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3 Ways Young Nonprofit Professionals 
Can Advance Talent-Investing

Blog Post by Yolanda Caldera-Durant, Vice President, Fund the People

The Board of the Young Nonprofit Professionals Network (YNPN). Visit ynpn.org to learn more.

How can young nonprofit professionals advocate for talent-investing at their organizations?

I found out at a Fund the People workshop that I facilitated at the Young Nonprofit Professionals Network (YNPN) conference this summer.  We had a lively session about how they have been invested in and how they’d like to support talent-investing at their organizations. The workshop sparked an energetic discussion about how nonprofit professionals are thinking about adopting talent-investing. Three important themes came up during the workshop...

Read the Blog Post
Yolanda Caldera-Durant Promoted
to Fund the People Vice President

Yolanda Caldera-Durant has been promoted to Vice President of Fund the People. Her new title is effective October 1. Caldera-Durant joined our team in 2016 as Director of Programs, which has been her title until now, and has become a leading force within the organization and a leading voice in the field.

Others recognize Yolanda's leadership, as well. The Minority Inclusion Project (MIP) will honor Caldera-Durant at their Annual Honors Gala on December 2. MIP is a Connecticut-focused effort that works
 to close the nonprofit racial leadership gap by developing pathways to leadership for people of color while helping community organizations become structurally and systemically diverse, equitable, and inclusive.

Before bringing her talents to Fund the People, Yolanda worked as a grantmaker and fundraiser, with senior positions at the Connecticut Health Foundation, Annie E. Casey Foundation, and Fairfield County's Community Foundation. Read her full bio here.

Major Funders Make New
Investments in Fund the People
We are pleased to announce that, over the last few months, three institutional funders have made new grants to Fund the People.

The Barr Foundation approved a three-year grant of core support our core operations, advancing our overall work and enabling our Talent Justice initiative. The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and American Express have each respectively made new one-year grants for similar purposes.

These funders join the Kresge Foundation, Robert Sterling Clark Foundation, and Annie E. Casey Foundation, who were already current supporters. 

Additional Fund the People supporters over the past four years have included the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Ford Foundation, David and Lucile Packard Foundation, Durfee Foundation, and Bush Foundation.

Please join us in recognizing Barr, Hewlett, American Express, and all our funders for their generous support of Fund the People.

Fund the People is proud to be fiscally-sponsored by Community Partners. All grants discussed above have been made to Community Partners for the work of Fund the People.   
Launching the Talent Justice Initiative

Fund the People is in the first phase of our new Talent Justice initiative, which seeks to help funders and fundraisers maximize investment in intersectional racial equity in the nonprofit workforce. Specifically, we aim to increase the access, advancement, and ascension of people of color, women, poor and working class individuals, and other leadership constituencies in nonprofit careers. In 2019, we will pilot original research, tools, and trainings.

To begin this work, we've retained the Center for Urban and Racial Equity ("CURE"), a strategic research and consulting firm that partners with people and organizations to advance equity through policy, systems, institutional, and community change. Judy Lubin, PhD, MPH, who is principal of the Center, is a sociologist, policy analyst, and adjunct professor in the Howard University. 

We began the initiative with a literature review to ensure that we recognize and build upon recent research and ideas from across the field, such as Race to Lead: Confronting the Nonprofit Racial Leadership Gap by Building Movement Project, and Awake to Woke to Work: Building a Race Equity Culture from Equity in the Center.

In early September, the Fund the People and CURE team completed a summer survey of nonprofits and funders with 1,500 responses. In October, we are holding three virtual focus groups with survey respondents, two of which will be specifically composed of people of color. Stakeholder interviews will take place in November.

Initial findings from these research activities will be published in early 2019, and will be followed by pilot tools and trainings later in the year. Keep your eyes on this newsletter for new materials!

We appreciate the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and Annie E. Casey Foundation for their guidance and partnership in this critical area of work. We also wish to acknowledge the task force of Advisory Council members that supports this initiative. And big thanks to the colleague organizations who served as Distribution Partners for the survey:

AmeriCorps Alums (part of Service Year Alliance) * Arizona Grantmakers Forum * CHANGE Philanthropy * Community Development Advocates of Detroit * Community Resource Exchange * Dorothy Johnson Center at Grand Valley State University * Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy * Equity in the Center * Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation * Funders for LGBTQ Issues * Funders Collaborative for Youth Organizing * Grantmakers for Effective Organizations * Human Services Council of New York * Independent Sector * Leadership Learning Community * National Council of Nonprofits * Nonprofit AF Blog * Nonprofit HR * Public Allies * Raymond John Wean Foundation * Red Hook Initiative * Roadmap Consulting * Support Center for Nonprofits * Taproot Foundation * United Philanthropy Forum * Young Nonprofit Professionals Network

Since Fund the People launched in 2014, our guiding principles have articulated the centrality of equity and inclusion to building a strong nonprofit workforce. We've worked in a steady fashion to integrate these values into all we do, both externally and internally. Talent Justice is the latest iteration of this work, and integrates many of the ideas and lessons-learned from the past four years.
Fund the People Surfs to Southern California
Encouraging Cali leaders to "fund the people!"
Photos by Len Wood, Santa Maria Times.
Last week, Rusty Stahl, Fund the People's President and CEO, headlined the North County Nonprofit Forum, a one-day conference for nonprofit professionals in a northern, rural swath of Santa Barbara County that includes the communities of Lompoc and Santa Maria. The six-hour event, themed “Invest in Staff, Advance Your Mission,” included Stahl's keynote presentation; breakout sessions focused on various aspects of the nonprofit workforce; panel discussions; and opportunities for attendees to network.

In addition to the conference presentation, Rusty delivered a 2-hour funder briefing for foundation professionals who participate in the North County Funder Roundtable.

Coverage by the local newspaper, The Santa Maria Times, highlighted Rusty's message. The article notes, in part:

"Stahl pointed to what he termed the 'vicious cycle' that many nonprofits face when seeking funding: They primarily focus on their organization’s mission and fail to identify staff development or retention programs among their areas of need, either out of fear of losing out on potential funding or thinking that it isn’t necessary, thus they never receive the funding to implement those programs. Further, the agencies that provide the funding do not typically ask about such development programs, so there is little motivation from the nonprofit to push for them.

"Stahl, who was scheduled to make a presentation Friday to a group of funding agencies to discuss ways they can help reverse the trend, said he started Fund the People in large part to counter that cycle and 'change the direction. That’s what we’re out there trying to do — to change attitudes and behaviors,' he said during his remarks at the forum."
Read the Article
Fund the People & Building Movement
Keynote Chicago Nonprofit Conference

Embracing Inclusive Leadership:
Uncommon Conversations About Diversity

A Conference hosted by the Axelson Center for Nonprofit Management


October 19, 2018
9:00 AM – 3:30 PM (CDT)
North Park University

Fund the People's Rusty Stahl will offer the afternoon keynote at the Axelson Center for Nonprofit Management’s fall conference. This gathering will bring together 200 Chicago-area nonprofit leaders to learn about inclusive leadership and why it matters. Rusty Stahl, Fund the People’s President & CEO, will discuss what investing in intersectional racial equity means for the present and future of nonprofit work. Rusty will join the conversation initiated by the morning keynote speakers, Frances Kunreuther and Sean Thomas-Breitfeld, Co-Directors of the Building Movement Project and the Race to Lead research.

Learn About the Conference
From the Archives: Watch Our Recent Events
The Foundation Center hosted a webinar featuring an overview of talent-investing by Fund the People's Yolanda Caldera-Durant, and a living case study of talent-investing featuring the Community Foundation of the Holland/Zeeland Area and grantee partner organization Lakeshore Ethnic Diversity Alliance. Access the webinar recording here.
Philanthropy New York recently co-organized and hosted a Funder Briefing featuring an overview of talent-investing by Fund the People's Yolanda Caldera-Durant and Rusty Stahl, and guest presenter Holly Delany Cole, who shared the work of the Haas Jr. Fund's Haas Leadership Initiative, which supports leadership and staff development within select grantees. Access the livestream recording and slide deck here.
Visit our updated Events page to watch more videos and find out how to bring Fund the People to your association or event!
Watch Our Events
New CEP Study: Nonprofits List "Staffing" 
As a Major Need; Their Funders Do Not
Screen shots of cover and pages from new report Strengthening Grantees: Foundation and Nonprofit Perspectives from the Center for Effective Philanthropy
A new research report out from the Center for Effective Philanthropy (CEP) provides a comprehensive examination of foundations’ efforts to strengthen grantee organizations, leaders, and networks. Aong the key findings is that "nonprofits most desire help in fundraising, staffing, and communications. Fundraising, staffing, and communications are areas nonprofit CEOs say their organization most commonly seeks to strengthen -- and there may be more need in particular for staffing and communications support than foundation leaders realize."

When asked to identify areas of grantee organizations that need strengthening, 37% of nonprofit CEOs listed "staffing" (second only to "fundraising"), while foundation leaders did not list staffing at all.

In the report, Fund the People's President and CEO, Rusty Stahl, is quoted as saying "The dearth of investment [in nonprofit people] can produce an unjust workplace. Funders can be a pivotal part of the solution, enabling nonprofits to provide living wages, meaningful benefits, supportive personnel policies, robust professional development, and a healthy organizational culture." 
Get the Report
Select Resources From Our Partners
"Nonprofit AF" Blogger Publishes Book on Foundation-Nonprofit Relations 

Vu Le, the fierce and funny force behind the Nonprofit AF Blog, teamed up with social sector leaders Jessamyn Shams-Lau (Peery Family Foundation) and social entrepreneur Jane Leu (Smarter Good, Inc.) to publish the new book Unicorns Unite: How Nonprofits and Foundations Can Build Epic Partnerships

The authors offer a nitty-gritty, inside look at how foundations and nonprofits relate today, and why we're stuck in the status quo.

"Get ready for a rocket-ship ride to a future filled with EPIC Partnerships grounded in equality, trust, and creativity; partnerships to help us think bigger, bolder, and better about social change. Finally, make it happen! Roll up your sleeves and dive into a series of fun and thought-provoking exercises for you to do and discuss with your team, your partners, and your board.

Unicorns Unite is a whimsical journey through a challenging conversation that could hold the key to slaying the dragons of injustice and inequity once and for all."

Read about how to make #EPICpartnerships happen! Pick up a copy for yourself (or your friends, organization, company, foundation, or book club).
AmeriCorps Alums Virtual Career Fair
 
October 19, 2-4pm ET
Is your organization hiring? Invest in talent and identify emerging leaders by joining a Virtual Career Fair put on by AmeriCorps Alums and Service Year Alliance. On Friday, October 19th from 2-4pm ET, hundreds of AmeriCorps Alums and Returned Peace Corps Volunteers will join this online event to meet companies, organizations, and agencies that value the experiences gained in a service year. Friends of Fund the People are eligible for discounted registration and encouraged to participate. Learn more and register today!

Reflecting on 2017 Unity Summit,
Preparing for 2019 Unity Summit


One year ago, CHANGE Philanthropy hosted the 2017 Unity Summit: Investing in Movements for Equity. The summit challenged and supported over 700 participants to expand their individual and institutional practices in order to advance equity with an intersectional lens, and with community at the center of our efforts. CHANGE Philanthropy, their partners and member networks made the 2017 Unity Summit the largest, most diverse convening of progressive funders in recent philanthropic history. Check out reflections on this memorable and impactful gathering. To sign up for updates and information on the 2019 Unity Summit, click here
We want to learn from you! Does your foundation intentionally deploy resources to build the support systems that enable grantees to develop their staffs? Let Yolanda Caldera-Durant know!
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