A Website to Assist Progress in Moving Philanthropy Closer to Racial Equity and Social Justice 

Achieve!Minneapolis – design and implement the Achieve! Career and College Initiative 

 
Effective Communities, LLC announce the launch of its new project website, www.JustPhilanthropy.org – Moving Philanthropy Closer to Social Justice and Racial Equity

“Racial Equity and Social Justice.” Challenging words, yet they touch everything we do in our daily lives, in our institutions, workplaces, and families. Many would say that in the United States we have made great strides, and yes, significant progress has been made. But there is still much to do to level the playing field, reduce barriers, change conditions, and “move the needle” that gauges fairness.

The good news is: philanthropy can help. There are constructive roles foundations, nonprofits, and individuals can play in accelerating the rate of change. We’ve found that entering this arena of philanthropy can often be emotional, scary territory — particularly for Whites. And, there can be high penalties for People of Color who “tell the truth” within these organizations. But with persistence, a more informed and strategic use of philanthropic resources can lead to greater progress.

Effective Communities LLC, with a grant from the Ford Foundation, has spent the last three years in discussions about “noticing and benchmarking progress” in achieving greater racial equity and social justice through philanthropy. We have taken what we’ve learned and created a special website, www.JustPhilanthropy.org, to present our findings in a way that we hope engages all of our philanthropic instincts and creates more action in efforts to “close the gaps” and “move the needle” in arenas of racial equity and social justice.

 
Effective Communities Project has contracted with Achieve!Minneapolis to design and implement the Achieve! Career and College Initiative.

This initiative helps all Minneapolis Public Schools high school students plan for their futures by:

• Identifying personal interests and talents;
• Choosing broad career goals that encourage those interests and talents;
• Identifying higher education/training that will prepare them for those career goals;
• Planning for high school coursework needed to prepare for that higher education/training;
• Identifying opportunities for paying for higher education/training; and
• Developing work readiness skills.

The Achieve! Career and College Initiative builds on existing school, community, and government programs to create a more comprehensive system that ensures all students have a plan, knowledge and skills for moving from high school to further education or training and work.

The initiative builds a system that:

• Coordinates with and builds on existing school, government- and community-based programs (such as Admission Possible, METP contracted youth programs, Project Success, STEP-UP, TRIO Educational Talent Search, and TRIO Upward Bound);
• Requires students to have a life plan as a condition of their high school graduation (piloted with the class of 2010);
• Provides career exploration and career readiness activities including interest assessments, career fairs, job shadows, work experiences, and work readiness certification;
• Provides college exploration and application assistance, including ACT/SAT test preparation, college fairs, and college and financial aid application processes;
• Provides advising, coaching and mentoring from school guidance counselors, career and college center coordinators, business and community mentors and volunteers to assist students in making informed choices about career and college plans;
• Uses motivational strategies such as "Girls in Action" to encourage students to take seriously their personal investment in their future;
• Includes technology, information and dedicated staff to support students;
• Is centrally managed by Achieve! Minneapolis, including staff management;
• Is autonomous from the schools and district, but integrated into the school and curriculum;
• Is funded by private sources, not district funds at risk of being cut.

Outcomes: By the end of the 2008-9 school year, we intend to see the following increases from the 2005-6 school year:

• 100% increase in 12th graders who have completed a formal career and educational plan;
• 100% increase in 9th, 10th and 11th graders who have initiated/updated a formal career and educational plan;
• 100% increase in students completing job shadows and/or internships;
• 100% increase in 11th and 12th graders placed in paid summer STEP UP jobs;
• 100% increase in students taking the ACT/SAT test;
• 100% increase in students applying to at least one 2- or 4-year college;
• 100% increase in students enrolling in 2- or 4-year college; and
• 200% increase in parent participation in college and financial aid planning meetings.

Stakeholder Involvement:

The Initiative works with an Advisory Committee of leaders in city government, business, higher education (representing the University of Minnesota, MNSCU, and private colleges), the school district and foundations. Program staff also work with a Program Advisory Group of school- and community-based organizations that work with high school students on career and college planning.

Achieve!Minneapolis:

Achieve!Minneapolis is the local education foundation of the Minneapolis Public Schools and the designated intermediary organization that connects community resources to serve Minneapolis Public School students. Achieve!Minneapolis was incorporated in January 2002, and has successfully merged and integrated the programs and services of the Minneapolis Public Schools Foundation and Youth Trust, an organization whose history stretches back to 1989. Achieve!Minneapolis has established and maintains a reputation for strong fiscal management, effective partnership development and innovative, results-oriented programming. Achieve!Minneapolis is well-positioned to leverage the resources provided by the community's employers, foundations, local government and individual citizens to serve the needs of all Minneapolis Public School students.