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Why women's funds are too (blank) to fail.

Posted on by Lisa Kays

Yesterday in Philantopic, Foundation Center President Bradford Smith made the case for which nonprofits are "too big, too important or too (blank) to fail."   In other words, these are the nonprofits that he’d give a bailout to, if he had the choice.

Women’s funds make the list of only 14 nonprofits he named,  including Greenpeace, Oxfam, World Wildlife Fund and Doctors Without Borders.

Not bad company.

Bradford writes of women’s funds, "It started with Mama Cash in the Netherlands, spread to San Francisco with the Global Fund for Women, branched out to Mexico with Semillas, and keeps on growing."

Indeed. 

There are 134 women’s funds throughout the world today.  And Bradford putting them on the list begs the question–are they too important or too (blank) to fail?  And if so, why?

I’ve got a few theories, and I’ll even leave out all the (very true) stuff about how investing in women is the best way to improve a community and the world and will come up with some new stuff.

First, women’s funds and the way they do business are shifting the power dynamics of philanthropy.  Philanthropy and community development generally operate on a  top-down model, with program officers or funders making grants to nonprofits who are hesitant to share concerns, ideas, or mistakes with that funder for fear of a future loss of funding.  As a result, the organization doesn’t improve over time and weak aspects of a program or funding strategy aren’t addressed.  Further, the funder loses the valuable input of the organizations working most closely with the people and issues they want to address. 

Women’s funds tend toward community-based philanthropy, using diverse groups of people–whether in a giving circle or on a grantmaking committee–to award grants.  Decision-making is spread throughout the community, which leads to decisions that reflect the true needs and realities of what is happening on the ground, and also makes it possible for the nonprofits receiving the funds to have open, honest dialogue with the fund’s program officers and other staff.  Staff can serve more as advisors, capacity builders and partners than as "bosses."

This model is a win-win for the nonprofits, the funder and the community they’re serving. 

Second, women’s funds are fostering community involvement, ownership and social change.  Because they don’t just give out grants, women’s funds rely on their donors and supporters to be geniunely involved in their work, which requires them to learn more about their community, the issues impacting it and how strategies to address it. 

Whether that individual then stays in that community or moves to another one, or to another charity or nonprofit, they take all that they have learned about effective, strategic giving with them–meaning that every philanthropic dollar they invest is likely to have a greater return than if they had just written a check and never learned about how to make their gift go as far as possible.

Third, women’s funds are risk-taking and innovative, and therefore tend to root out and support the best strategies and organizations.  Due to the wisdom of collective grantmaking, which leads to its ability to seek out, find and fund organizations that may be small, new and/or struggling, they are truly able to elevate the best strategies, programs and ideas to a more visible, effective playing field.  Often when other funders won’t take that risk. 

And, because they foster open dialogue with their nonprofit partners, they are able to see when an effective program is otherwise being hindered by a management or fundraising issue–and help correct it.  And so organizations and ideas that may otherwise never have made it–but prove tremendously effective years later–receive the support they need to be seen beyond the more established organizations and strategies.

So, just off the top of my head, I’d agree with Bradford that women’s funds are too (important) (innovative) (effective) (inspiring) and (gamechanging) to fail.

Would you agree?  What other aspects of women’s funds make them too (blank) to fail? 

Lisa Kays is The Women’s Foundation’s Director of Communications

Early Care and Education Funders Collaborative awards first grants!

Posted on by HyeSook Chung

The Early Care and Education Funders Collaborative is thrilled to announce grants totaling $300,000 for area nonprofit organizations to expand access to and improve the quality of early care and education for low-income children in the region.

Six local groups are each receiving $50,000 grants – the first set of grants made by the Early Care and Education Funders Collaborative.

Launched last October by The Women’s Foundation, the Collaborative is a multi-year, multi-million dollar partnership between foundations and corporations to improve early care and education programs by investing in partners focused on strategic advocacy and industry building efforts.

The six organizations receiving the first grants are:

  • DC Appleseed, to increase the wages of child care workers in the District;
  • CentroNía, to increase the number of bilingual trainers and advisers in Maryland who can help entry-level teachers get their Child Development Associate (CDA) credential;
  • Empower DC, to define a policy agenda and train grassroots leaders to serve as advocates to ensure early care and education is a priority for District leaders;
  • Fairfax Futures, to expand school readiness partnerships in the county so child care professionals can prepare low-income children to start kindergarten ready to learn and succeed;
  • Hopkins House, to help low-income women in northern Virginia earn their CDA credential and partner with Northern Virginia Community College to ensure their CDA credits can be applied toward an associate’s degree in early childhood education; and,
  • Voices for Virginia’s Children, to advocate on behalf of young children, families and child care programs to expand the Commonwealth’s quality rating systems to more Northern Virginia child care programs.

Current members of the Collaborative include PNC Bank, the Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation, The Boeing Co, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, CityBridge Foundation, Freddie Mac Foundation, Meyer Foundation and Rocksprings Foundation.

More information:
Complete grant docket. 
Full press release.
Washington Business Journal article highlighting the grants.

HyeSook Chung is The Women’s Foundation’s program officer overseeing the Early Care and Education Funders Collaborative.

Think infrastructure jobs will only work for men? Think again.

Posted on by Gwen Rubinstein

As the economic stimulus package inches closer to Congressional approval and President Obama’s signature, many have focused on who is in and who is out – especially men versus women.

While predictable, this is not particularly productive.

Yes, men’s unemployment is rising faster than women’s.  Losses in the manufacturing and construction sectors have hit men particularly hard.

Still, unemployment among women is also rising, just not as fast. 

As usual, the losses are falling particularly hard on women-headed families, many of whom were also struggling before the recession. 

In addition, if history is any guide, we know women’s unemployment is likely to increase later in the recession.

In the work of repairing the economy, our policymakers need to find the wisdom to focus on the totality of the challenge for all Americans and the courage to question their assumptions.

One assumption I nominate for the recycle bin is that infrastructure jobs (and, for that matter, “green” jobs) are not and cannot be jobs for women.

Here at The Women’s Foundation, through investments made in our Stepping Stones Initiative, we have generated a lot of learning about how to support women in training for non-traditional occupations, such as construction.  Women who have completed these programs have gone on to good jobs with family-sustaining wages and benefits.

Here is one example from Washington Area Women in the Trades (a joint project of the Community Services Agency of the Metropolitan Washington Council of the AFL-CIO, Wider Opportunities for Women and the YWCA of the National Capital Area.

J. H. started in June 2008 as a ‘Transformer Tester Helper’ in general utility operations training at the PEPCO facility on Benning Road. The experiences she gained at the Washington Area Women in the Trades program helped her attain this very competitive job, which will put her on a solid career path, allowing her to help support her family and eventually to purchase a home. She starts at a great pay grade – double the minimum wage – and with a generous employee benefits package. After 12 months and after successfully completing the PEPCO exam, she will make even more.

Of course, this kind of success requires more than a physical program. To be successful, women need a rich and stable array of supports to sustain them during training and on the job, including child care, transportation, access to health care and access to financial education to help them reduce their debt, improve their credit and save for the future.

(I’m guessing men probably need some, if not all, of this, as well.)

Because Stepping Stones is a comprehensive and long-term initiative, it invests in all of these services to support low-income, women-headed families in our region.

Even in difficult economic times, we have continued to see our investments reap benefits for these women, their families and our community. I can only hope that our national leaders will look out of the windows of their Washington offices and into our greater Washington community for inspiration and help.

Gwen Rubinstein is a program officer at The Women’s Foundation.

Dear Mr. President…

Posted on by Lisa Kays

On the day after President Obama was sworn in just a few blocks from our office, the staff of The Women’s Foundation thought we’d offer our congratulations, along with (of course) a few items for our wish list of action on the part of the new President. 

So, in the spirit of, "Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America," we respectfully ask:

Dear Mr. President, Please be holistic in your policies to improve the economic security of low-income women with children. We know what works – although we don’t always act as if we really do. Good policies and programs include income support (or paid time off for participating in training or re-training), child care and transportation (critical work supports), access to health (including dental and biopsychosocial) assessments and services, financial education (debt reduction, credit repair, savings) and access to other needed social services. They also cannot stop when the woman walks out of the training program and into a new job."  Sincerely, Gwen Rubinstein

Dear Mr. President, I urge you to take immediate action to reverse the damage done by new rule adopted in the 11th hour of the Bush Administration, which allows individual health care providers to deny critical information to patients based on the providers’ personal biases. The patient may not even know what’s missing. This rule is particularly damaging for low-income women whose access to health care is already limited.  Please, tell congress to withdraw this damaging rule.  I also ask that you invest in a new green economy. Not only will you work to stop global warming, but you can revitalize our economy through new job growth. We know the best way to improve the lives of communities is to stabilize family income. New jobs in high-growth industries such as this one will go a long way to improving our homes and country, inside and out.  Thanks!  Allison Mitchell 

Dear President Obama, My wish for your administration is that every time you consider a policy or program, you think about the amazing and strong women in your life – your wife, daughters, sister, mother-in-law, mother and grandmother – and think about what that policy would mean for them. Would it keep them safe or put them at risk?  Would it open the door to new opportunities for them or shut them out?  Given the incredible impact on your life that all of these women have had already, their continued guidance can only ensure that your message of hope, inclusiveness and understanding becomes a reality during your administration.  Sincerely, Sharon Levin

Dear President Obama, I would ask you to keep in mind in your staffing and appointments the importance of women’s leadership, which does make an impact in ensuring that decision-making reflects the needs, concerns and realities of women and families.  In addition, just as you are a model of leadership for a new generation who will no longer see race as a barrier to achievement, so too is it important to have similar models for young women showing that gender need not pose a challenge or deterrant to any of their dreams and choices.  Sincerely, Lisa Kays

Dear Mr. President, I hope that all little children to have access to quality early education programs so that they may succeed in school and life.  Sincerely, HyeSook Chung 

But most of all, we congratulate you, and wish you the best as you and your Administration work to lead our nation at a time of such challenge and opportunity.

Do you have any ideas or requests of the new President and his Administration for how they can work to improve the lives of women and girls?  Leave them in comments!

Congrats Doreen, and thanks for being an inspiration to so many!

Posted on by Barbara Strom Thompson

I’m so thrilled to hear of Doreen being recognized as a 2008 Washingtonian of the Year!  This is so well-deserved.

I recall first meeting Doreen in an early round of the Rainmakers Giving Circle, and was so impressed by how thoughtful and engaged she was in the circle’s work, which was fairly demanding, time-wise.  Knowing how complicated her schedule was, her example motivated me to strengthen my commitment to The Women’s Foundation.

If she could make that meeting downtown, I had better get there!

Through the years, it has been delightful to witness her effect on others as well.

I remember how moved I was to see Grantee Partners beaming as they had picture after picture taken with her at a house event.

At a Washington 100 breakfast at her home, a Grantee Partner told our group how, after meeting Doreen at a previous event, she stopped watching her regular Spanish newscast and started watching Doreen’s. Not only did her English improve, but now her sons also watch Doreen.

And just last month at the board meeting, Covenant House’s Executive Director, Judith Dobbins, broke out with a huge smile as she recognized Doreen during our otherwise routine, round-the-table introductions.  We all had to laugh.

Because of Doreen’s personal graciousness and the respect she garners throughout our region, The Women’s Foundation’s good work is amplified every time she represents us.

But Doreen also has a tremendous fun side that I’ve had the pleasure to get to know as we’ve worked together as co-chairs of Washington 100.  Given how organized and poised she is, you probably would be surprised that half the time I feel like we’re Lucy and Ethel.  We spend a lot of time laughing, just scrambling to keep up and improvise with our latest version of a "plan", which is often a work in progress.

Thank goodness Doreen is a rare combination of extremely dependable and organized, mixed with go-with-the-flow and a really wry sense of humor.

I’m so proud of her earning this prestigious award.

Doreen, you make us all proud!  Congrats on this dazzling accomplishment.

Barb Strom Thompson is co-chair of The Women’s Foundation’s Washington 100 network and a board member. In her professional life, she is a child development specialist.

Congratulations to Doreen Gentzler, Washingtonian of the Year!

Posted on by Phyllis Caldwell

It is just like Doreen to accept an honor as huge as being named Washingtonian of the Year by turning the attention back to The Women’s Foundation and the NBC4 Health and Fitness Expo—two community efforts she supports tirelessly.

But that’s exactly what she did Monday night on the news when her co-anchor, Jim Vance, proudly announced her award. Doreen’s response was about how pleased she was that the award brought attention to Washington Area Women’s Foundation and the NBC4 Health and Fitness Expo.

Having worked with Doreen, who serves on our board of directors, I echo Jim’s statements about Doreen’s commitment and efforts in our community.  She has been a tremendous force in fostering The Women’s Foundation’s success, serving first as part of our Rainmakers Giving Circle, and then as a board member and co-chair of our philanthropic leadership network, Washington 100. She also brings an amazing presence and energy to our Leadership Luncheon, which she graciously emcees every year.

As just one example of Doreen’s commitment, she—along with her co-chair, Barb Strom Thompson—helped solidify Washington 100 by recruiting more than 100 founding members to kick off the network in 2007. Many of the current members will say that they were impressed and inspired to join and to remain part of the network by Doreen’s outstanding positive energy and dedication to our work.

In addition to her tremendous talents as a communicator and her knowledge of our community, Doreen brings humility, humor, grace and passion to everything she does, and I know that I speak for everyone in The Women’s Foundation’s community who has had the opportunity to meet or work with her that we are very fortunate to have her involved in our work and mission.

Doreen, here at The Women’s Foundation, we are tremendously proud of you and are thrilled to see your contributions to our region acknowledged by this award.  Thank you for your continuing service to help improve the lives of our region’s women and girls.

Congrats Doreen, and to all the other 2008 Washingtonians of the Year. We’re grateful for the work you do to make our community a better place to live and work.

Read the article on Doreen’s award here.

Phyllis Caldwell is president of The Women’s Foundation and a member of Washington 100.

Stepping Stones Research Update: December 2008

Posted on by Lisa Kays

As part of our ongoing commitment–in partnership with The Urban Institute–to providing information and resources related to the goals of Stepping Stones, please find below a summary of recent research on issues of economic security and financial independence for women and their families.

This research is summarized and compiled for The Women’s Foundation by Liza Getsinger of The Urban Institute, NeighborhoodInfo DC.

Financial Education and Wealth Creation News

The Urban Institute looks at how the financial crisis is affecting retirement savings.  (Fact sheet) (Related text)

DC Fiscal Policy institute looks at why so many families in the city aren’t able to make ends meet, and offers policy recommendations on how to bridge the gap between earnings and basic expenses.  (Abstract) (Full text)

Jobs and Business Ownership News

The Urban Insitute looks at how scheduling and paid time off impact workers in low-skill jobs.  (Abstract) (Full text)

Child Care and Early Education News

The Urban Insitute reviews research literature on the impact of performance-based accountability on school and teacher behavior.  (Intro) (Full text)

Health and Safety News

ChildTrends explores what kids have available to them to eat at school, and what they’re really eating.  (Key findings) (Full text)

Other News and Research

The Brookings Insitution looks at how a new poverty measure would provide a more accurate picture of economic need in the United States. (Abstract) (Full text)

Arts are an important investment, even when resources are tight.

Posted on by Phyllis Caldwell

Looking at the recent grants issued by our two giving circles, they may seem a bit counter-intuitive given the current economic climate.

Some have asked me why I believe funding the arts for girls is so important when there are many other pressing issues and priorities in our city, and funds are so tight.

But I’m proud of these recent funding choices by our African American Women’s Giving Circle and the Rainmakers, who chose this grantmaking cycle to invest in the Cultural Academy for Excellence (CAFÉ), a music arts program for girls in Maryland, and The Art League, an art mentoring program for at-risk, pre-teen girls in Virginia.

I salute these choices because in tough economic times, so often the arts are among the first cuts made in schools and programs for youth.

And at The Women’s Foundation, it is part of our mission to encourage philanthropy that focuses on filling the gaps where services are most needed and our support can make a unique, significant contribution.

I am a long-time supporter of the arts. I serve on the board of the Cultural Development Corporation, which is committed to supporting artistic outlets in Washington, D.C. that also create economic return for our community.

I personally invest in the arts because I believe that they are a fundamental part of the health and vibrancy of any community, contributing a space for dialogue, reflection, spiritual and emotional growth and intellectual challenge. The arts remind us of our shared humanity.

Similarly, the programs our giving circles have chosen to support use the arts as a means to help our community’s young women to build self-esteem, academic skills, and an expanded sense of their place in their community and the world.

Opportunities like these are all-too-often lost in communities and families where resources are limited and must be directed to more basic needs like food, shelter and clothing.

So, at a time when attention is focused on where to cut back so many programs and opportunities, I’m proud to see our giving circle members taking the lead in recognizing the need for youth in our area to imagine and create a future based on all of their unique talents and potential.

Whether they lie in a book or on a computer, or on a stage or blank canvas.

Phyllis Caldwell is president of The Women’s Foundation.

College Essay Day inspires far beyond what's put on paper.

Posted on by Lisa Kays

Tia’s post about College Essay Day at Urban Alliance inspired me to take a minute to jot down some of my thoughts on the experience.

I was invited as a mentor to participate, thinking that I’d be showing up with just a few others to help look at a few essays.  I was happy to do it, given how much I’ve enjoyed working with Tia over the past few weeks, and the seriousness with which I see her approaching her work, studies and college applications. 

I had no idea how big the event would be, or how many people from throughout the community would participate.  When I arrived, the room was packed with students, and the mentors filled an entire, large meeting room when we gathered for our orientation.

The essay readers included mentors like myself, but also professional staff–many journalists and editors–from the Atlantic Media Company, which is in the same building as Urban Alliance and partners with them on this program.

As I sat at the orientation and felt all of the energy around me as these professionals gathered to work with high school students, I couldn’t help but reflect on how the room seemed to embody so much of what The Women’s Foundation is about: the power of individuals to come together, give back, and have a collective impact.

When the staffer leading the orientation said that college acceptance rates had skyrocketed after this program was instituted, I wasn’t surprised. 

And the best part was that amidst the importance of the work at hand, the event demonstrated that giving back really does give back in itself.  Everyone there was having fun, getting to step outside of their day-to-day and have a one-on-one discussion with a bright, driven young person.

The student I was paired with was a remarkably bright, insightful young woman.  Her essays discussed challenges and experiences that humbled me given how motivated, independent and disciplined she was despite tremendous hardship. 

We spent time discussing her essays, and how she could reframe them to be a bit stronger and set her apart from other applicants for college admission and scholarships.  But then, with time left, we just talked about different opportunities, options, her questions about college life and my perceptions of her strengths and the assets that would help her succeed.

Not a bad way to spend an afternoon.

Days after working with her, I continue to be inspired by her story, her passion as she discussed her dreams and her confidence in herself in terms of how she would meet her goals.

I also continue to be inspired by the collective spirit of giving that served as the foundation of the afternoon.  It reminded me in a concrete way that despite economic downturns, rising unemployment rates, holiday shopping madness and stress, that we truly do all have something to give.

And that generally, doing so will always give back.

Lisa Kays is The Women’s Foundation’s Director of Communications.  Urban Alliance is a Grantee Partner of The Women’s Foundation.

This is a time for strategy, smart investing and sacrifice on the part of foundations.

Posted on by Phyllis Caldwell

Last week, I had to inform my staff of two decisions—that will be the first of more, I am sure—that I never would have expected to make when I took this position almost a year ago.

As we hired staff earlier this year—filling several positions that had remained vacant in anticipation of my arrival—we planned to take over some additional space in our building to accommodate everyone comfortably.

We have put that decision on hold.

Times are different now, and with predictions that more than 100,000 nonprofits nationwide could close in the next two years, we’re considering all of our operational spending very carefully, and doing what we can to ensure that despite the downturn, we’ll be able to maintain—if not grow—our grantmaking over the next few years.

Our mission is to support our region’s nonprofits as they work to change the lives of women and girls.  Many of the organizations we support are small, or just starting to establish themselves. They have lean staffs and do their programmatic work on a shoestring budget.

So, rather than making sure that we have enough space behind our doors during these tough economic times, we’re turning our focus to doing what we can to help our Grantee Partners keep theirs open and providing critical services throughout our region.

This is a time when strategy, smart investing and sacrifice are going to be required of foundations, just as they are of individuals, to ensure that the impact of our giving is as meaningful as possible.

To that end, the staff at The Women’s Foundation recently completed a strategic retreat to reflect on our priorities, goals and how we can meet them as efficiently and effectively as possible during this economic cycle.

Last week , we sent out an email asking staff to bring their own lunches to the retreat, as food and beverage costs for meetings and other events are another way that we’ve identified to cut costs and keep the focus of our spending on our work.

It may seem like a small gesture, but over time these decisions will add up and allow us to focus resources where they are needed most—with the women and their families who are being disproportionately impacted by this economic downturn.

This is similar to our strategy of increasing the impact of gifts—whatever their size—by combining them with the gifts of others so that when we give, we give more and your dollars go further.

In many ways, applying The Power of Giving Together in every way we can has never been more important.

Phyllis Caldwell is president of The Women’s Foundation.