Seattle, Washington, United States
As a leader, dreamer and truth-teller, I guide the Marguerite Casey Foundation in our endeavor to support emerging and established leaders, scholars and initiatives focused on shifting the balance of power in society so that all people in the United States -- especially those who have been excluded in building power for themselves and their communities -- may share in the promises of freedom. Prior to joining Marguerite Casey Foundation, I was the co-founder and former CEO of The Workers Lab, an innovation lab that invests in entrepreneurs, community organizers and government leaders to create replicable and revenue-generating solutions that improve conditions for low-wage workers. For more than 20 years, I have worked with foundations, financial institutions and nonprofits to improve the lives of working people across the United States. This extends to my work sitting on the boards of the Workers Benefit Fund, General Service Foundation, Blue Ridge Labs, Beyond12, Certification Associates and on the Community Advisory Council for the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. I hold a Ph.D. in City and Regional Planning from the University of California, Berkeley and was a Fulbright Scholar in 2007.
- Guiding members, staff and partners in building a just economy and fully realized democracy that truly represent the contributions, dreams, and desires of communities that have been historically excluded from shaping how society works and from sharing in its rewards and freedoms - Steering investment in community organizing through core grantmaking, impact investments and Freedom Scholars - Raising additional funds in order for the leaders, activists and organizations MCF supports to expand their creativity, experimentation, risk-taking and bold action to truly shift the balance of power - Prioritizing general operating (unrestricted) support for locally-based community organizing efforts, especially in areas where social justice leaders cannot depend on a robust funding ecosystem to support their vision and leadership - Leading through values of belonging and representation, mutual respect and trust - Supported organizations and leaders via grants totaling almost $34M in 2020 - Introduced Answering the Uprising: Closing the Say/Do Gap in Philanthropy, an initiative calling on philanthropic foundations to make new levels of commitment to the cause of ending police violence and mass incarceration - Led MCF in increasing its own giving by 5% – $1.6M – to fund programs and organizations that directly address racial injustice in policing - Created the Freedom Scholars award in partnership with Group Health Foundation to provide support to emerging academic leaders whose research can provide critical insight to social justice leaders and encourage us all to imagine a radically improved economy, democracy and society - Spearheaded appointment of seven new board members to Board of Directors, including Stacey Abrams, nonprofit and political leader; Rashad Robinson, president of Color of Change; and Zeke Smith, president of Empire Health Foundation - Selected for Inside Philanthropy’s 2021 100 Most Powerful Players in Philanthropy list
Making moves.
The Workers Lab invests in ideas, projects, and organizing models that will support the next generation worker movement to: - Achieve the necessary economic power to raise wages and economic standards for working people, - Achieve sufficient scale to impact workers across sectors, industries, and geographies, and - Achieve self-sufficient revenue models that are adequate to allow the models to sustain themselves in the long run.
Work with staff from the 22 largest financial and philanthropic institutions in the world to collaboratively harness their collective resources to expand opportunities for low-income communities and the cities where they live. Direct the R&D efforts and grantmaking processes of member-driven working groups focused on issues like energy efficiency, food manufacturing & retail, green storm water infrastructure, transit oriented development, and financial empowerment. Oversee and manage a $4.75 million grantmaking, research, and evaluation budget. Regularly publish reports, blog, tweet, host webinars, and give presentations at national conferences on issues of interest to our members. Manage four full-time staff to execute and oversee grants, contracts, support grantees, and build professional development plans for their continued growth.
Lecture on the History of American Cities, teach a studio on pressing economic issues facing Bay Area communities, and facilitate a graduate seminar on teaching in environmental design.
Oversee the development of programmatic strategies in primary grant areas - Green Access and Voting Integrity and Civic Engagement (VoICE). Work closely with Chief Financial Officer and Board to identify opportunities to support organizations beyond the Foundation’s 501c3 program budget. Including developing a Program and Mission related investment strategy and encouraging board members to transfer personal wealth into 501c4 support. Manage over $1.5M grantmaking support. Supervise one Program Associate in the VoICE program area. Convene cross-sector events and support organizations in pursuit of non-philanthropic support. Conduct appropriate research and publication of funding strategies, issues, and models that highlight work of the Mitchell Kapor Foundation grant recipient organizations. Develop a seamless connection between the work of national and local base building organizations. Serve as liaison for and participant in larger collaborative and affinity groups in the philanthropic sector. Work with CFO on special initiatives including PRI & building development.