About Southern Ms Planning & Development District
Building a Stronger Mississippi. Provide information, resources, and funding to support planned development of the region’s human, economic, political and natural resources, and to assist governments, businesses, seniors, the unemployed, disadvantaged and disabled.
Focus Areas
economic developmentcommunity developmentsenior servicesworkforce developmentenvironmental remediation (brownfields)small business finance/loan programs
Who They Fund
older adults / seniorsadult learners and job seekerslocal communities seeking economic development
Funding Style
direct service deliveryworkforce development / job training
About Southern Ms Planning & Development District
Southern Ms Planning & Development District Inc’s largest recent grants all point to the same operating model: it moves substantial funding through subrecipients in Gulfport for services for the elderly, education, training, and economic development. That combination also mirrors the organization’s stated mission to support the region’s human, economic, political, and natural resources. In practice, the foundation works through public-service and development programs rather than one-off charitable awards. Its grantmaking is tied to a local Mississippi service area and is shaped by direct program administration. The organization serves as a designated Area Agency on Aging, funds senior centers and home- and community-based services, and also administers brownfields assessment work tied to redevelopment planning. Workforce and economic development appear alongside aging services, showing a funder that blends social support with local capacity building. The recent grant record shows repeated large awards to subrecipients in Gulfport, with the same broad purpose text used across multiple years. That pattern suggests ongoing support for programs rather than isolated project funding. The foundation’s activities also extend to environmental remediation and redevelopment, including assessment and planning for contaminated or potentially contaminated sites in Southern Mississippi.
What Southern Ms Planning & Development District Funds
Senior services are a major part of the foundation’s work. Through its Area Agency on Aging role, Southern Ms Planning & Development District Inc funds senior centers, adult day care providers, meal programs, caregiver support, Alzheimer’s services, legal assistance, and other home- and community-based services across its 15-county service area. It also supports environmental remediation and redevelopment. The EPA Brownfields Multipurpose/Assessment Grant funded community-wide environmental site assessments, a brownfield site inventory, a Community Involvement Plan, and a dedicated website, with attention to the Old North Laurel neighborhood in Laurel and the Mobile Street/Twin Forks Rising community in Hattiesburg. Workforce development appears through the Senior Community Service Employment Program, which provides part-time community service training and promotes economic self-sufficiency for people age 55 and older. The foundation also uses reimbursement-based commercial redevelopment programming to help rehabilitate vacant or blighted commercial buildings.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$6.6M
Total Assets
$48.9M
Total Revenue
$46.1M
Total Expenses
$43.6M
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $10.3M and $13M, with a median of $12.7M.
25th Percentile
$10.3M
Median
$12.7M
75th Percentile
$13M
Geographic Reach
Local1 state funded
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
Leadership
LEONARD BENTZ II
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