Grantmakers meet new D.C. schools Chancellor

Chancellor Rhee, addressing Washington Grantmakers’ members on July 25.

Newly appointed DC Public Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee is an optimist. “We can do this. This is fixable,” she declared to more than 75 Washington Grantmakers (WG) members at a July 25 meeting hosted by WG’s Public Education Working Group (PEWG). Armed with confidence and a clear vision, Rhee outlined what she called a “wholesale culture shift” in the District’s public school system.

Rhee is committed to developing quality instruction by investing in the best and brightest teachers and principals. She believes that top-notch educators are the linchpins of an excellent education, and that this fact has been consistently neglected in the current system. Over the course of the next few months, she will head a nationwide search to fill vacant principal positions. Her staff is also looking at the best ways to attract and retain talented teachers.

The Chancellor’s focus on human capital is tied to a strict sense of accountability. Whereas in the past the failures of the schools were attributed to a general breakdown of the system, Rhee intends to demand individual accountability in measurable ways. In her two weeks officially on the job, she has begun to consolidate and clarify evaluation methods. She noted that current principals and teachers will have to earn their positions in the new system.

Rhee is aware of a certain degree of skepticism surrounding her appointment and her ability to turn around a struggling system. But she assured funders that her methods will work, and that D.C. will eventually have one of the nation’s leading school systems. That said, she does not expect blind faith, and understands that “you don’t have significant change without significant pushback.”

Before fielding questions, the Chancellor also discussed the importance of engaging parents and the community as participants in the education process, as well as the need for reforms in special education.

The Public Education Working Group is planning to meet with Rhee and Henderson on a quarterly basis to determine how the two groups can align resources to maximize and expedite change in District schools. The prospects for a revitalized school system are exciting and tangible, and one phrase that Henderson coined seems to encompass perfectly the overarching goal for the Chancellor’s team: “We must move from a culture of compliance to a culture of quality.” Washington Grantmakers is ready to help.

l. to r.: Maxine Baker (Chair of WG Board of Directors), Carmen James Lane (Meyer Foundation, PEWG chair), Chancellor Michelle Rhee, Deputy Chancellor Kaya Henderson, Juanita Wade (Fannie Mae, PEWG vice-chair), Carolynn Mambu (WG Director of Public Policy)

[News 7/31] Give it away now

“Charity, Bill Gates-style” - “[I]n the past the foundation was formed upon the death of the grandfather. Now it’s formed by the successful entrepreneur in his 40s and 50s.” (Fortune, 7/30)

In case you missed it, a nice profile of THEARC in last week’s WaPo (7/23). Funding for THEARC came from a wide range of foundations, corporations, individuals and governments, including several WG members.

“Major Freddie Mac investment enables Year Up to prepare more DC region low-income young adults for high-tech jobs.” (Newswire, 7/30)

The J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation (WG member) has approved a grant of $100,000 to create the David M. Sampson Memorial Graduate Fellowship Fund at the University of Maryland in College Park, Md. (Newswire, 7/25)

EDUCATION
[D.C.] “Problems With Books, Air Conditioning Cited as Opening Nears” - Fenty: This is the last year for such debacles.

“Grantmaking: The Lonely Profession?” (Not necessarily!)

Rogers

The transcript of the Hudson Institute’s Bradley Center’s panel discussion, ”Grantmaking: The Lonely Profession?” is now online. In her remarks, Julie Rogers, president of the Eugene and Agnes Meyer Foundation, noted that grantmaking is anything but lonely when collaboration with colleagues is a cornerstone of your work:

I will confess that as CEO of an institution, I am not always as close to the outcomes of the nonprofits we support as I would like to be. But then I would base my broader comments, really, on my own experience, that of the Meyer Foundation, and of the very active community – about 140 foundations and corporate grantmakers – that work throughout this metropolitan region and do a lot of their work through umbrella structures that have been set up over the last fifteen years through our excellent regional association, called the Washington Regional Association of Grantmakers.
…
…I just was going to comment on a couple of the observations in particular. First is the sort of dual idea that foundation staff are demoralized and disempowered by the notions of “it’s not my money” or “it’s not my project,” and that we somehow cannot really legitimately [claim] a role in the outcomes created by the nonprofits we support. I think that that’s true if you happen to be working for a funder who sees this work as basically transactional, that it’s the cutting of a check or the approval of a grant and you’re done – sort of an over-and-out way of doing the work. That’s not the way we work, and I don’t think that that’s the way most of my colleagues work. Our values and ways of working mean that we go much deeper with our grantees with the goal of making it possible for them to do their best work and become as sustainable as they can be.
…
I think the second point that didn’t ring true at all was that – we’re anything but lonely! (Laughter.) Beginning in 1988 under Meyer’s leadership, when the AIDS epidemic was new and we had a matching grant from the Ford Foundation that required that we pull all of our peers together to put money on the table to match Ford’s money, this funding community has built multiple formal funding collaboratives where we pool our money and do work deeply. And I think the important outcome, really – the work has been good but the real outcome is that we’ve built community and relationships among each other as people and as professionals, which does add to our professional satisfaction. It also has leveraged enormous amounts of money for work in this region. For instance, a working group which my colleague Carmen James Lane has been a co-chair of that works on kids’ issues under Washington Grantmakers has just helped land an $8 million grant from the Wallace Foundation in New York to support the reform of after-school care for kids in the District of Columbia.

The next Hudson Institute discussion is coming up on Aug. 9 at the Renaissance Mayflower Hotel at 1127 Connecticut Avenue, NW. Topic: ”Should Nonprofit Organizations Play an Active Role in Election Campaigns?” RSVP here.

[News 7/30] Failure happens. (Talk about it!)

The world kept spinning while I was at the beach! Here’s what caught my eye from the past week. - nick

PHILANTHROPY
“There’s an increasing recognition among foundation leaders that not to be public about failures is essentially indefensible,” said Phil Buchanan, the executive director of the Center for Effective Philanthropy. (NYTimes, 7/25)

Interview with Andrew Plepler, president of the Bank of America Foundation (WG member) (Bloomberg, 7/26) On evaluation: “The measurement game is very difficult. Who is to say your $100,000 elevated the test scores of kids in Bed-Stuy? We’re saying, “We believe in your leadership and you’ve proven yourself capable.” It’s not fair to ask them to come back and say the money resulted in this number of meals. You’re tying their hands too hard.”

Grantmakers want a simpler grants process (Seacoastonline, 7/24) and the leading national philanthropy groups are working on the problem. Grantmakers: give your input. 

Verizon Foundation (WG member) Awards $1 Million Grant to the National Council of La Raza  (Newswire, 7/23)

Trend: Parents encouraging kids to donate birthday “proceeds” to charity. Miss Manners objects but the kids seem to like it. (NYTimes, 7/22)

HEALTH
D.C.’s effort to digitize medical records advances. The Whitman Walker Clinic should be fully wired in November. “The project’s long-term goal is to be able to link the centers and, later, electronically connect all the centers with local hospitals and other medical facilities to form a regional network.” (WaTimes, 7/19 -via the Roundtable)

EDUCATION
[D.C.] WG member Fight for Children released My School Chooser: A Guide to finding a Great School for Your Child, a “user-friendly directory of all schools (public, charter, and independent) in Washington, DC.” (WaPo, 7/12 - via the Roundtable)

The week of July 23-27

- July 25: LOCATION CHANGE - click here: Public Education Working Group meets with new DC Schools Chancellor, Michelle Rhee - (members only)

- July 25: WG member The Annie E. Casey Foundation releases the 2007 KIDS COUNT Data Book.

- July 26: CYF Older Youth Task Force Meeting - (members only)

__________________________

The WG Daily news round-up will return Monday, July 30.

Correction: In a Friday article, the Washington Post referred to Stacey Stewart as “president and chief executive of the Fannie Mae Foundation.” We quoted this passage, reinforcing the incorrect information. Stacey D. Stewart is Fannie Mae’s senior vice president, Office of Community and Charitable Giving.

LOCATION CHANGE: July 25 Breakfast with Chancellor Rhee

NEW LOCATION:

The Wilson Building

1350 Pennsylvania Ave. NW

4th Floor, Room 412

Washington, DC 20004

Due to the incredible response and expected attendance, this meeting has been moved to the Wilson Building (address above). The meeting time remains the same: 8:30am-10:00am. Breakfast will be provided.

Useful link: Chancellor Rhee’s confirmation testimony

[News 7/20] Geoffrey Canada will speak at Washington Grantmakers’ Nov. 15 conference

Canada

Acclaimed activist and author Geoffrey Canada will be one of the keynote speakers at Washington Grantmakers’ 15th anniversary conference on Nov. 15, 2007. In a speech this week at THEARC in Southeast D.C., presidential candidate Barack Obama praised the comprehensive social services approach of Canada’s Harlem Children’s Zone and suggested that the program be replicated nationwide.

COMMUNITY
A profile of the THEARC (”Town Hall Education, Arts and Recreation Campus”) ran in today’s Washington Times.

EDUCATION
[D.C.] At a public farewell, speakers praised Clifford Janey’s work as superintendant of schools. (WaPo, 7/20) “‘He created a set of expectations… now we have a strong foundation,’ said Stacey Stewart [Fannie Mae].” The incoming chancellor and deputy chancellor will meet with Washington Grantmakers members on July 25.

ENVIRONMENT
“Climate change has already begun to alter the Chesapeake Bay… according to a report released yesterday by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.” (WaPo, 7/20)

WATER
[D.C.] Don’t worry, say officials, the recent toxic chlorine levels (linked in some studies to cancers, reproductive problems, and developmental delays in children) are ”probably temporary.” (WaPo, 7/20)

Washington Grantmakers’ 15th Anniversary Conference

“The Power of Generosity: Giving in the National Capital Region”
Thursday, Nov. 15, 2007, 9:30 am to 6:00 pm
(members only: 9:30 am -11:00 am) 
Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill
400 New Jersey Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20001

Sponsored by:

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Click to Register! | Invitation (.jpg) | Event Schedule (.pdf)

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• - WG Members: please attend the Members Only Meeting @ 9:30 am
• - Conference opens for all attendees @ 11:00 am
• - Grantmakers, nonprofits, business community, and public officials are welcome!
• - Speakers/Panelists: Geoffrey Canada (Harlem Children’s Zone), Joel Fleishman (Author: The Foundation), Alice Rivlin (Brookings Institution); Barbara Lang (D.C. Chamber of Commerce); and more (see invitation)
•  - 15th Anniversary Celebratory Reception from 4:15 pm to 6:00 pm

Canada

Fleishman

Rivlin

A celebration!
This year’s annual meeting will be a celebratory, informational, educational and inspirational experience for the WG membership, our partners and friends, highlighting the impact Washington Grantmakers and its members have had in the region during the past 15 years and the essential role the sector will play in the region moving forward.

- Business Meeting (WG Members Only)
- Opening Plenary
- Luncheon Plenary
- Networking Roundtable Discussions
- Closing Plenary
- 15th Anniversary Celebratory Evening Reception

* Fleishman will speak at the members only meeting at 9:30 a.m, and will be available to sign books at 11 a.m. in the exhibit hall.

* Sponsorship opportunities(.pdf)

[News 7/19] Thursday Round-up

CHILDREN’S HEALTH
Republican and Democratic leaders in Congress favor legislation to fund health insurance for 3.3 million additional uninsured children nationwide, but President Bush is threatening to veto it on philosophical grounds. The President’s proposal would actually increase the number of uninsured children in the U.S–that’s according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. More from CBPP.

EDUCATION
[D.C.] The city is running a study “to develop a strategy to attract and retain families with children” in conjunction with the Brookings Institution, the Urban Institute and the 21st Century Fund. (WaPo, 7/19)

HOUSING/ENVIRONMENT
[Md.] “Laurel plans to join the handful of Maryland municipalities that have introduced affordable housing and environmentally friendly building standards.” (Gazette, 7/19)

HONORS
“American Red Cross is Recognized for Building National Partnerships that Foster Volunteerism” (Newswire, 7/18) 

WATER
[D.C.] If it ain’t the lead, it’s the chlorine. I’m sticking to bottled. (WaPo, 7/19)

Members: Sustainable Communities Working Group meets today

We’ll flesh out one of our three priorities for 2007–an environmental focus on the Anacostia Watershed in Maryland and the District. All members welcome! 2 p.m. at Washington Grantmakers’ office in D.C., 1400 16th St., NW, #740. (Details)