Hiring Practices - What Should Change from a Decade Ago?

Good food for thought from Vu Le with Nonprofit AF on hiring practices in 2022. Take a look.

How One Foundation Moved from Idea to Initiative

Shared from an August 16, 2021 blog on Exponent Philanthropy. The David and Lura Lovell Foundation focuses funding on changing systems by first identifying issues then identifying partners to ferret out root causes and develop plans before seeking grantees involved in the work.

The 7-step process is outlined in the blog and is something a foundation of any size or staffing can accomplish.

I have followed a similar process several times throughout my philanthropic career. This work offers fantastic opportunities for learning not only by funders but among the partners as well. There is power behind bringing people to the table and giving them a voice.

More good food for thought.

Photo by Joel Filipe@joelfilip

2021 - A Year of Change

In following a theme of change, let’s take a look at a twist to anti-poverty efforts: providing regular cash payments to those in need. This concept played a prominent role in the recent third round of coronavirus relief. The American Rescue Plan contains several provisions to help parents. Among them is an expansion of the Child Tax Credit for 2021 whereby eligible parents (based on income) will receive direct payments of $3,600 for kids ages 5 and under and $3,000 for children ages 6 to 17.

These direct payments, however, are rife with controversy. There are many concerned these dollars will encourage parents to pull out of the workforce.

Enter SEED (Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration). Through a partnership with the Economic Security Project the city of Stockton, CA offered people in need what they needed most: cash. SEED launched February 2019. 125 people were randomly chosen from low-income census tracks to receive $500 monthly, to use as they please. These individuals were provided guaranteed income for two years. The only mandate was the project’s research team could collect data designed to understand the benefits and harms of direct cash payments. Participants could withdraw from SEED at any time.

Research, via a randomized control trial, sought to answer these questions: How does guaranteed income impact income volatility? How do changes in income volatility impact psychological health and physical well-being? How does guaranteed income impact future selves?

Preliminary findings for the first year (February 2019- February 2020) are in. Here is what they learned:

• Income levels month to month are steadier with the guaranteed dollars.

• The “no strings attached” cash payments enabled recipients to obtain full-time employment.

• Recipients were healthier with less depression and anxiety.

• The payments provided a “peace of mind” that allowed people the space to think about their future, new opportunities, setting goals, and taking risks.

As one recipient commented, the dollars allowed her to buy groceries which eliminated the need for multiple visits to food pantries each month to feed her family. This change gave her back time and gave her options.

Think back on your own lives as you were starting your working life and careers. Did you have someone helping with daily living expenses such as rent or groceries? And if that wasn’t an option, how would your life be different?

A bit of food for thought. This blog is inspired by the Nonprofit Quarterly’s article, Stockton Study Shows Power of Universal Basic Income Support written by Martin Levine and published March 17, 2021.

Image by Daniel Cheung @danielkcheung

2020 - A Year of Change

There is no doubt 2020 has been a year of change. As someone who typically goes kicking and screaming into something new, one of the positives of this pandemic for me has been to accept and even, at times, embrace change. So when I ran across these musings by Lisa Pillar Cowan in the December 8 of Chronicle of Philanthropy, I knew I had to share.

Take a look - it’s good food for thought for the coming year.

“When We Return to Our Foundation Offices, Let’s Make Them Spaces Where We Collaborate With Grantees” by Lisa Pillar Cowan, Vice President of the Robert Sterling Clark Foundation in New York City.

Image by @Jr Korpa

Foundations Favor General Operating Support in Theory but Hesitate to Make It Happen

What is your take on general operating support? And better yet, multi-year general operating support? In this time of COVID, nonprofits are challenged to evolve both in their programs and in their revenue generation. But what about foundations? Shouldn’t funders evolve their thinking and grant making as well?

This 10/21 article in the Chronicle of Philanthropy by Alex Daniels highlights a recent study by the Center for Effective Philanthropy that surveyed foundation CEOs and program officers as well as nonprofit organizations. The findings are not surprising but the reasons cited by funders to stick with the tried and true one time program funding are a bit disappointing.

Image by Steve Johnson @steve_j

Pivot - Reinterpreting the Millermore House

Prior to the coronavirus and prior to recent conversations around social justice, Dallas Heritage Village embarked on a project to reinterpret the Millermore House with the intent of telling stories about all people who lived and worked in the Millermore house, including the enslaved.

Why the Millermore house? It is the linchpin of what today is known as Dallas Heritage Village, a history museum that represents life in Dallas from 1840-1910. The house was the first of 21 structures moved to land located in the Cedars neighborhood just south of IH 30. This land was Dallas’ first city park, opened in 1876 and was once home to the city’s first zoo.

What is the pivot? Last year, the Village staff revisited historical documentation and archives relating to the Millermore house and its occupants including the 1860 census which stated then owner, William Brown Miller, enslaved 16 African Americans and included names of three couples. Then began the task of identifying the enslaved and those who lived in the cabin and landing on stories the Village will tell.

Enter the Slave Dwelling Project, founded by Joe McGill. Joe’s mission is to bring to life stories of enslaved people in America by inviting people to sleep in historic sites where the enslaved lived. McGill talks about life in the dwelling from the perspective of the enslaved and reminds listeners that like us, the enslaved were smart, strong, talented, and skilled individuals. For the last two years, Joe brought his knowledge and overnight narratives to Dallas Heritage Village and its staff and visitors.

For years the Village focused its interpretation of Millermore to stories about its original occupant, William Brown Miller. Today, that view has expanded. Tours begin in the Miller cabin which was the original home for the Miller family when they arrived in Dallas in 1847. For seven years Mr. Miller and his slaves built the adjacent home, now known as Millermore. In 1862 the Miller family moved into the “big house” while the enslaved and their families occupied the cabin.

After emancipation, the cabin was home to several workers and through their research, the Village learned a descendent of the enslaved lived in the cabin until as late as 1940. Melissa Prycer, executive director of Dallas Heritage Village noted, “It (Miller cabin) was home for African Americans far longer than it was a home for pioneers.”

While COVID-19 has put a halt on touring homes and buildings at Dallas Heritage Village, guests are invited to walk the grounds, enjoy a picnic lunch, and participate in activities offered in open spaces. Since re-opening their gates to visitors in June, the Village has hosted fiber weaving demonstrations, cooking demonstrations, and stories celebrating June 19th. Future activities include Old Time Music jams, talks on old-time firearms, more.

For updates and additional information, follow Dallas Heritage Village on Facebook and Instagram. Be sure to put Dallas Heritage Village on your must do list for a taste of what Texas was like in the past. I’ll see you around the Village!