The North Carolina Open Government Coalition was recently
awarded a $35,000 operations grant from the National Freedom
of Information Coalition. The funds will be used to support
the work of the coalition for the next three years while it
works to secure an endowment to support permanently the
operations of the coalition’s Sunshine Center. The
Sunshine Center, which is part of the School of
Communications at Elon University, works to improve community
awareness of the state’s open meetings and open records
laws through education and outreach. The Sunshine Center also
works to provide resources to citizens and other open
government stakeholders.
The National Freedom of Information Council is housed at the
University of Missouri and provides annual support to citizen
drive efforts to establish freedom of information coalitions
and organizations that protect the First Amendment.
“The North Carolina coalition has joined the ranks of
vibrant, free-standing state groups, and we at NFOIC
couldn’t be happier,” said Charles Davis,
executive director of the NFOIC and professor at the
University of Missouri. “The grants program is aimed at
growing and sustaining state FOI groups, and North Carolina
has now taken the next major step forward, securing a
permanent home. We couldn’t be happier.”
The NFOIC also hosts an annual conference that brings the
state coalitions and other stakeholders together to create a
collective voice on the issue. A grant from the Knight
Foundation supports the work of the NFOIC.
The funds from the NFOIC will allow the NC OGC to have a
part-time director dedicated to the long term goals of the
coalition, one of which includes hosting Sunshine Day.
“These operating funds are critical to our organization
as we work to create a permanent presence in the state
related to open government,” said Jim Hefner, president
of the North Carolina Open Government Coalition. “This
financial support of open government work is a tribute to
those in our state and elsewhere who hold dear the principles
of good, effective, open government. The North Carolina Open
Government Coalition is dedicated to these very principles.
This funding toward the Sunshine Center will go a long way in
protecting and expanding those principles as we move
forward.”
The NFOIC grant provides operating funds for two years and
included a request that the coalition reapply for funding in
the third year as it works to achieve its endowment goals.
The coalition has an endowment goal of $500,000.