Institute leading national convening to discuss how community foundations engage the public

Monday, March 27, 2006

(The Harwood Institute for Public Innovation) As part of our ongoing partnership with the Nevada Community Foundation, The Harwood Institute will be leading a convening in Las Vegas this week on the role of community foundations in engaging the public, and how they can position themselves as catalytic organizations that build the civic capacity of communities through their grantmaking. The convening is a chance for the Institute and NCF to reflect on the community-advised funding system we have co-created, which is rooted in the frameworks, sensibilities, and practices the Institute has effectively embedded in communities across the country for the past 20 years.

Convening participants include:

Dena Jones Trujillo, director of investments, Omidyar Network
Thomas Kreiss, executive producer, Omidyar Network
Ellyn Peabody, manager, corporate administration, Omidyar Network
Roque Barros, director of community building, Jacobs Family Foundation
Athan Lindsey, associate director of philanthropy and alternative giving strategies, National Rural Funders Collaborative
Katherine Loflin, program director for community partners program, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
Virginia Blankenhorn, manager, leadership giving grants, United Way for Southeastern Michigan
Brittney Forman, program officer, Winston-Salem Foundation
Bob Morehouse, incoming chairman, Community Foundation Serving Boulder County, Colorado
Patricia Pate, director, Clark County, Nevada, Social Service
David Anderson Hooker, vice president, community building, Center for Working Families, Inc. (Atlanta, Ga.)
Victoria Vrana, chief knowledge officer, Venture Philanthropy Partners
Darryl Lester, founder and president, Hindsight Consulting
Shannon West, regional homeless coordinator, Southern Nevada Regional Planning Coalition
Reggie Lewis, executive vice president for community impact, United Way of Essex and West Hudson
Nancy Wilson, director and associate dean of the University College for Citizenship and Public Service, Tufts University
Myles Weissleder, vice president, public affairs, Meetup.com

The Nevada Community Foundation, wanting to create an innovative process for allowing members of the community to make decisions on investing dollars, asked The Harwood Institute last summer to work with them to make sure the process itself, as well as the people chosen to be part of the process, were infused with a deep understanding of community, how one authentically engages the community, and what it means to hold real public knowledge.

The process set up by NCF and the Institute, called the Community Conference, has been meeting regularly for several months now to apply Harwood principles and content to hammer out the details of the community-advised funding system that is rooted in authentic engagement and focuses on building the civic capacity of Las Vegas.

This convening is designed to celebrate the work of the Community Conference and also give participants, NCF, and the Institute a chance to discuss what has worked, what hasn't, and how this process could be replicated in communities across the country.

To spur thoughtful discussion, NCF and the Institute have co-authored a white paper to update convening participants on how the process has unfolded so far. Anyone interested in this work is encouraged to take a look.



Home About the Institute Our Mission and History Our Core Values Why this Work Matters Examples of Our Work What Our Partners Say Staff, Board & Advisors About My Work My Story My Schedule My Speaches and Commentary Speaking Requests Explore My Latest Book About Hope Unraveled Rich's Book Tour Endorsements How to Order Media Center Latest News Past Issues of Our E-Newsletter Resources for You Harwood Publications Order Hope Unraveled Downloadable Tools Join Us in Our Work 9 Ways to Join with Us Bring Us to Your Community Sign Up for a Harwood Signature Event Contribute to the Harwood Institute Redeeming Hope Blog Contact Us Sign up for updates from The Harwood Institute Enter Email Address:
	Institute leading national convening to discuss how community foundations engage the public Monday, March 27, 2006 (The Harwood Institute for Public Innovation) As part of our ongoing partnership with the Nevada Community Foundation, The Harwood Institute will be leading a convening in Las Vegas this week on the role of community foundations in engaging the public, and how they can position themselves as catalytic organizations that build the civic capacity of communities through their grantmaking. The convening is a chance for the Institute and NCF to reflect on the community-advised funding system we have co-created, which is rooted in the frameworks, sensibilities, and practices the Institute has effectively embedded in communities across the country for the past 20 years. Convening participants include: Dena Jones Trujillo, director of investments, Omidyar Network Thomas Kreiss, executive producer, Omidyar Network Ellyn Peabody, manager, corporate administration, Omidyar Network Roque Barros, director of community building, Jacobs Family Foundation Athan Lindsey, associate director of philanthropy and alternative giving strategies, National Rural Funders Collaborative Katherine Loflin, program director for community partners program, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation Virginia Blankenhorn, manager, leadership giving grants, United Way for Southeastern Michigan Brittney Forman, program officer, Winston-Salem Foundation Bob Morehouse, incoming chairman, Community Foundation Serving Boulder County, Colorado Patricia Pate, director, Clark County, Nevada, Social Service David Anderson Hooker, vice president, community building, Center for Working Families, Inc. (Atlanta, Ga.) Victoria Vrana, chief knowledge officer, Venture Philanthropy Partners Darryl Lester, founder and president, Hindsight Consulting Shannon West, regional homeless coordinator, Southern Nevada Regional Planning Coalition Reggie Lewis, executive vice president for community impact, United Way of Essex and West Hudson Nancy Wilson, director and associate dean of the University College for Citizenship and Public Service, Tufts University Myles Weissleder, vice president, public affairs, Meetup.com The Nevada Community Foundation, wanting to create an innovative process for allowing members of the community to make decisions on investing dollars, asked The Harwood Institute last summer to work with them to make sure the process itself, as well as the people chosen to be part of the process, were infused with a deep understanding of community, how one authentically engages the community, and what it means to hold real public knowledge. The process set up by NCF and the Institute, called the Community Conference, has been meeting regularly for several months now to apply Harwood principles and content to hammer out the details of the community-advised funding system that is rooted in authentic engagement and focuses on building the civic capacity of Las Vegas. This convening is designed to celebrate the work of the Community Conference and also give participants, NCF, and the Institute a chance to discuss what has worked, what hasn't, and how this process could be replicated in communities across the country. To spur thoughtful discussion, NCF and the Institute have co-authored a white paper to update convening participants on how the process has unfolded so far. Anyone interested in this work is encouraged to take a look.
The Harwood Institute for Public Innovation 4915 St. Elmo Avenue Suite 402 · Bethesda, AL 20814 301.656.3669 (main) · 301.656.0533 (fax) · thi@theharwoodinstitute.org Copyright 2012, All rights reserved. Powered by Orchid Suites Orchid ver. 4.2.5.

Sign up for updates from The Harwood Institute

Institute leading national convening to discuss how community foundations engage the public

Sign up for updates from
The Harwood Institute