2018 bore impactful new publications, engagement activities and internal growth at NCRP.
We recently announced NCRP’s new Selections Committee and call for Ambassadors for the 2019 Impact Awards, which was a great way to close out a stellar year.
To share more highlights from 2018, I invited summaries of accomplishments from colleagues, featured below!
Evolution of Philamplify and high praise for Power Moves
Contributed by Lisa Ranghelli, senior director of assessment and special projects
In May, NCRP released Power Moves: Your essential philanthropy assessment guide for equity and justice. The guide provides a framework and comprehensive set of resources for funders to reflect on the extent to which they build, share and wield power mindfully, with attention to issues of privilege in order to advance racial equity.
Since the release, sector response has been overwhelmingly positive. More than 2,000 people have downloaded the guide, including 855 grantmakers. We’ve kept busy promoting Power Moves and offering opportunities to engage with the project, including:
New milestones for As the South Grows
Contributed by Ben Barge, senior associate for learning and engagement
In June, NCRP launched the capstone report in our joint As the South Grows initiative with Grantmakers for Southern Progress (GSP), So Grows the Nation.
The report includes grantmaking dollars on social justice giving for the region and each Southern state, and grassroots recommendations to philanthropy from over 120 interviews. It’s a can’t-miss read for any Southern or national foundation.
But we did not let these learnings sit on a shelf. Over the past 2 years we’ve had hundreds of 1-on-1 calls and 24 presentations with funders and organizers to change the way philanthropy works in the South, culminating in a presentation with GSP this November at the Southeastern Council on Foundations.
We’ve heard from some major national foundations that As the South Grows has changed the way they think about investing in the South.
And some of our key partners in the work were involved in historic voter education and turnout efforts across the region whose transformative impact we are only beginning to understand.
Stay tuned for a survey capturing the impact of this initiative thus far!
Bold thought leadership
Contributed by Aaron Dorfman, president and CEO
As usual, NCRP sounded the alarm when we saw philanthropy failing to do what it should to help the most marginalized.
I partnered with other sector leaders to write an op-ed calling on foundations to do more in Puerto Rico. The piece was first published in the Washington Post and later in the Miami Herald, and came after a moving trip to the island for the CHANGE Philanthropy retreat and learning tour.
Our team also wrote compelling and timely thought pieces on:
NCRP attends 40-50 sector conferences per year, and I was honored to give keynotes for important gatherings like the Yale Philanthropy Conference and the Southern California Grantmakers Family Philanthropy Conference.
Dramatic transformations in Human Resources and Administration
Contributed by Beverley Samuda-Wylder, senior director of human resources and administration
A successful 1st year using the new Bamboo human resource information system software at NCRP helped automate and streamline requesting time off, conducting quarterly assessments to replace annual reviews, tracking work goals, and hiring and onboarding staff.
Our department trained new supervisors and collaborated with senior staff to hire 3 consultants and 7 new team members, including Timi Gerson who joined us in May as vice president and chief content officer and a record 5 interns. We now have 22 team members.
Not always evident is the important role of the executive assistant, a new addition to our executive office. Garnetta Lewis has quietly supported the management of the day-to-day office operations, human resources and accounting. She successfully scheduled more than 600 important high-stakes fundraising and other in-the-field meetings for the CEO and internal staff meetings.
Great strides in fundraising and fiscal growth
Contributed by Kevin Faria, senior director of foundation engagement
NCRP has had several successes in fundraising for our operations this year. We raised more than $2.8 million, the most in NCRP’s 42-year history.
This was almost a 20% jump from our 2017 fiscal year, and more than double what we raised 10 years ago. Part of this growth was due to the receipt of NCRP’s largest grant ever from Borealis Philanthropy’s Racial Equity in Philanthropy Fund, currently supported by the W.K. Kellogg and Ford foundations.
Along with nonprofits and individuals, we’re pleased to be sustained financially by more than 125 grantmakers of all types and sizes. Also, 100% of NCRP’s board made a personal donation to NCRP, another sign of their commitment to the organization.
We’re making enormous strides towards our goal of having a $4 million budget by 2026, and with your help we’ll continue our growth.
What did you appreciate the most from NCRP in 2018?
Caitlin Duffy is senior associate for learning and engagement at the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP). Follow @NCRP and @DuffyInDC on Twitter.