INSIGHT

The Path to Radical Wellness

PEAK’s journey to create a work culture centered on trust and care has been transformational and shows what success looks like when you shed commonplace habits of toxic productivity. Dolores Estrada tells the inside story of how PEAK’s focus on team well-being is driving our evolution.

ANNOUNCEMENT

Registration Is Now Open for GM101

Be a part of the Grants Management 101 Class of 2024, which begins on May 23. Over the course of five months, you”ll receive an in-depth orientation to the fundamentals of grants management, the philanthropic sector, and equitable, effective grantmaking practices. In addition, a series of cohort convenings, facilitated by cohort advisors, will provide opportunities to connect in small groups, explore content more deeply, receive coaching, create accountability for growth goals, and form deep relationships with colleagues from across the country.

Last year’s program sold out early, so be sure to reserve your spot soon.

REMINDER

Limited Friday Office Hours in April

As part of PEAK’s focus on staff wellness and being a next-level nonprofit, PEAK is transitioning to a Monday-to-Thursday workweek. In April, we will be working reduced Friday hours, and our offices will be completely closed on Fridays from May through August. We will resume a five-day workweek in September.

Weekly Reads

“Starting in 2016, we made significant changes in how we fund. A core part of this investment was through the BUILD program, which offers five-year general operating support coupled with institutional strengthening funds. From the start, BUILD committed a minimum of 40 percent of Ford’s grantmaking to these forms of investments.” [more]
Luc Athayde-Rizzaro and Bess Rothenberg, Ford Foundation, for The Center for Effective Philanthropy

“As part of our deeper learning about social justice and anti-racism, our staff members and board are shifting toward a more integrated approach in which we are learning together, across different roles within the foundation and across different program areas. Our issues are interrelated, and as the proverb goes, if we want to go far, we must go together.” [more]
Don Chen, Surdna Foundation, for the National Center for Family Philanthropy

“Any foundation has the power to decenter itself—to ask questions about what society really needs, philanthropic preservation, or community investment. The answer is clear—society needs the resources that you steward. Society needs us to show courage, break fake rules, and move resources without concern for legacy, perpetuity, or long-term impact with us at the center.” [more]
Mari Shimabukuro and Glen Galaich, Stupski Foundation, for Northern California Grantmakers

“Spend more assertively. At the start of this year, charitable foundations in the United States found themselves with nearly $1.5 trillion in assets. ... I strongly encourage more foundations to go beyond the required 5 percent disbursement rate in the United States and Canada, as we have.” [more]
Mark Suzman, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, for The Chronicle of Philanthropy