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Veronica Nolan of Urban Alliance: DC Youth are in Her DNA Veronica Nolan came to the DC to work as a high school Spanish teacher in 1998. Over the next four years, the students she taught became such an important part of her life that when she moved on from teaching, she had to find a way to keep serving them. “My only criteria for my next role was that I really wanted to continue working with high school students in DC,” said Nolan. “I feel like they are a part of my DNA.” From DCPS, Nolan joined Urban Alliance as program director, and within a year became its executive director. At the time she joined, Urban Alliance, which places high school students into corporate internships and supports them throughout their experience, had 42 students in its program, all from Anacostia High. The board asked Nolan to become executive director, and she said she would only if she had their support to grow the program across the city. The board agreed, and she took on the challenge. VPP Featured as Leader in Catalytic Philanthropy in new Book After writing Forces for Good, about the six practices of highly-effective nonprofits, co-author Leslie Crutchfield decided to turn her attention to the practices of highly-effective donors. She and her colleagues at FSG, where she is a senior advisor, implemented a global survey to surface the most effective philanthropists and foundations. From these surveys, Crutchfield and FSG identified VPP and several other members of the VPP community including Investors Kristin Ehrgood of the Flamboyan Foundation, Katherine Bradley of CityBridge, and Kathy Bushkin Calvin of the UN Foundation as some of the most effective donors participating in what they call “catalytic philanthropy.” The results of their survey and research were published last month in a new book, Do More than Give, written by Crutchfield, John Kania, and Mark Kramer, both Managing Directors of FSG. The book defines catalytic philanthropy as a collaborative effort of multiple funders working together with service organizations, governments, and corporations to solve large, societal issues. The authors describe this approach as a sharp deviation from the norms of charity. The donors and organizations profiled, including VPP, do not simply fund organizations, but use all of their skills and social resources to affect change. |
 APRIL 2011
The Inescapable Importance of Culture, Part II In “The Inescapable Importance of Culture, Part I,” I shared my strong belief, based on 40+ years of experience, that people and culture have a huge impact on an organization’s ability to achieve its outcomes. Organizations with willing, insightful, and courageous leaders who foster healthy performance cultures are those most able to provide maximum benefit to those they serve. So how, precisely, do we nurture a culture through words and deeds? What can we do to strengthen the connective tissue that binds an organization together and cultivate an orientation toward performance? Here are some of the things that I think are most pertinent: Recruit culture leaders. An effective way to influence culture is to find people whose personalities, attitudes, values, and competencies exemplify the culture to which you hope to evolve. Sometimes these leaders are sitting right in your midst, waiting for the opening and encouragement to do their thing. At other times you have to recruit from outside the organization. It is often the combination of developing from within and recruiting from outside that fosters a performance culture. Walk the talk. Model—that is, live—the behavior you want others to practice. In my corporate life that meant getting out to talk with and listen to our customers. It meant (and still does) little things like answering a phone within a few rings and picking up that piece of trash on the floor. And it meant bigger things, like being sure that the decisions on corporate direction and people’s careers were grounded in the organization’s guiding principles. |
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Veronica Nolan of Urban Alliance: DC Youth are in Her DNA
Veronica Nolan came to the DC to work as a high school Spanish teacher in 1998. Over the next four years, the students she taught became such an important part of her life that when she moved on from teaching, she had to find a way to keep serving them. “My only criteria for my next role was that I really wanted to continue working with high school students in DC,” said Nolan. “I feel like they are a part of my DNA.” From DCPS, Nolan joined Urban Alliance as program director, and within a year became its executive director. At the time she joined, Urban Alliance, which places high school students into corporate internships and supports them throughout their experience, had 42 students in its program, all from Anacostia High. The board asked Nolan to become executive director, and she said she would only if she had their support to grow the program across the city. The board agreed, and she took on the challenge. “I saw the potential in this program and I wanted it to be city-wide,” she said. “For the next two years, I worked hard on making sure the infrastructure of the program was strong and the programming was solid. In two years, we really blew it up.” Urban Alliance now operates in 16 high schools across DC and serves over 140 students each year. It is currently the only youth employment program in DC focused on high school students that combines training, paid internships, mentoring, and case management. In part because of these results and its commitment to improving the lives of low-income youth. Urban Alliance was recently selected to be a part of VPP’s youthCONNECT network. Nolan says she has been successful in her role as executive director because of those years at DCPS. “It allowed me to truly understand what youth need,” she said. “That is how I designed the program; I knew what the kids needed, I knew what it would take to provide them with the support.” Urban Alliance’s main program places students into internships at professional organizations like Morgan Stanley, Marriott, and the World Bank. Nolan said that many of their students do not have the “soft skills” they need to succeed in the workplace and need strong guidance. At Urban Alliance, this support comes from on-site mentors that teach students about what it means to work in a corporate environment. “When I was teaching public school…there were no truancy officers, there were no consequences for showing up late to class. Translate that into the business world, and the youth don’t understand the importance of showing up anywhere on time, including jobs,” said Nolan. “As I always say to our mentors, we are setting these kids up for failure if we aren’t being honest with them about what the expectations are in the corporate world.”
Through youthCONNECT, Urban Alliance will grow the number of students in its high school internship program from 140 to 200; create an Alumni Services department to support its alums in college and those that did not make it to college; and develop a curriculum on some of the key lessons learned by interns to teach to youth not enrolled in its program. This expansion of services fits inline with Nolan’s main goal for the organization over the next five years. “What motivates me to continue working on a daily basis is the fact that there are so many young people we have to deny every year due to lack of resources,” she said. “I want to reach a point where we don’t ever have waiting lists.” Even after nine years at the organization, the individual impact Urban Alliance has on its students still has a profound effect on Nolan. “I was talking to a student…and he turned to me and said: ‘I just want to be honest with you, this job kept me from dealing drugs,’” she said. “That was really a powerful moment for me.” VPP’s partnership with Urban Alliance came at a perfect time for the organization, Nolan said. They recently created a strategic plan that overlapped with many of the goals of youthCONNECT. “We would be doing these goals with or without VPP’s investment,” she said. “That being said, with VPP’s investment, we are more likely to achieve these goals, which is exciting and motivating.” In addition to being motivated by all of the students she would like to serve through Urban Alliance, Nolan says she is constantly amazed by the students she works with everyday. She says she can see the impact their programs are having just by interacting with the students. “They walk into these worksites and see all these nicely dressed people and they ask: ‘How did you get to where you are?’ Nine times out of ten the answer is ‘college,’” she said. “I think that’s part of why our stats are so strong because they are starting to get influenced and inspired by professionals where they want to be.” VPP Featured as Leader in Catalytic Philanthropy in new Book After writing Forces for Good, about the six practices of highly-effective nonprofits, co-author Leslie Crutchfield decided to turn her attention to the practices of highly-effective donors. She and her colleagues at FSG, where she is a senior advisor, implemented a global survey to surface the most effective philanthropists and foundations. From these surveys, Crutchfield and FSG identified VPP and several other members of the VPP community including Investors Kristin Ehrgood of the Flamboyan Foundation, Katherine Bradley of CityBridge, and Kathy Bushkin Calvin of the UN Foundation as some of the most effective donors participating in what they call “catalytic philanthropy.” The results of their survey and research were published last month in a new book, Do More than Give, written by Crutchfield, John Kania, and Mark Kramer, both Managing Directors of FSG. The book defines catalytic philanthropy as a collaborative effort of multiple funders working together with service organizations, governments, and corporations to solve large, societal issues. The authors describe this approach as a sharp deviation from the norms of charity. The donors and organizations profiled, including VPP, do not simply fund organizations, but use all of their skills and social resources to affect change. Crutchfield, Kania, and Kramer tell the story of VPP’s investment in the Latin American Youth Center. Through the partnership, LAYC was able to create an evaluation system that helped them analyze its programs, and in one case, completely overhaul a program that was doing more harm than good. You can learn more about the book here.
Thompson Cole Discusses Changing Role of Government in Philanthropy
VPP President and CEO Carol Thompson Cole joined a distinguished panel of speakers at the Washington Center last month to discuss the role of government in civil society and community engagement. She talked about the need for a coordinated effort between philanthropy, corporations, local governments, and the federal government to address the most important problems facing society today. Irene Hirano Inouye, President of the U.S.-Japan Council; Carlos Orta, President & CEO of the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility; and Carol Wilner, Vice President of Public Affairs for AT&T joined Thompson Cole on the panel, which presented to over 400 students enrolled in the Washington Center’s internship program. Marta Tellado, Vice President of Communications for the Ford Foundation, moderated the event. The students at the Washington Center come from all 50 states and over 35 countries to intern in DC nonprofits, government agencies, and corporations. The students participate in weekly panel discussions on public policy topics. The panel touched on several important issues in the field of philanthropy: the challenges defining impact, the need for corporate social responsibility to be integrated into a company’s business plan, and how nonprofits can affect social change through advocacy as well as direct service. The discussion ended with questions from the student audience, and afterwards, students were able to approach the panelists for a more intimate discussion of the topics.
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New Book on How Donors Can Make a Difference Last month, Tom Tierney and Joel Fleishman released a new “how-to” book for philanthropists looking to make a big impact with their donations. The book, Give Smart, features stories from many philanthropists who have created significant change, including Don and Doris Fisher’s work with the KIPP Foundation; the Omidyar Network, which makes for-profit investments in social enterprises; and the social enterprise Arzu, which employs Afghan women and sells their handicrafts. Tierney and Fleishman say “smart givers” must ask themselves three questions: How do I define success? How can it be achieved? What am I accountable for? The answers to these questions create the foundation and strategy for their philanthropy and help guide them in their work. You can learn more about the book here. Grantmakers for Effective Organizations Releases Tip Sheet for Funders Applying to the Social Innovation Fund VPP and several other members of the inaugural Social Innovation Fund portfolio contributed to a recent Grantmakers for Effective Organizations briefing on partnering with the federal government. The tip sheet serves as a guide to other grantmakers interested in applying to the Social Innovation Fund. The briefing included several points on the benefits and challenges with working with the federal government, highlighted the opportunity for a higher profile, as well as an increase in impact through partnerships. It also provided several pieces of advice for grantmakers interested in federal dollars, including staying flexible, allowing for more time than expected, and remaining true to the organization’s mission. You can read the full briefing here. |
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AALEAD Celebrates its 12th Annual Dinner Thanks to Rick Chen, Director of Development, for this update.
Additional highlights included a compelling speech on the “model minority myth” by keynote speaker and first Asian American ambassador Julia Chang Bloch, who was the ambassador to Nepal. For entertainment, the evening was filled with laughter and excitement provided by comedian Dan Nainan and AALEAD’s elementary students, who performed an Asian pop dance. The evening was hosted by anchor/reporter Kathy Park of ABC7/WJLA TV and News Channel 8. To close the evening, AALEAD high school students provided their personal stories of how AALEAD positively changed their lives and influenced them to change their communities. CFNC in the News with "Super NOVA" Brooke Curran Thanks to Manager of Development Anna Berke for this update.
CFNC was featured with Brooke Curran, a young runner who decided to use her passion for running to raise money for Northern Virginia charities, on WUSA9.com during the week of March 21. Brooke was selected as WUSA9's "Super NOVA" of the week and CFNC was included as one of the five Alexandria charities that she supports through her RunningBrooke Fund, which supports at-risk children and families of Alexandria/Arlington. Brooke has committed to running a marathon each month, and one on each continent to raise money for her fund.
Brooke Curran and WUSA9’s Community Web Producer Ellen Scott visited CFNC. CFNC staff provided a tour of classrooms and posed for photos with Brooke. Brooke then shared her inspirational story of how she came to the idea to "run the world for charity" with Ellen on CFNC's playground. You can watch the interview, read the story, and enjoy photos here. “CFNC was delighted to be included in this story,” said Manager of Development Anna Berke. “We are so grateful for Brooke’s support, and we are thrilled that she was selected to be a ‘Super NOVA.’ We feel privileged to help WUSA9 spread the word about Brooke’s amazing effort to impact our community.” Learn more about Brooke Curran and the RunningBrooke Fund at www.runningbrooke.com and about CFNC at www.cfnc-online.org. CentroNía's DC Bilingual Public Charter School Wins Gold Award Thanks to Laura Anduze, Communications and Marketing Manager, for this update.
CentroNía’s DC Bilingual Public Charter School (DCBPCS) was recently awarded the USDA’s Healthier US School Challenge Gold Award of Distinction for its Food and Nutrition Program during National Nutrition Month. The award emphasizes the outstanding commitment and leadership of CentroNía and DCBPCS in changing its nutrition program. The program has improved quality of the food served, provided students with more nutritious choices, and enhanced their physical activity plan. The award also acknowledges the work of CentroNía’s Food and Nutrition Department headed by Beatriz Zuluaga and Sofia Bustos, and DCBPCS’s Principal, Wanda Perez, for their dedication and commitment in making this initiative a successful model.
After the award ceremony on March 16th at CentroNía, representatives from the Office of the State Superintendent of Education and the USDA, including Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services, Kevin Concannon, together with Myrna Peralta, CentroNía’s Acting President and CEO, board members, and staff, had lunch with DCBPCS students as they exchanged impressions on how to live a healthier lifestyle. To be recognized, schools must meet criteria for nutrition, nutrition education, and physical activity established by USDA's Food and Nutrition Service, which, in turn, recognizes them with Gold of Distinction, Gold, Silver, or Bronze status. DCBPCS was the second school in the District of Columbia to receive the Gold Award with Distinction. College Summit Hosts Alternative Spring Break Thanks to Vinette Brown, Director of Development, for this update.
The week of March 14-17th, College Summit-NCR partnered with the United Way and Deloitte to co-host an Alternative Spring Break at two College Summit partner high schools. Students from colleges across the country and Deloitte employees formed teams and worked side by side with students in DC. At Coolidge High School, the United Way and Deloitte volunteers leveraged College Summit’s curriculum and presented topics related to the transition from high school to college. At High Road Academy and Upper School the volunteers worked alongside several dozen high school students. All of High Road’s students are special education students, yet, last year, 88% of their graduating students went to college. The volunteer team worked with the students to create a series of murals throughout the school. They also facilitated structured and informal conversations about preparing to overcome the hurdles that exist in the transition from high school to college. KIPP DC's March Madness 2011 Benefit is a Slam Dunk! Thanks to Anna Fodor, Communications & Marketing, for this update.
This month, nearly 300 people joined KIPP DC for its fifth annual March Madness benefit to watch college ball and bowl. The event was held at Lucky Strike Lanes at Gallery Place. The event brought together KIPP DC supporters with teachers, principals, and staff in downtown DC to recognize the high achievements of KIPP DC students.
KIPP DC: AIM Academy’s drum line opened the night as the school’s cheerleaders greeted guests. Guests spent the evening talking with school leaders, watching their favorite teams, and dining on great food. The event also included a silent auction, which featured items such as vacation getaways, restaurant gift cards, and game tickets for DC’s favorite teams. “March Madness 2011 was a blast!” said KIPP DC Founder and CEO Susan Schaeffler. “The event is always a great opportunity for us to thank our supporters and to fundraise for KIPP DC’s important programs, and this year proved no exception.” Due to the generous support of sponsors such as Studio 27 Architecture, Accenture, Forrester Construction, William C. Smith and Company, the CityBridge Foundation, Atlantic Media, and many more, March Madness 2011 was an overwhelming success. Sponsors represented local businesses, foundations, and families. The whole KIPP DC team looks forward to celebrating the 6th annual March Madness event next year! LAYC Hosts Let's Get it Started Job Fair Thanks to Araceli Curiel Rosenberger, Communications Specialist, for this update.
On March 26, Latin American Youth Center’s Maryland Multicultural Youth Centers (MMYC) and the Montgomery County Department of Economic Development hosted the fifth annual Let’s Get It Started youth job fair, at the Silver Spring Civic Building. The job fair attracted over 800 young people and 47 area employers, and provided youth with exposure to local businesses, career pathways, and job training opportunities.
“Today was really about jobs. While this event is also about exposing young people to employers, résumé building, interview skills, and interacting with employers, we were glad to see people walking out with contacts for employment, part-time, or seasonal work,” said MMYC Director Luisa Montero. Montgomery County Executive, Isiah Leggett attended the event and thanked LAYC/MMYC and partners for organizing the fair each year. The job fair offered a mix of national and local small businesses in retail, food service, government, and finance. All of the employers at the job fair had job openings, ensuring there was something for everyone. Metro TeenAIDS Receives New Funding to Improve Services to LGBT Youth Thanks to Colleen Huges, Development Manager , for this update.
MTA is collaborating with three other community-based organizations on this project: the Sexual Minority Youth Assistance League (SMYAL), La Clinica del Pueblo (LCDP), and DC Concerned Providers’ Coalition (DCCP). The groups will first examine the city’s current policies and practices and then build capacity among local youth-serving organizations and youth themselves about how to improve services and well-being. The Washington Post Recognizes SEED DC Teacher Thanks to Laura O'Connor, Director of Communications, for this update.
The SEED School of Washington, D.C. (SEED DC) and The SEED Foundation congratulate SEED DC English teacher Christina Williams for receiving the Agnes Meyer Outstanding Teacher Award. Each year, The Washington Post recognizes 21 teachers for their quality and creative instruction, as well as their contributions to improving education in the DC-metro area. In March, Christina was selected as one of two District teachers who received this prestigious award.
Christina, a Teach for America alumna, has been an English teacher with SEED for nearly four years. She is known at SEED for her tremendous talent of working with young men to help them commit to literacy development. Christina believes that every student can and will excel at high levels of achievement and demands this level of rigor from every student. Because of her inspirational teaching style, which incorporates drumming, chanting, and creating rhymes, SEED’s male students are achieving academic excellence—and having fun at the same time. Last year, Christina’s students scored 70 percent proficiency on the DC CAS, well out-pacing other schools in the District. “It is incredible to observe the metamorphosis that each child experiences when they cross Ms. Williams’ classroom door. In a nation and a city where far too many of our young men drop out of school and lack basic literacy skills, she is generating daily evidence in the ability of every single one of our young men,” said SEED DC Principal Kara Stacks. “She is a leader in the movement to inspire and educate every child.” Urban Alliance Interns Meet with White House Fellows Thanks to Jee Pae, Development Director, for this update.
On Friday, March 21, 2001, nine White House Fellows spent an afternoon with the Urban Alliance Interns to discuss a wide-range of topics that exposed the young people to the world of work, service, and leadership. The youth were surrounded by Fellows from different backgrounds such as medicine, law, military, business, and social services. The young people were inspired to pursue similar experiences as the Fellows that would enable them to travel, serve, and work. One of the Interns commented that the White House Fellows were similar to the internship they were doing- “a bigger Urban Alliance” she called it- since they were also experiencing a year in a professional setting that instilled leadership and service. |
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| Venture Philanthropy Partners (VPP) is a philanthropic investment organization that helps great leaders build strong, high-performing nonprofit institutions. It concentrates money, expertise, and personal contacts to improve the lives of and boost the opportunities for children and youth low-income families in the National Capital Region and cultivates a growing donor community of high net worth families to generate funding and influence in support of these institutions and of social change. | ||||||||||||||
On March 23, 2011, over 300 guests gathered to support and celebrate the achievements of AALEAD’s youth at the Silver Spring Civic Building in downtown Silver Spring. Supporters included top corporations, individual donors, Asian business owners, and community and education leaders. Guests enjoyed an opening reception, followed by a traditional Chinese banquet. The evening continued with the presentation of the Washington LEADer award to Montgomery County Executive, Ike Leggett.
MAC AIDS Fund, a subsidiary of Estee Lauder, awarded Metro TeenAIDS a grant to substantially improve citywide services for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth. These youth are at high risk for negative health outcomes including depression, suicide, HIV, and other STIs. The project will analyze existing policies and programs across DC city agencies on the level of support provided to youth and make recommendations for strengthening the services. In partnership with the RAND Corp, MTA will explore the social networks of young men of color who have sex with men and identify opportunities to increase prevention activities for this high-risk population.
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