Nexus Open Road Fund

In 2021, the Bush Foundation awarded $100 million to seed two community trust funds for Black and Indigenous individuals facing wealth disparities due to historic racial injustice. Nexus Community Partners (Nexus) is responsible for distributing a $50 million community trust fund to Black individuals living in Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Nexus contracted with Research in Action to lead the research and evaluation of the fund and its impact, as well as co-convene an Advisory Council of Black folks as partners in designing the evaluation plan. Through that process the council co-created shared definitions of key terms  for the project and set the foundation for the long-term evaluation. 

NEW REPORT!

Read the 2025 Open Road Fund Annual Report here!

Partners

Nexus Community Partners

Nexus supports strong, equitable and just communities in which all residents are engaged, are recognized as leaders and have pathways to opportunities. The key to building more engaged and powerful communities of color lies in the connections between authorship, leadership and ownership.

Open Road Fund Advisory Council

Nexus Community Partners selected Advisory Council members through a short application process to bring their brilliant and unique leadership to represent the breadth of perspectives on Black wealth. Current council members include:

  • Anura Si-Asar

  • Cheniqua Johnson

  • Genesia Williams

  • Jered Pigeon

  • Jimmy Harris

  • Joslynn Mayse

  • Katherine Lankford

  • Rachel Stone McDaniel

  • Tyesha Mitchell

RIA Community Advisory Council

In 2021, when Nexus contracted with Research in Action to lead the research and evaluation of the fund and its impact, RIA co-convened an Advisory Council of Black folks as partners in designing the evaluation plan. Through that process the council co-created shared definitions of key terms for the project and set the foundation for the long-term evaluation. Their input was essential to all that has come after in this project.

  • Amoke Kubat

    HeARTIST* and Spiritual Culture Bearer

  • Angela Dawson

    Founder & CEO, Forty Acre Co-Op; President, The Great Rise

  • Cheniqua Johnson

    Public servant, grant maker, community organizer

  • Chloe Clements

    Diversity consultant

  • Genesia Williams

    Creative social change leader

  • Jimmy Harris

    Community change maker

  • Katherine Lankford

    Correspondent Mortgage Underwriting Supervisor

  • Kirstin Burch

    Program Director, Family Housing Fund

  • Ronnie Spann

    Minneapolis Public Schools Behavior Resource, Anishinabe Academy

  • Talaya Jones

    Professional Black entrepreneur

  • Tynesha Mitchell

    Community Health worker, Founder of Making It Official

  • Rachel Stone

Problem

In a nation founded on and steeped in extractive, racialized capitalism, superficial and white-dominant definitions of “wealth” couldn’t capture the profound offerings of Black history, culture, and vision. 

Process

RIA and Nexus worked with the Advisory Committee to co-create a rich and rooted vision for what Black thriving looks like — and incorporated feedback and input from participants at multiple visioning sessions and through an online community survey.

Solutions

Co-defining Black wealth with the Advisory Committee and broader Black community was a first and foundational step in assessing the impact and success of the Open Road Fund. RIA will continue its partnership by following a group of 50 awardees over the next eight years to evaluate and measure the long-term impacts of the fund. 

Reports & Resources

  • REPORT: Open Road Year 3 Annual Report

    This report provides insight into the impact of previous awards — and an overview of the 2025 awards.

  • REPORT: Open Road Fund 2024 Annual Report

    This report provides insight into the impact of 2023 awards one year later — and an overview of 2024 awards.

  • REPORT: First Steps on the Open Road

    In 2023, the Open Road Fund distributed $50,000 grants to 99 Black individuals. This report will give you an inside look into the granting process and key insights we’ve gained from the first cycle.

  • Defining Black Wealth Case Study

    Learn more about our process and the co-creation of a Black wealth definition that will guide the Open Road Fund grants and evaluation