Weekly Reads
“We’re thrilled to hear stories of other funders breaking down funding barriers and finding ways to support local communities whenever possible. As COVID-19 and other disasters continue to devastate our communities, we in the sector are challenged to respond boldly and collectively in ways that lift up marginalized voices and address systemic inequities.” [more]
Alex Gray and Sally Ray, Center for Disaster Philanthropy, for Center for Effective Philanthropy
“[P]olicy organizations funded by philanthropy tend to mirror and exacerbate the exclusionary nature of the field over all. These groups are disproportionately white, elite, and well connected. They don’t reflect the diversity of the country, much less the communities that bear the brunt of policy decisions. … This has real consequences for how public policy gets made — for which voices are heard and whose interests are served.” [more]
Emma Vadehraformer, New York City Department of Education, for The Chronicle of Philanthropy
“Endowments are a sustainable funding source that allow grassroots organizations to have more stability in their organizations, more capacity to plan and implement a change strategy over time—without worrying where the next dollar will come from or when it will arrive. They offer funding to spend as the organizations themselves see fit—rather than having to fulfill different programmatic and administrative funder requirements. Endowments allow these organizations to make immediate strategic decisions on spending: from communications, bus tours, and virtual campaigns, to self-care and healing for their staff. So why do we sit on hundreds of millions in our own endowments rather than building endowed networks?” [more]
John H. Jackson, Schott Foundation for Public Education, for Stanford Social Innovation Review
“‘When you do an individual grant, you have to pick one aspect of that big problem and address it. But collectively, if we can get six to eight institutions of higher education to be successful in developing these kinds of programs, that begins to have an influence on the field of higher education and the early-childhood world,’ says Jessie Rasmussen, president of the Buffett Early Childhood Fund, a member of Early Educator Investment Collaborative. ‘That’s the beauty of coming together.’” [more]
Eden Stiffman, for The Chronicle of Philanthropy
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