Author Archives for Nabil Abdulkadir
We’ve collected another month’s worth of research with broad sector relevance that drew our interest – and thought you’d be interested in seeing it, too. This month’s set contains important insights on philanthropic trends, the biggest donors of 2019, and pretrial risk assessment instruments.
Johnson Center at Grand Valley State University 11 Trends in Philanthropy for 2020
In politics, in business, and in our communities, Americans are questioning the very nature of philanthropy and probing its core value. These questions ask who has the responsibility — or the right — to tackle complex problems like poverty and climate change. They ask how nonprofits and funders are evolving in response to community needs.
These questions are not new; they have been at the heart of our sector since the beginning. Rather, they are renewed in our modern context. They are shaped by and interpreted through the spectrum of larger world forces — like justice, socioeconomic inequality, civil trust, and compassion — that we’re grappling with today.
Now, for the fourth year in a row, experts and thought leaders from the Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy explore 11 trends in philanthropy for 2020 to help you anticipate and embrace what’s next.
More on the study:
Chronicle of Philanthropy’s Philanthropy 50 2019
America’s biggest donors gave a total of more than $15.8 billion to nonprofits in 2019, the 20th year the Chronicle has been compiling the Philanthropy 50. This year’s report features the Chronicle’s analysis of the list and giving trends among megadonors in 2019, as well as a look at key parts of the Philanthropy 50 over the previous 20 years, including who has appeared most often on the list and who has donated the most.
More on the study:
Safety and Justice Challenge: Civil Rights and Pretrial Risk Assessment Instruments
Jurisdictions across the United States are considering or starting to implement pretrial risk assessment instruments, yet many civil rights advocates argue that such instruments should play no role at all in pretrial administration. They further argue that, where pretrial risk assessment instruments remain in use, such instruments be carefully circumscribed in order to be made legally, morally, and practically defensible.
This brief answers two questions. First, why do many in the civil rights community oppose the use of pretrial risk assessment instruments? Second, what concrete reform strategies are available that would avoid risk assessment instruments, or would sharply limit their role? With or without pretrial risk assessment instruments, there are powerful policy levers available that can address mass pretrial incarceration, replace the for-profit bail industry, and make progress toward racial equity.
More on the study:
Add Your Voice
The research summaries above are by no means an exhaustive list of the newest information out there to help us better understand the nonprofit landscape. So if we missed a report you think we should know and share about, let us know by leaving a comment!
Last year’s federal spending package was signed into law on December 20, a major victory for many of the nonprofit sector’s priorities and many legislators’ holiday plans. But you know who got left out in the cold this holiday season? Budget nerds.
With last year’s work complete and this year’s process not yet officially underway, we have endured seven long weeks of budget nothingness: a barren winter landscape devoid of familiar comforts like agency budget appendices or even the merry din of reporters breathlessly tracking Capitol Hill negotiations. Pay no mind to the weather; it has been a cruel winter indeed.
Thankfully, the calendar turns toward February and the signs of rebirth are all around us as the air is filled with the sounds of pitchers and catchers reporting, groundhogs peeking, and—of course—president’s budgets releasing. Happy budget season everyone!
Earlier this week, the Fiscal Year 2021 budget process kicked off publicly with the release of the president’s budget proposal, dubbed the Budget for America’s Future. As exciting as this near-national holiday was for Americans everywhere, the outlook for this particular budget is decidedly murky. Reactions from members of Congress generally ranged from outright opposition to tepid support for many of its more noteworthy proposals.
As is common for any White House, this budget hits many of the same notes as previous proposals from President Donald Trump. The budget calls for over $740 billion in defense spending while requesting just $590 billion for domestic priorities, a figure that is over $30 billion below the bipartisan budget deal for FY 2021. It once again calls for making the 2017 tax cuts permanent (rather than letting many tax cuts for individuals expire after 2025) and proposes to eliminate the federal deficit over 15 years through changes to Medicare and Medicaid in addition to very optimistic assumptions about future economic growth.
Beyond these changes to mandatory spending, the president’s budget calls for the wholesale elimination of a wide range of other programs of particular interest to the charitable sector. These programs include the McGovern-Dole Food for Education program, 21st Century Community Learning Centers, Community Services Block Grant, Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, Community Development Block Grant, Senior Community Service Employment Program, Corporation for National and Community Service, National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, Institute of Museum and Library Services, National Wildlife Refuge Fund, as well as the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program.
If the programs listed above look familiar, they should. Each of them was targeted for elimination in last year’s budget proposal too. However, Congress ultimately decides how federal dollars are allocated and they have chosen to spare or even increase funding for many of these programs in recent years.
So, this week marks the budget season for all of us. Many of these programs have champions in Congress, but all of them have dedicated and savvy advocates working tirelessly on their behalf.
Whether it is by phone, email, social media, or shoe leather lobbying, legislators and their staff have clearly gotten the message about these programs in years past. Those advocacy efforts have a lot of success to build on, but the work begins anew each year. Good luck all, and happy budget season!
To fully understand and be responsive to societal challenges, it’s important that nonprofit organizations reflect the broad diversity of the communities they serve. And as nonprofits’ highest decision-making body, their boards of directors should, as well. Diversity includes a broad range of backgrounds and perspectives — including race, color, ethnicity, gender, language, nationality, sexual orientation, religion, socio-economic status, age, and physical and mental ability, as well as experience and skillsets.
Yet, a 2019 survey of 102 nonprofit boards of directors found that 61 percent of survey respondents agreed or agreed strongly that their boards or executive committees did not adequately reflect the community or communities served by their organizations. What’s more, fewer than 50 percent of respondents reported any action to increase diversity representation on their boards.
According to the survey report, The Governance Gap: Examining Diversity and Equity on Nonprofit Boards of Directors, “Nonprofit organizations—and the boards that govern them—must play a key role in breaking down systemic barriers and creating an inclusive, more equitable nonprofit sector.”
Principle 11, Board Diversity, encourages boards to “be inclusive of and sensitive to diverse backgrounds when recruiting members, in addition to recruiting board members with expertise and professional or personal experiences that will be beneficial to the organization.”
Beyond the broad description of diversity included above, Principle 11 says board member diversity should also take skillsets into account. This includes members who are financially literate to ensure that financial matters are conducted legally, ethically, and in accordance with proper accounting rules. Consideration also should include experience in personnel, fundraising, public relations and marketing, governance, advocacy, and leadership, knowledge of the organization’s area or expertise and programs, and special connections to the organization’s constituency.
Does your organization need to be more pro-active about ensuring your board is representative of the communities being served, and has necessary skillsets to appropriately carry out its responsibilities? Refer to Principle 11 for guidance, along with these helpful resources:
And with so many challenges facing sector leaders today, consider signing up for Ethical Leadership: Navigating Rough Waters With Ease, offered March 30 – April 20. Co-produced by the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance and Independent Sector, the course covers key issues and risks facing social-impact leaders, using real-world examples, tools, and strategies. You’ll also receive a valuable toolkit of resources that can help you ensure your decisions are ethical. And, if you’re an IS Member, you’ll receive a 20% discount.
For more resources to guide you in ensuring your organization operates in an ethical and accountable manner, refer to Independent Sector’s 33 Principles for Good Governance and Ethical Practice, and additional online tools and resources in our Principles Resource Center.
Changemakers from all walks are doing great things to build a better world. And we bet you have a favorite whose body of work to make transformative community change warrants consideration for our sector’s highest honor.
We encourage you to nominate your personal hero for the 2020 John W. Gardner Leadership Award – now through Friday, April 17!
Independent Sector presents the Gardner award each year to an extraordinary social sector champion whose body of work exemplifies the vision and ideals of John W. Gardner — statesman, educator, and IS founder.
Our 2019 winner was Sherry Salway Black, a member of the Oglala Lakota nation and standard-bearer for Indian Country self-determination, asset building, community investment, and cultural revitalization for more than four decades.
Other award recipients are trailblazers on other pressing social challenges, including Angela Glover Blackwell (2018), founder of PolicyLink; Rosanne Haggerty (2017), President and CEO, Community Solutions; and Bryan Stevenson (2016), Executive Director of the Equal Justice Initiative and subject of the Academy Award-nominated movie, Just Mercy. Find out more about our outstanding Gardner Award winners.
The award winner will receive the John W. Gardner Leadership Award this fall at Upswell 2020.
It’s important to submit your nomination without your candidate’s knowledge, so mum’s the word. And remember, the nomination period closes Friday, April 17, 2020 at 11:59 pm PST.
IS Members Trust for America’s Health, the YMCA of the USA, and the American Heart Association, along with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), led a January briefing on how Americans can improve the quality of their lives by committing to simple lifestyle changes. Independent Sector’s Chris Ryan attended the briefing, which focused on strategies to increase physical activity and improve health through everyday activities (see Figure 1 below).
The presenters unveiled “Active People, Healthy Nation,” an initiative to help increase the physical activity of over 27 million Americans by 2027. The initiative also calls for youths to have more opportunities to play sports in order to lead healthier lives and prevent healthcare expenditures, helping lower the overall costs of healthcare.
The initiative’s goals call for 15 million adults to move from inactive (no aerobic activity) to moderate-intensity activity every day, 10 million adults to meet the federal government’s minimum physical activity guidelines, and for two million young people to be active for at least 60 minutes a day.
Presenters leading the briefing included:
- VADM Jerome M. Adams, M.D., M.P.H., Surgeon General of the United States
- Ruth Petersen, M.D., M.P.H., director, division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- Melicia C. Whitt-Glover, Ph.D., FACSM, president and CEO, Gramercy Research Group; member, 2018 Physical Activity Guidelines Advisory Committee
- Mayor Jay McGowan, Cle Elum, Washington
- Emily Holubowich, M.P.P., vice president, federal advocacy, American Heart Association
The presenters expressed urgency about the country’s state of physical health, stating that seven out of 10 people cannot pass a physical fitness test, and explaining that this can put the country’s safety and security at risk. They recognized a distinct difference between those who are active and those who are not; disparities are largely tied to people of color, with non-Hispanic Black people being the number one victims in the southern part of the U.S. ( See figure 2 below).
Dr. Adams also provided simple everyday steps Americans can take to have an active lifestyle, such as taking the stairs rather than the elevator; making two trips from the car while carrying groceries, rather than attempting to hold them all in one trip; not looking for the closest parking spot; and getting off the metro or bus stop before their final destination. The consensus was that Americans can benefit deeply by implementing simple lifestyle changes in our everyday lives.
Dr. Adams ended his speech with a “take-a-stand” approach, committing to begin practicing the initiative then and there. He and his former military partner performed 20 push-ups in front of the audience, which was truly inspiring. Independent Sector thanks these organizations for holding this briefing on the nation’s health. We encourage all Americans to commit to incorporating strategies that suit their lifestyles, and are eager to see this initiative take off to help residents of communities across the country live better and healthier lives.
Figure 1.
Figure 2.
Most of us enthusiastically kick off each new year with a checklist of things we’re determined to get done – including getting our houses are in order – both generally and financially. And while we’re committed to doing them all, we often fall short of the mark. But that’s not an option for charitable organizations striving to operate in a transparent, ethical, and accountable way.
Fortunately Independent Sector’s Principles for Good Governance and Ethical Practice provide a roadmap of 33 sound practices your organization can follow to strengthen your commitment to ethics and accountability.
Of course you should adhere to them all, but with 2020 already in swing, here are a few to consider while the year is still new to keep your organization and board on the ethical “right side”:
- Do you have a code of ethics, and do your board and staff follow it?
We can’t talk about ethics and accountability without a reminder that every charitable organization should have a code of ethics. You also should have specific policies and procedures that describe how your organization puts the code into practice and addresses violations. And among other things laid out in Principle 2, your board should be actively involved in ensuring that your code fits the needs and character of your organization.
- Have you checked out your governing documents lately?
Your board should review your organizational and governing instruments at least every five years to ensure your nonprofit is following the rules it set for itself, and that rule changes are made when needed. Principle 18 notes that any significant changes made by your board to the documents must be reported to the IRS, and perhaps to state regulatory bodies, as well.
- How about your mission and goals? Do they need the once over?
According to Principle 19, your board should establish and regularly review your organization’s mission and goals at least every five years to make sure your programs, goals, and activities continue to advance your mission and make wise use of your resources. Things to consider – your organization’s current needs, anticipated community and program area changes, changing financial and human resource needs, and an evaluation of your organization’s overall impact and effectiveness.
- Then there are your financial records. They’re complete and accurate, right?
If that question gave you pause, then “don’t pass go” on reviewing Principle 21, a strong reminder that your organization must keep complete, current, and accurate financial records and have strong financial controls. If none of your board members have financial expertise, you’ll definitely want to retain a qualified paid or volunteer accounting professional who does. Just saying.
- And, a suggestion: If you’re up for the challenge, why not commit to a deep dive with our Ethical Leadership course with two online cohort dates coming up soon?
We only touched on four of the principles to keep in mind to make sure your new year is a good year, ethically speaking. Fortunately, the other 29 are easily accessible in one handy place on the IS website, along with other great online tools and resources in our Principles for Good Governance and Ethical Practice Resource Center.
From Independent Sector to all working to build a world where all can thrive – have a happy, ethical, and accountable new year!
IS members represent nonprofits, foundations, and corporations engaged in every kind of charitable endeavor, with missions that reflect the nearly infinite ways of working for the common good. New member BluePath Service Dogs trains and places autism service dogs that offer safety, companionship, and opportunities for independence.
We talked with Michelle Brier, co-founder and vice president of marketing and development, about their work over the past three years to change the world, one dog at a time.
Q. Tell us a little bit about your career path and how you arrived at your present position.
MB: I’ve had some incredible professional opportunities. I spent eight years at a mid-size national nonprofit, developing my knowledge and skillset in business, marketing, and fundraising while deepening my affinity for the human-animal bond. I ran a capital campaign at a community nature center while dragons and tortoises hung out in my office. I worked in a strategy role for the American Red Cross — relishing time with brilliant, passionate co-workers while contributing to projects with large-scale impact.
BluePath has been one of my greatest adventures. Our service dogs help children with autism who are prone to wandering or elopement behaviors. They keep children safe and empower entire families to live fuller and happier lives. One of my two partners, Caroline McCabe-Sandler, ran our program under the umbrella of another nonprofit for eight years. She transformed countless lives. When that organization made the choice to move in a different direction, it left a tremendous gap in vital services for the autism community, which continues to face diagnoses at an epidemic scale.
Founding BluePath with Caroline, her husband, and our CEO, Dr. Jody Sandler, certainly involved an enormous amount of thoughtful planning and due diligence. However, my own personal leap required little contemplation: my current role feels like a calling, one I am honored to be part of every single day.
Q. Was there a day at BluePath you remember that was extraordinary?
MB: We celebrated our third birthday in December and our extraordinary moments have ranged from big to small. I still remember the first time I saw a BluePath magnet on a car that didn’t belong to our staff or one of my family
members! It was very exciting when we partnered with the New York Rangers to launch the very first “service dog hockey pup,” a trend that has since been emulated throughout the NHL.
A favorite moment was when we placed one of our first service dogs with a family whose son, Matthew, is highly impacted by autism. Matthew had become accustomed to life with a service dog and returned to dangerous bolting behaviors when his dog sadly passed away. When Matt received Benni, he was once again able to travel safely, reducing stress for his entire family. Benni has since brought so much joy into their lives. If we hadn’t started BluePath, this family would not have had another option. Our work is so important.
Q. What are some of the challenges your organization faces and how have you responded to them?
MB: There’s very high demand for our services and we need to grow quickly in a competitive development landscape. We must be efficient, nimble, and flexible in wearing the many hats that a small organization requires. We have a long way to go, but I’m infinitely proud of what we’ve accomplished so far.
Q. Describe some of the programs or services BluePath Service Dogs offers.
MB: At our core is the provision of service dogs to families with children with autism, free of charge. Nancy Flaherty, mother to a daughter with autism, recently shared this testimonial. I think she beautifully touches upon the work we’re privileged to do every day.
“Kaitlin was nine when she first bolted from me and was almost hit by a car. Her bolting had become a big problem and I was overcome with worry and fear, wondering how I was going to protect her. As a result, autism began to imprison my family as we dreaded leaving the house.”
“We began to live life again when Kaitlin received her first service dog. He kept her safe and provided her with companionship and enhanced independence. Children thought it was cool to have such a special dog. They would stop the pair to say hello and ask questions, which lifted her spirits, as she was now communicating and building social skills.”
“We feel so blessed to have Chester as Kaitlin’s new service dog. It’s heartwarming to see her smile again after just a couple of weeks with Chester by her side and we are relieved she will once again be safe.”
“Chester gives our family the courage to stand up to autism and return to a sense of normalcy. There is no price to attach to a parent’s peace of mind that comes with an autism service dog. Quite frankly, BluePath saved our lives.”
Q. What is one of your favorite places to be in your community?
MB: As part of training, our service dogs visit local schools and work with children in a variety of classroom environments. Teachers incorporate the dogs into the curriculum, with the interactions facilitating invaluable awareness and understanding, while our dogs become acclimated to the sights and sounds of kids.
Each time I have the chance to attend a school visit, I’m reminded of the exponential impact of our dogs. Each dog we place will make a difference for a child, his or her immediate and extended family and their social circle, yet on the journey to fulfill their ultimate purpose, BluePath dogs touch so many lives in the wider community. Our work is timely, tangible, and far-reaching, and that is deeply fulfilling for me personally.
Q. Is there an unsung hero on your team you’d like to recognize? What makes this person special?
MB: Launching a startup nonprofit is no easy feat, but we are succeeding because we have the best team in the world! Everyone I work with – staff, volunteers, and supporters – they are all heroes.
Learn more about BluePath Service Dogs at https://www.bluepathservicedogs.org/.
Visit Independent Sector’s members page to learn more about our members and the wide spectrum of their missions.
We’ve collected another month’s worth of research that interested us and has broad sector relevance. This month’s set contains important insights on social fundraising, veteran healthcare in the U.S., and how philanthropy can support democratic infrastructure and protect voting rights.
The 2019 Edelman Trust Barometer
The Edelman Trust Barometer registered modest gains in people’s trust in 2019 in each of the four major societal institutions—government, business, media, and NGOs—but no institution saw changes dramatic enough to change its standing. Government and media remain distrusted by the general population, while among the informed public, trust in all four institutions rose by four points. Among the general population, gains were even smaller (a two-point increase for NGOs and three points for the remaining three institutions).
The more dramatic story this year is that the world is now divided by trust. There is a 16-point gap between the more trusting informed public and the far more skeptical mass population, marking a return to record highs of trust inequality, and the reemergence of a true “mass-class” divide.
More on the study:
Girls Inc. Analysis of Major Factors Affecting Girls
Recently, the American Institutes for Research completed a study designed to isolate and identify the impact of Girls Inc. on girls’ lives. The evaluation was a two-year, quasi-experimental research study that compared girls in Girls Inc. with a similar group of non-participating girls on subjective self-report measures of experiences, skills, and attitudes, and on objective measures from schools on academic and school-based performance. Researchers determined with confidence that regardless of demographic, academic, and social characteristics, girls who participated in Girls Inc. were outpacing their peers in multiple areas of success and were more likely to:
- see themselves as leaders, with the skills and capabilities to influence and improve their local communities;
- exercise regularly and participate in sports teams;
- have higher standardized math test scores and self-confidence in STEM subjects, and see themselves in STEM careers; and
- be engaged in and attend school, avoid serious disciplinary action, including being suspended, and be prepared for life after high school.
More on the study:
Southern Economic Advancement Project Report by Sarah Beth Gehl, PhD
The Southern Economic Advancement Project (SEAP) began in March 2019 with the aim of filling gaps in state and local policy research in the South. They embarked on listening sessions with nonprofit organizations in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, and North Carolina, as well as one-on-one conversations with regional and national allies, asking these three questions: 1. What are the top economic security challenges in your community? 2. What are the top challenges for organizations working within your policy area? 3. What are solutions or room for growth in the policy infrastructure? In all, the conversations included more than 60 organizations regionally and nationally. Among them were statewide policy and advocacy organizations, local direct service organizations, small town organizers, grassroots groups, faith-based coalitions, funders, and national think tanks. Within economic security, these organizations cover a wide array of issues, including housing, wages and work, youth development, agriculture, rural development, small town community development, finance, and more.
Add Your Voice
The research summaries above are by no means an exhaustive list of the newest information out there to help us better understand the nonprofit landscape. So if we missed a report you think we should know and share about, let us know by leaving a comment!
IS members represent nonprofits, foundations, and corporations engaged in every kind of charitable endeavor, with missions that reflect the nearly infinite ways of working for the common good. New member, Leadership Foundations, with global headquarters located in Tacoma, WA, serves Local Leadership Foundations around the country and globally in their efforts to create better cities through social and spiritual renewal of people and places. Leadership Foundations’ global office as well as each of the 38 Local Leadership Foundations joined IS in 2019.
We talked with Dave Hillis, President of Leadership Foundations, about their work to develop effective leaders through their network of member cities.
Q: Tell us a little bit about your career path and how you arrived at your present position.
DH: In coll
ege I had an internship in Washington, DC working with kids in the city, and I fell in love not only with DC, but cities in general. At that point I knew that whatever I did going forward would be connected to cities. Since then, beginning with Young Life, a Christian ministry that reaches youth and young adults and then as president of the Northwest Leadership Foundation, I have been committed to the social and spiritual renewal of cities and their impact on civil society. The ultimate fruition of my urban passion was becoming president of the Leadership Foundations (LF) global network in 2008.
Q: What does a typical day at Leadership Foundations look like? Was there a day you remember that was extraordinary?
DH: Every Local Leadership Foundation is committed to seeing their city as a playground and to operationalize our “wheel of change,” which includes three strategic functions: 1. Engaging leaders of good faith and good will, 2. Building the capacity of others, and 3. Developing joint programming initiatives. At our global office, we get up in the morning and go to bed at night thinking about how we can better equip our Local Leadership Foundations to master the wheel of change. There is nothing quite like hearing how a Local Leadership Foundation is engaging their city in this way: from new partnerships forming between unlikely players, to getting the often deeply divided faith community to work together on behalf of people on the margins, to developing new and innovative ways to engage some of the most intractable problems we face.
The LF network does this work in 38 cities (with another 30 interested) through 193 different programs covering 22 domains. Here are two examples. To address a foster care crisis in their city, the Leadership Foundation in Portland, Oregon began to organize volunteers and donate goods to Oregon’s Department of Human Services (DHS). After seven years, they now lead a statewide initiative that has certified over 700 new foster families, increased foster and adoption inquiries from communities of color by 15%, and is providing a coordinated system of support for children and families in foster care.
Recognizing that Delhi, India had become a hub for human trafficking, the Local Leadership Foundation there brought together partners from across the caste system to work tirelessly rescuing girls and women from a life of poverty and trafficking, providing everything from education to employment opportunities to a supportive community – possibilities and hope for the future that previously would have been unthinkable.
This type of impact is multiplied many times over throughout the LF global network, always recognizing that the responses must be contextual to the cities where they take place. What is going to work in Dallas will be different than what will work in Delhi. LF’s commitment is to ensure that all work avoids becoming prescriptive and, instead, pays attention to what is happening in real-time.
Q: What are some of the challenges you face in your organization?
DH: Obviously, there are many, but there are three that are top of mind.
Funding: Because the Leadership Foundations global office and Local Leadership Foundations function as intermediaries, funding is always an issue. Many people want to give money to a more specific product or particular service.
Faith-based: LF lives in a unique space that can often be difficult. We describe as the extreme middle – viewed as not Christian enough by strongly faith-based
organizations, or too religious for secular audiences.
Cities: I stated this earlier, but you can’t afford to be prescriptive if you are going to be effective. However, this is easier said than done. Many want a kind of “one size fits all” response. Working in so many cities through our network is a complex thing to communicate, particularly given that the work is more centered on process rather than product.
Q: What are some of the other services you provide for your network?
DH: Mentoring: We are committed to mentoring throughout the organization. Every Leadership Foundations member gets a coach to support them in furthering their impact through the wheel of change. We also provide mentoring through our network. Most local Leadership Foundations are part of the LF Global Youth Initiative, which addresses the need for mentoring and leadership development among urban youth.
Accreditation: We provide accreditation every five years to make sure every Local Leadership Foundation is using the wheel of change, doing what they say they’re doing, and reaching their potential.
Innovation Center and Theological Roundtable: In 2018 we launched the Colangelo Carpenter Innovation Center to provide a space to generate and grow innovative programs and policies to support the Leadership Foundations network. We also created and facilitate the theological roundtable to explore how practicing theology in the public sphere can help communities heal and strengthen civil society.
Q: What is one of your favorite places to be in your community?
DH: The privilege for me is less a particular place, and more that I get to visit Local Leadership Foundations across the world. I never get over the excitement of being with and experiencing how local presidents see their city. I get to see how they have fallen in love with their city and it is this quality, more than any other, that gives me great hope that cities can become better.
Q: Is there an unsung hero on your team you’d like to shout out?
DH: This is a difficult question to answer given the community I get to work with on a daily basis. We have tried to create a leadership culture at Leadership Foundations that allows us to flatten out the leadership structure. We all have different titles, but they don’t dictate our leadership or responsibility, and we are all treated as owners of the organization, not renters. Because we are a community in mission, I am surrounded by colleagues who are remarkable for their courage, competence, and character.
Q: Is there anything else you would like others to know about your work?
DH: As a shout-out to Independent Sector (IS), I have been delighted for Leadership Foundations to become a member. It has been an absolute thrill at a number of levels, some that we are conscious of and many that are still unfolding. We truly look forward to the future, especially continuing to discover where there is space for the faith community and voices of faith to contribute to civil society in a way that is additive and helpful to our work together. We are in a time of deep social distrust, political polarization and alienation that crosses political, civic, and religious lines. This broken relationship with each other and the blending of theology and political party is deeply destructive to democracy. We want to discover with IS how we can contribute to reframing the conversation around mutual respect and dignity, laying its foundation on the principles of imagination, reconciliation, and leadership.
Learn more about Leadership Foundations at https://leadershipfoundations.org/.
Visit Independent Sector’s members page to learn more about our members and the wide spectrum of their missions.
Last month, IS Member YWCA USA partnered with National Partnership for Women & Families, New America Better Life Lab, Supermajority, and VoteRunLead to host a briefing on women’s priorities and expectations for Congress in 2020 and beyond. IS’s Erica Harris and Chris Rubio joined staff from other organizations on Thursday, Dec. 12 at the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center in Washington, DC to discuss the results of YWCA’s most recent national survey, YWomenVote 2020. The survey took a deep dive into topic areas of importance to women in our country, relying on women’s lived experiences, concerns, and priorities to help shape a policy framework for the next Congress and Administration.
Panelists discussed various avenues where the YWomenVote 2020 survey results show up in their work, resonate in their communities, and affect the long-term health of our nation and society. Moderated by Alejandra Castillo, CEO of YWCA USA, the panel featured six speakers:
- Celinda Lake, President and Founder, Lake Research Partners
- Debra Ness, President, National Partnership for Women & Families
- Melanie Campbell, President and CEO, The National Coalition on Black Civic Participation
- Jennifer Baik, Communications & Policy Associate, APIAVote
- Erin Vilardi, Founder & CEO, VoteRunLead
- Brigid Schulte, Director, Better Life Lab, New America
The briefing’s consistent theme focused on how women are energized by the opportunity to create lasting structural change. Unlike other traditional civic engagement surveys, YWomenVote 2020 is an intentional and comprehensive collection of data from women of all races across rural, urban, and suburban backgrounds. Celinda Lake, veteran pollster, highlighted the impact of what she calls “appropriate sampling,” data that examines responses from women who are historically unrepresented in surveys of this kind. The data showed and panelists were in agreement that women across the nation – regardless of party affiliation – share similar concerns and prioritize similar issues as necessary items for legislative action.
Some of the top concerns for women supported by the survey data include violence – mass shootings, domestic violence, and sexual violence; health care – physical and mental health; housing; gender and racial discrimination; equal pay; and paid family and medical leave. Erin Vilardi spoke about her work in rural America to train women to run for office. Erin mentioned that the issues that hit close to home for women in rural America are similar to the issues that matter to her as she lives day to day in New York and her sister who resides in the suburbs – “water issues, equitable healthcare facilities, broadband, opioids […] all end up needing the care of women.” Melanie Campbell shared that both in the survey and in her work in the black community young women of color are troubled by “racism and hate crimes, housing, and gun violence.”
While challenges and lived experiences were central to the conversation, panelists also took time to discuss solutions that can be developed from understanding and reacting to this data. Jennifer Baik, a Gen-Z professional, said “this data is so tailored to my experiences. […]. Now we have a number to validate what is many of our experiences.” Debra Ness spoke about issues weighing on younger women and how the data shows that rates for “experiences of racial discrimination are higher for women of color.” Debra mentioned that “we have so many solutions available with this Congress, but Congress has to act.” Bridget Schulte spoke about progress in the healthcare field as it relates to parental leave. “There is progress. There are bills on the Democratic and the Republican side.” Towards the end of the briefing, Erin Vilardi ended her remarks by calling women to action to run for office to act on the legislative issues that are pressing and apparent in the YWomenVote 2020 survey.
YWCA USA plans to take this work on the road throughout this year, and along with their partners, hopes to reach 10 million women through their civic engagement program.
We at IS thank these organizations for coming together and sharing their work, and look forward to seeing the positive impact of this research for women and communities across our nation.
