'Social Outcomes': The Elephants in the Room
In my last column, “‘Social Outcomes’: Missing the Forest for the Trees?,” I wrote about my deep, nagging fear that many efforts to assess outcomes are woefully off track. I pointed to several wonderful beams of shining light in the field, from Youth Villages to the Cleveland Clinic. But my dominant message was that many efforts in our sector are causing more harm than good. That column hit a nerve, triggering a volume and intensity of responses far greater than I had expected.
After struggling though literally 20 drafts, I wasn’t sure whether the piece was even coherent. Yet, it seemingly made some sense to a good number of thought leaders and practitioners I greatly respect—along with many others I don’t know who apparently care deeply about this issue as well.
Of course, not everyone agreed with my analysis. In fact, I got hard pushback on some points, and a few commentators wondered why it had taken me so long to own up to my own limitations in my approach over the years to the topic of outcomes.
The majority, however, agreed with the thesis that we’ve lost sight of the ends we’re trying to advance. In the wise words of David Hunter, Managing Partner of Hunter Consulting and former Director of Assessment for the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation: “It seems to me that the mess you describe indeed is enormous and very destructive—because few people involved in this work have thought deeply about managing towards outcomes and [they] have put the cart before the horse—focusing…on HOW to measure rather than on WHY measure…and WHAT to measure.”
Sins of Commission, Sins of Omission
The feedback confirmed for me that nonprofit executives, staff, and boards; donors; and assessment experts are deeply frustrated with our sector’s work around outcomes.
- I heard a lot of anger at funders who don’t walk (or fund) their talk.
- I heard exasperation with nonprofits that are unwilling to embrace even basic methods of determining whether they’re doing what they say they do.
- I heard disappointment that outcomes assessment has become an exercise focused on cold numbers—the equivalent of Robert McNamara’s simplistic and terribly misleading Vietnam body counts—rather than an effort to help nonprofit leaders achieve lasting impact for those they serve.
We must be intentional about surfacing these roiling frustrations that are rarely getting voiced. If we don’t, we’re going to continue to perpetrate sins of commission and omission that prevent us from making even the slightest dent in the failing status quo that defines education, healthcare, and social services in America.
The most common sin of commission is when we funders, in the name of “measurement” and “accountability,” foist unfunded, often overly simplistic, self-serving mandates on our grantees—rather than genuinely helping them define, create, and use the information they need to be disciplined managers. In the words of Tris Lumley, Head of Strategy for London-based New Philanthropy Capital, “Great organisations…are built around great data. Data that allows them to understand the needs they address, what activities are likely to best address these needs, what actually happens as a result of these activities, and how to allocate resources and tweak what they do for even greater impact. Too often, funders set the agenda with their own requirements [and] cripple the organisations they’re trying to help.”
The sin of omission I often see is when funders and nonprofits run away from outcomes and their measurement altogether—that is, nothing assesses whether nonprofits are delivering on their promises to the families who turn to them for services. As Hunter said, “It is a really, really bad thing for nonprofits to promise to help people improve their lives and prospects...and then, when the matter is looked at closely, it turns out that they aren’t doing that at all!”
It’s About Management, Not Metrics
Based on all the feedback, it is clear to me that our sector needs a major reset on the approach to outcomes—from how we think about them to how we assess them.
If I were a real innovator, I would invent one of those memory-erasing devices that sometimes pop up in science fiction movies and immediately use it to erase every frustrating memory we have built up though our experiences with metrics, measurement, outcomes, and evaluation. With everyone starting with a clean slate and open mind, I would make the case that more than anything else, our sector needs a singular focus on managing to outcomes. And here’s precisely what I mean:
- Gain clarity, through thoughtful introspection, on what change we are trying to create;
- Gain specificity on how we will accomplish that change;
- Determine what information (hard and soft) will be most helpful to understand if we are on course to achieve that change;
- Collect and use this information as a basis for being disciplined within mission—that is, to plan, make important decisions, track, course correct, and improve;
- Combine all of the above with good judgment and keen discernment, which are more important than any metric.
In my experience, some nonprofit leaders inherently think in terms of outcomes or are at least open to doing so. They bring more than intuition and personal agenda; think deeply about the what, how, and why of their services; are evidence-based; and talk naturally and frequently about the change happening in the lives of those they serve. These leaders are genuinely hungry for reliable information to assess their value to those they serve. They want to manage to outcomes. It’s no surprise that these are the leaders we look for in prospective VPP partners.
Leaders who have an innate desire for good information that is aligned with their mission are the ones most likely to develop a true performance culture and make a real difference in the lives of those they serve. And before those readers who rebel against the term “performance culture” get too incensed, please step back from the jargon and debates of the times and ask, “How can anyone with a deep commitment to their mission not want to be rigorous in determining how they can do the most good for those they serve?” This is what I seek to convey when I use the term.
We have also found that using information to manage to outcomes and having a performance culture are absolutely dependent on an attitude and mindset that must come from within. Trying to impose this orientation on leaders and organizations is as constructive as trying to foist change on your spouse. As my better half will tell you (with a resigned sigh), it ain’t gonna happen.
What Managing to Outcomes Looks Like
Geoff Canada, founder and CEO of Harlem Children’s Zone and one of my heroes, raised a stir with some provocative comments that were published in the New York publication City Limits.
When Canada was asked to define success for HCZ, he said, “The only benchmark of success is college graduation. That’s the only one: How many kids you got in college, how many kids you got out.”
Canada could not have been clearer on the ultimate outcomes HCZ is focused on achieving. It’s not improving reading levels. It’s not getting kids to graduate high school. It’s not helping kids get into college. To HCZ, these are important interim indicators to ensure they are moving in the right direction, but, ultimately, it’s ensuring those young people make it through college that matters.
With that great clarity as a starting point, Canada and his team, with the help of the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, Bridgespan, and others, have gotten good at identifying the information they need to collect in order to manage to these outcomes. Are all the kids in the HCZ graduating from college? Of course not. But HCZ is on a very promising path.
A Challenge to Us All
Based on what I’ve learned over the years—through my work with VPP; my direct engagement with schools and hospitals in the Cleveland area; my observations of HCZ and other innovators; and my own experience implementing information systems in my business career—I have some thoughts on how we can get from a place of pent-up frustrations to a place of real progress. My next column will go into greater detail, but here is an overview of what’s to come.
If you agree that many efforts in our sector to assess outcomes are causing more harm than good, you can do something right now. Whether a funder, nonprofit executive, staff member, board member, or beneficiary of nonprofit services, you are likely in one of two situations you can influence.
If you’re not focused on outcomes (or doing very little), then please recognize that you—the executives, staff, board, and funders—have an affirmative obligation to engage. It’s mission-critical to know whether you’re on track to deliver what you promise to those you serve. I have great respect for leaders’ intuition, but intuition alone is almost never enough.
If your nonprofit has defined your intended outcomes and maybe even progressed to reporting on them, then please stop, step back, and rigorously question what you’ve done (or plan to do). Rather than think of this as a step backward, realize it may be the first step toward course correcting and getting on a truly productive track.
In either case, please remember the critical, first-order question, “To what end?” Think about Geoff Canada. Are you on a path to gain the clarity he has achieved (after many years of struggle!) on the ends he’s trying to advance for the children and young people he serves? These are difficult and fundamental questions that you owe yourself and those your nonprofit serves to answer honestly and with deep introspection.
I encourage nonprofits to undertake facilitated discussions, perhaps inviting informed voices to brief their boards and staff. For example, I’ve been fortunate to be deeply engaged with The Lawrence School in Northeast Ohio, which serves grades 1-12 students with learning differences and attention-deficit disorders. We have benefited greatly by having a facilitator—a seasoned, skilled professional who understands management and organizations well—lead working groups of board and staff to sort out and define fundamental aspects of what the school does and represents. The facilitator has helped us conduct concerted and lengthy efforts to gain greater clarity of mission and vision and define the school’s guiding principles and underlying values. Similarly, discussions are well along to clarify and explain more clearly whom the school serves and to define, with specificity, its educational model and how it differentiates itself from other educational approaches. These are difficult matters to take on, but, with a leadership that has embraced this approach and put trust in the process, the gains have been nothing short of transformational.
None of this suggests in any way that summative and formative evaluation are not important, particularly for building information about what works and what doesn’t for the field or a discipline. But if we really want to help organizations deliver quality services most effectively, then our priority must be on identifying the nonprofits with the willingness, propensity, and capacity to manage to outcomes—and then helping them do just that. This will require major commitments of time and money to help these nonprofits build their culture of information-based introspection and the performance-management systems that can deliver the information they need on an ongoing basis, while never losing an ounce of their mission-driven passion.
Thanks to all who took the time to offer comments on my last column—both pushback and push-forward. Surfacing your frustrations helped me refine and crystallize my thinking, so keep ‘em coming!
- Mario Morino
Investor Profile: Kathy Calvin
Kathy Bushkin Calvin is no stranger to the world of philanthropy – or government, or business, for that matter. Currently CEO of the United Nations Foundation, she can claim careers in all three sectors: “I was in politics before politics got nasty, in journalism before it was taken apart by the internet, and now philanthropy at a time when so much innovation and risk-taking are happening. It’s exciting to be here now.”
A hybrid herself, it is uniquely appropriate that Calvin works at the UN Foundation, a nonprofit organization that also supports and works with government, and was founded by a business titan, Ted Turner, who is now a titan in the philanthropic world. “The philanthropic and business sectors, maybe even government, are moving towards the hybrid model – it’s true that the bottom line matters, and impact is essential, but you must also have that global worldview and compassion. The message of the 21st century is that it truly takes a village.”
Calvin’s broad understanding of business and philanthropy was incubated during her time at AOL, when she was President of the AOL Time Warner Foundation. AOL had embraced innovation in its giving, providing not only funds, but pathways to the internet for the nonprofits that it supported. The foundation also focused heavily on the National Capital Region, becoming involved with DC area schools and community foundations. When Mario Morino asked her to become a founding investor in Venture Philanthropy Partners, she and her then-husband Art Bushkin said yes immediately. “We believed in venture philanthropy, and in what Mario was doing. VPP was an exciting new model,” she says.
As might be expected of someone who believes in high-engagement philanthropy, Calvin has invested more than just money in VPP. She originated VPP’s Women’s Dinners, which convene a few times a year to introduce potential women investors to VPP. The idea came to Calvin at a photo shoot for Washington Life Magazine that featured VPP’s founders and investors: “I wondered, why was I the only woman in this picture? I realized there weren’t nearly as many women as there could or should be.” She spoke with Mario and VPP President Carol Thompson Cole, and the Women’s Dinner was born. Calvin hosted the first few gatherings and led the way for other women investors to take on this important role of growing VPP’s community of women investors and donors. These women-only dinners have spurred both greater engagement with and greater awareness of VPP and its model, and helped to secure significant funding. In fact, due to these dinners, four investor level commitments have been made and one donor level gift has been secured. As Calvin says, “We [women] come out of a history of volunteering; I think we generally want to be more engaged and involved, which makes the VPP model a natural fit for us.”
At the UN Foundation, some of Calvin’s proudest work has also been with women – adolescent ones, that is. “We found that adolescent girls were a gap in the UN programming; they’re the missing, critical link. We know that if we don’t keep a girl in school, if we don’t help her plan her family, and delay marriage, we are condemning her to a life of poverty.” To fill this gap, the UN Foundation has started a fund that will support an integrated UN program to invest in education, health, and community initiatives for young women in the developing world.
When it comes to her own personal philanthropy, Calvin tends to support organizations in three broad categories: women and children, freedom of the press, and access to information. She sits on the boards of the Newseum and Internews, and is involved closely with the Washington Area Women’s Foundation. Local organizations appeal to her greatly, since in her career she deals mostly on an international level; because of this, she says, she would almost always rather give deep than wide, and she loves to support groups that have deep roots in the communities they serve.
When asked what advice she would offer to those just beginning to give, Calvin recommends, “Start with your passion – you first have to find out what that is.” Then, she says, decide whether you need to see, feel, and touch the results or not, which would help you decide whether you want to become involved with smaller service organizations or advocacy groups. A major point to give some thought to is collaboration, such as participating in a giving circle or a more formal investment organization like VPP. “Partnerships make you stronger…when it comes to a return on your investment, I find that the collaborative model is hard to beat,” says Calvin. “When you invest in an entity that has similar goals to yours, you’re able to accomplish so much more.”
VPP's Business Manager Manon Matchett Named Special Assistant to the President and CEO
Venture Philanthropy Partners welcomes Manon Matchett, business manager at VPP, to her new role as Special Assistant to the President and CEO. Matchett has worked with VPP in various capacities since the organization’s founding in 2000, and has substantial knowledge of VPP’s mission, model, and operations. As business manager, her duties included business administration, accounting, web production, operational support, and research. In her new capacity as Special Assistant, she will support the President and CEO through research, scheduling, briefing, monitoring, and reporting.
“Manon combines an incredible attention to detail with problem solving and a rich understanding of VPP’s work and the community in which we exist—in its many, varied forms. I am very pleased she has accepted this new opportunity with VPP and that we can continue to benefit from her skills and talents as applied to a different piece of our work,” said Carol Thompson Cole, President and CEO.
Prior to her work at VPP, Matchett served as executive assistant to the chief executive officer and executive director of the American Nurses Association. She also worked for five years at the Department of Commerce in the International Trade Administration. Matchett attended Howard University in pursuit of a BBA in International Business Administration.
VPP Board Member, Bob Templin, Testifies on Senate Panel
Dr. Bob Templin, VPP board member and President of Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA), participated in a panel at the U.S. Senate titled “A Stronger Workforce Investment System for a Stronger Economy.” Dr. Templin discussed NOVA’s partnership with VPP investment partner Year Up as one example of an innovative way to bridge the Opportunity Divide: “Within four months of graduating, nearly 80% of Year Up completers are employed with average earnings of over $35,000 a year.” Click here to watch his testimony, starting at minute 90, or here to read it.
VPP Article Makes Stanford Social Innovation Review’s List of Top Five Opinion Blogs
Mario Morino’s article “The Innovation Imperative” was one of the Stanford Social Innovation Review’s (SSIR) top five opinion blogs of 2009, based on the number of hits the post received. The article was first published in the April 2009 issue of VPPNews.
VPP Co-Founder Jack Davies Presents at the Mid-Atlantic Venture Association’s (MAVA) “7 on 7”
VPP founding investor and board member Jack Davies was one of seven thought leaders to present remarks at MAVA’s inaugural 7 on 7 Breakfast. Each speaker was given seven minutes to address a critical topic, ranging from “Succeeding as an Entrepreneur While Fulfilling One’s Passion” to “Future Trends in Higher Education.” Davies’ talk, titled “The Changing Landscape of Philanthropy and Corporate Giving,” offered insights into his own experiences with venture philanthropy and some of the lessons learned throughout his philanthropic journey. To read his full remarks, click here.
Programs & Services
 Dora the Explorer To Visit Mary’s Center as Part of its 2010 Census Efforts
Thanks to Lyda Vanegas, Advocacy and Communications Manager, for this update.
Mary’s Center is participating in many activities in support of the 2010 Census, but one of the most exciting ones – at least, according to some of Mary’s Center’s smaller clients – is the upcoming visit of Dora the Explorer, on March 9th.
Nickelodeon, in partnership with the US Census Bureau, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, and Mary’s Center, will bring Dora the Explorer to Mary’s Center to interact with children and to launch a bilingual Public Service Announcement (PSA) aimed at encouraging the counting of children in the Census.
“With Dora the Explorer’s message, in addition to the educational campaign that our staff is developing for our families, I am assured that our community’s involvement will increase significantly this time,” said Maria Gomez, Mary’s Center President and CEO.
Mary’s Center will also serve as a Questionnaire Assistance Center (QAC) from March 19 through April 19. Bilingual staff from the US Census Bureau will visit the Center twice a week at its headquarters office in Adams Morgan to assist participants with the completion of their 2010 Census questionnaire.
Board Changes
 College Summit-National Capital Region Elects New Board Leadership
Thanks to Vinette Brown, Director of Development, for this update.
On January 26th, College Summit-NCR's Advisory Board elected Ms. Angela Antonelli as its new Board Chair and Ms. Nancy Kuhn as its Vice Chair. Angela Antonelli is the Founder and Managing Principal of AMD Strategies LLC, a public policy and government affairs consulting firm providing policy research, education, issue advocacy, and business development support to clients. She was formerly a Director of Federal Strategy and Operations for Deloitte, and helped establish Deloitte’s federal practice. Nancy Kuhn is the Director of External Relations for the Business-Higher Education Forum, where she is responsible for the development of strategic communications programs supporting BHEF and its initiatives. She is a former partner of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, LLP, where she counseled and litigated on behalf of Fortune 200 corporations and national nonprofit organizations, including private foundations and educational organizations.
The Board also recently celebrated Jim Dyke's service as the founding NCR Board Chair, and announced the launch of the James W. Dyke, Jr. Scholarship. The scholarship will be awarded to two students at the upcoming College Summit-NCR Annual Awards in May.
Awards & Recognition
 Natasha Knuckles Named 2010 BGCGW Youth of the Year
Thanks to Jasmine Smith, Communications Specialist, for this update.
Natasha Knuckles has been named the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Washington’s Youth of the Year, the highest honor that a Boys and Girls Club member can receive. The 17-year-old Knuckles will compete against other Boys & Girls Club members for Maryland’s Youth of the Year title and a $1,000 scholarship from the Reader’s Digest Foundation. As the Youth of the Year for Greater Washington, Knuckles is among hundreds of local youth across the country recognized by Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) for her sound character, leadership skills, and willingness to give back to the community.
Inspired by her mother’s personal struggle as a single mom who later went back to school to receive her bachelor’s degree, Knuckles is eager to attend college, where she plans to pursue a degree in Medicine. She expects to acquire a full scholarship and recently received acceptance from Pennsylvania State University. Knuckles wants to be a pediatrician and plans to start and run her own practice someday. She has been a member of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Washington’s (BGCGW) Germantown Club for the past six years, where she serves as a tutor, counselor in training, junior staff, and events volunteer.
“I love going to the club after school. The club is like my second home,” says Knuckles. “I can go to the club and relax, be free, and not judged.”
At the age of 11, Knuckles was asked to testify before her local Congress twice in an effort to request funding for a new gym for the Germantown Club. Impressed with her passion for the club, the assembly granted the club $500,000.
“With the many challenges facing today’s teens, we are pleased to honor the accomplishments of young people like Natasha and proudly recognize her commitment and dedication,” said Pandit Wright, President and CEO, BGCGW. “Natasha is an excellent example of what Boys & Girls Clubs are all about.”
The title Youth of the Year recognizes outstanding contributions to a member’s family, school, community, and Boys & Girls Club, as well as personal challenges and obstacles overcome. The program was founded over 60 years ago through the generosity of the Reader’s Digest Foundation.
 Anacostia High School Students to Receive Achievers Scholarships
Thanks to Barry Lofton, Director, Corporate and Community Relations, for this update.
Friendship Public Charter School announced that 16 Anacostia Senior High School students have been selected for the 2010 Achievers Scholarship. That makes 15 more students than the 2008-09 school year cohort, and a 62% acceptance rate for this current school year.
This achievement is an important milestone in Friendship's management of Anacostia High School. Friendship was selected by DCPS Chancellor Michelle Rhee in 2009 to turn Anacostia around, as part of the District's effort to restructure failing high schools.
Friendship's award-winning Collegiate Academy High School remained the top ranking recipient of Achievers Scholarships, with more than 110 awards this year.
The DC Achievers Scholarship Program is a multi-faceted scholarship program that supports students from six high schools in Washington, DC with high percentages of low-income students. It is funded by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Achievers Scholars receive support services while in high school and throughout their college career. To date it has provided college readiness, mentoring and support, as well as scholarship financial aid, to 800 low-income youth in the District of Columbia.
Announcements of Note
 LAYC Celebrates Its 100th Student to Receive SES Tutoring
Thanks to Ben Graham, SES Site Coordinator, for this update.
The Latin American Youth Center (LAYC) recently announced that the Center’s Supplemental Educational Services (SES) tutoring program accepted its 100th participant. Thirteen new students helped push the after-school tutoring program’s total number to 100 participants.
Supplemental Educational Services (SES) is a federally funded program that offers extra instruction for students who have failed to make adequate progress for three consecutive years. The tutoring program offers one-on-one and small group tutoring sessions twice a week in both math and reading. LAYC offers SES tutoring at Bruce Monroe, Powell, and Harriett Tubman elementary schools, as well as MacFarland Middle School. Last year, reading levels for elementary-aged participants increased by two grade levels and math proficiency levels increased by 35 percent. Among middle school students, reading levels increased by one grade level and math proficiency levels by 27 percent.
MacFarland Middle School 8th grader Alex Rubio began SES earlier this year, and has already mastered fractions in just three months of tutoring. “SES is helping me prepare for high school by catching me up in math and teaching me how to write essays,” Rubio said.
SES Program Coordinator Jeremy Vera hopes to be able to expand the program this year as well as next.
“I’m very proud that we’re able to offer this service for DCPS students,” Jeremy said. “I’m also proud of the staff, who genuinely care about the students. It’s evident when I walk into the school and see kids run up and hug the tutors."
 Year Up National Capital Region Graduates Seventh Class on February 5th
Thanks to Roxana Garcia-Marcus, Career and Alumni Services Manager, for this update.
Though the forecast called for record-breaking snow storms on February 5th, the climate in the ballroom of the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, DC was warm and festive as 44 young adults from the DC area celebrated their Year Up graduation with family, friends, corporate partners, and mentors. This was Year Up National Capital Region’s (NCR) seventh graduating class. Despite the tough economy, nearly half of the graduates were already employed or had plans for higher education by the time they crossed the stage that day.
“Through Year Up I earned a corporate apprenticeship at CGI Federal,” said Abdulkadir Osman, a Somali immigrant and recent graduate. “I was hired as a full time employee and work with a fantastic team.”
Osman is also a recent recipient of the NewFutures scholarship and plans on continuing his education.
“I would like to become A+ certified,” he said. “I also plan on furthering my education by attending George Mason University and earning my bachelor’s degree in Information Technology.”
Speaking to the students about the importance of higher education was keynote speaker Robert G. Templin, Jr, President of Northern Virginia Community College. In his remarks and through a video highlighting NOVA’s partnership with Year Up, he spoke about the importance of higher education and the essential role that colleges and nonprofits play in closing the Opportunity Divide.
“Our success with Year Up gives us confidence that this model can be applied across other training fields and across different kinds of nonprofit organizations,” he said. “In fact, we believe it’s transportable to other communities where community colleges will embrace this role with community-based nonprofits.”
“Community-based nonprofits do a really good job at entry level job training, including placing people in their first job,” Dr. Templin said. “Unfortunately, that’s where it often ends, and the danger is that without additional education, those individuals will be the first to be laid off the next time there’s an economic downturn or a change in technology.”
After graduation, Year Up’s Career and Alumni Services department will continue to support the graduates in their post-program plans and help those who were not hired at their internships find employment.
“Year Up gave me the technical and professional skills to seek and obtain gainful employment, as well as the confidence and support to realize my true abilities as an individual,” said Ginea Lamar, who was recently hired as an IT Support Specialist outside of her internship. “I am looking forward to continuing my education and certifications as well as being a permanent member of the Year Up family.”
In a letter to the graduating class, Year Up CEO and Founder Gerald Chertavian congratulated the students on their successes and advised them on the road ahead.
“You are the leaders of tomorrow and together your legacy will close the Opportunity Divide. Your depth and resiliency has inspired me and I am honored that you chose to be a Year Up Student,” he said. “You have taken the first step to become professionals, but it does not end here. You must continue to take advantage of every opportunity that is put in front of you and never settle for the status quo.”
 Asian American LEAD to hold Annual Dinner Fundraiser
Thanks to Rick Chen, Manager of Development and Communications, for this update.
In celebration of the Lunar New Year, Asian American LEAD (AALEAD) will host its Annual Dinner on March 24 at China Garden Restaurant in Rosslyn, Virginia. This will be the 11th year of the event, which brings together Washington’s top business, government, and community leaders for an evening of featured speakers, a traditional Chinese banquet, and a silent auction.
AALEAD will also be presenting their “Washington LEADer Award” to philanthropist Mario Morino. The Washington LEADer Award recognizes individuals for making an extraordinary difference in the community in which they live. AALEAD classifies "LEADers" as those who have not only been successful in their own business endeavors, but are equally committed to creating a positive difference in their community. “Mario inspires me in my current role at AALEAD with the probing questions he asks, with his honest reflections on how we can contribute effectively, and with his encouragement,” said AALEAD Executive Director Rosetta Lai.
AALEAD’s Annual Dinner provides its youth an opportunity to celebrate recent achievements, cultural talent, and leadership. Last year, students ranging from elementary school to high school shared personal stories of overcoming obstacles, performed cultural dances, and showed leadership by being emcee hosts before more than 400 guests. AALEAD will continue to promote the achievements of its youth by featuring them as part of this year’s dinner program.
 Run Globally, Act Locally
Thanks to Anna Berke, Manager of Development, for this update.
On Monday, February 1st Alexandria resident Brooke Curran visited The Child & Family Network Centers (CFNC) to meet staff, spend time with preschool students, and present CFNC with a check in the amount of $20,000.
Guided by the mantra “Run Globally and Act Locally,” Brooke has committed to completing one marathon per month on every continent, in each of the 50 states, and the five major world marathons (Boston, New York, London, Chicago and Berlin) while raising money to support Alexandria charities. She founded the RunningBrooke Fund and partnered with the Alexandria Community Trust (ACT) to help collect and manage the donated monies.
In 2009, CFNC was selected as the first beneficiary of the RunningBrooke Fund. The money will be used to support CFNC’s two classrooms at the Charles Houston Recreation Center, where 36 children receive a free, high-quality preschool education and their families benefit from a variety of services such as ESL classes, job training, and health screenings.
“CFNC is thrilled to be Brooke’s chosen charity for 2009,” says Manager of Development Anna Berke. “We will be cheering her on through forty-two more states, one more marathon major and four continents!” To learn more about Brooke and follow her journey, visit www.runningbrooke.com.
Website Brings Transparency to Foundations
Glasspockets.org is a new website, hosted by The Foundation Center, established to bring transparency to the world of philanthropy. The website offers links to the financial information, HR and staffing policies, grantmaking procedures, and other information of major foundations.
New Report Examines Ways Grantmakers Use Evaluation
Grantmakers for Effective Organizations (GEO) has published a study titled Evaluation in Philanthropy: Perspectives from the Field, which offers an overview of the way grantmakers are looking at evaluation as a means of improvement. The report can be downloaded for free by GEO members, and the executive summary is available for free to non-members.
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