eight major institutional boards.

The Foundation was built before it launched — not after. At incorporation, TNGCF already had: a complete 29-course curriculum across 8 life domains, a Theory of Change with logic model, SROI projections, financial governance controls, legal compliance documentation, and a UMKC academic partnership. Most established nonprofits don't have this level of operational readiness.

The From Struggle to Success Academy™ is a comprehensive life transformation program featuring 29 courses across 8 life domains and 135+ hours of instruction. Rather than addressing a single issue (housing only, or employment only), the Academy addresses the interconnected root causes of poverty through an integrated, evidence-informed curriculum.

The 8 domains are: Housing Stability, Health & Wellness, Economic Mobility, Education, Technology & AI, Civic Engagement, Environment, and Purpose & Community.

The Academy is evidence-informed, meaning its curriculum is built on established research and proven methodologies from across the social sciences, public health, adult education, and community development. Each of the 29 courses draws from peer-reviewed research and best practices in its respective domain.

As a new program, we do not yet have our own longitudinal outcome data. That is precisely why we have built a rigorous Evaluation Framework — with UMKC as our third-party evaluator — to measure and validate outcomes from day one.

Most social service programs address one problem at a time — job training, financial literacy, or housing assistance. The Academy is different because it treats poverty as a systemic, multi-domain condition that requires a systemic, multi-domain solution.

A participant who gets a job but can't afford stable housing, manage their health, or navigate the legal system will cycle back into crisis. The Academy's 8-domain approach ensures that every barrier is addressed — not just the most visible one.

Additionally, the program extends beyond graduation through a Mentor & Multiply phase, where graduates become mentors to the next cohort — creating a multiplier effect that no single-domain program can achieve.

The curriculum was designed by Dr. Troy Nash, drawing on his doctoral research at USC, 30+ years of executive experience across eight sectors, and a lived experience of transformation — from growing up in the very conditions the Academy addresses to serving on the boards of Kansas City's largest institutions.

UMKC (University of Missouri – Kansas City) provides credit articulation and independent academic validation of the curriculum. This partnership ensures the program meets university-level educational standards.

We have a comprehensive Evaluation Framework that tracks transformation across all 8 life domains using our proprietary TSDOH™ (Total Social Determinants of Health) assessment tool. Measurement occurs at four points: baseline intake (Months 1–3), mid-point check-in (Months 4–8), capstone & graduation (Months 9–12), and post-graduation follow-up (Year 2+).

Data collection includes individual progress dashboards, cohort-level analytics, employment and income tracking, housing stability records, and cost-per-outcome calculations.

By 2030, we are targeting: 1,000 Academy graduates who complete the full 29-course curriculum; 90% housing stability among graduates at 12 months post-completion; 85% employment rate(employed or self-employed within 12 months of graduation); and 75% of graduates actively mentoring, multiplying community impact into the next cohort.

The University of Missouri – Kansas City (UMKC) serves as our independent third-party evaluator. UMKC provides credit articulation for Academy courses and independent program evaluation through their university research partnership. External validation ensures our outcomes data meets academic and institutional standards.

We also source Kansas City-specific baseline data from NLIHC, Census Bureau, Brookings Institution, and KC CHIP to ensure our impact measurements are grounded in verified public data.

Our projected SROI is 4.2:1 — meaning every $1 invested creates $4.17 in social value. This calculation is based on line-item cost avoidance analysis comparing our $5,000 per-participant Academy investment against public costs of crisis: $35,578 per chronically homeless individual annually, and $35,663 per incarcerated individual annually.

Prevention is 86% less expensive than crisis. The full SROI methodology with line-item justification is detailed on our Financials page.

Our full budget breakdown is publicly available on the Financials page. Funding is allocated across program delivery (instruction, mentorship, participant support), operations (staffing, technology, facilities), evaluation (UMKC partnership, data systems), and community outreach. We publish detailed line-item budgets because we believe funders deserve to see exactly where every dollar goes.

TNGCF maintains rigorous financial controls including: a dedicated nonprofit bank account with dual signature requirement for all expenditures; QuickBooks nonprofit accounting with full audit trail; segregation of duties across receipts, disbursements, and reconciliation; Board approval required for expenditures exceeding $5,000; annual conflict of interest disclosures by all board members and staff; and a 7-year document retention policy.

Our GuideStar/Candid profile is currently in progress. As a foundation incorporated in November 2025, we are working toward achieving the Silver Seal of Transparency. In the interim, we provide full organizational transparency directly on our website: governing documents , financial details , theory of change , and evaluation framework are all publicly accessible.

We offer structured investment tiers designed for foundations, corporations, government agencies, and individual donors. Each tier includes specific deliverables, reporting commitments, and recognition. Full details of investment tiers and partnership structures are available on our Partner page.

Year 1 is designed to produce measurable outcomes that validate the model and support subsequent funding applications. After our first cohort completes the Academy, we will publish a Year 1 Impact Report with verified outcomes data from our UMKC evaluation partnership. This data becomes the foundation for multi-year grant applications and expanded program delivery.

The Mentor & Multiply model also creates built-in sustainability: as graduates become mentors, program delivery costs decrease while community impact increases.

Yes. TNGCF is a multi-generational mission. The Foundation's leadership already spans two generations: Dr. Troy Nash (CEO) and Arielle Nash (COO, Brown University graduate). This is not a founder-dependent organization — it is a family legacy built to endure.

The story begins with Charlotte Nash, whose sacrifice broke the cycle of poverty for her family. That transformation now extends into its third generation through the work of the Foundation. The organizational structure, documented processes, curriculum, and governance framework are designed to operate beyond any single individual.

Our funding strategy targets multiple streams: foundation grants(health, workforce, housing, education foundations); corporate partnerships(employer engagement, sponsorships); government funding(federal, state, and municipal programs); and individual donors. Our Partner page segments outreach by funder type, and each segment speaks directly to that funder's priorities and language.

TNGCF serves individuals and families in Kansas City's most underserved communities — neighborhoods where zip codes have historically determined destinies. Our participants are adults facing interconnected barriers across housing, employment, health, education, and financial stability. Complete details about the populations we serve and the crisis-level statistics driving our work are available on our Who We Serve and Kansas City Data pages.