Power Station

Haley Griffin guides nonprofit staff and boards of directors through the always challenging process of strategic planning. A Principal in The Raben Group, a leading DC-based national public affairs and strategic communications firm, Haley brings deep experience in organizational development to each interaction with her nonprofit clients. Luckily for them, she also brings rigor, humor and patience. As Haley explains, she frames the experience with her clients by asking what success looks like. And she expands on Robert Raben's most reliably surprising question about a clients nonprofit competitors. Listen, learn and check out The Raben Group and its podcast, The Beat DC. 

When Hurricane Maria landed, it wreaked havoc on an already economically unstable Puerto Rico. Since then, nonprofit groups on the ground and on the mainland have worked tirelessly to recover homes, rebuild "resilient housing" and move Congress to enact needed policy reform, including operationalizing FEMA's Disaster Housing Assistance Program. Marion McFadden, Enterprise Community Partners, and Sarah Mickelson, National Low Income Housing Coalition, talk to Power Station about the challenge and opportunity of helping people rebuild homes and lives. An expert on disaster recovery, Marion brings years of engagement with HUD and FEMA to her push for policies that will embed best practices and accountability measures into these public-serving agencies. Sarah, with CEO Diane Yentel, advocates for policy reform with Marion and members of NLIHC's Disaster Housing Recovery Coalition, members with lived experience in disaster recovery. Stayed tuned for a Part 2! 

Renata Soto is the dynamic executive director of Conexion Americas, an immigrant serving nonprofit in Nashville, Tennessee. She spoke to Power Station, at the 2018 UnidosUS Conference, about how she balances the provision of programs and services for Latino families with their engagement in policy advocacy. The Escalera Program, an Unidos US initiative, helps immigrant children succeed educationally and teaches their parents how to hold schools accountable. The Culinary Incubator is a resource for parents with entrepreneurial aspirations. Casa Azafran is a consortia of progressive and immigrant serving organizations that create a welcoming community in Nashville. Listen, learn and be inspired.    

Rob Randhava is Senior Counsel to the Leadership Conference, the nation's leading civil and human rights organization, now led by CEO Vanita Gupta. LCCHR brings together our nation's leading organizational voices on education, housing, labor and immigration and advocates for public and private sector policies that create more equitable conditions in low-income and communities of color. LCCHR played a particularly important role in the development and passage of the Dodd-Frank law, which generated the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Now under assault by the Trump administration and Congress, CFPB has been a skilled and proactive enforcer of the financial industry. Rob brings his legal expertise on a broad range of civil rights issues to nonprofit coalition advocates and to staff and members of Congress. His policy engagement includes analysis and proposed action on Supreme Court nominees. Somehow, Rob remains resilient, funny and a force to be reckoned with. 

The New York Foundation funds neighborhood organizations in NYC, often start-ups, that look within their own communities for solutions to   profound challenges. Grantees with often modest resource are an increasing voice at the local, state and national levels, addressing unlivable and unaffordable housing, exploitative conditions in the workplace, school reform and mistreatment of immigrants. As New York Foundation executive director Maria Mottola explains, this theory of change making is rooted in the Foundation's values and history. Whether funding Nepalese women to organize in Jackson Heights, Queens, or tenant organizers in the Bronx, Maria is expanding on the legacy of believing in, and building the capacity of, community members to make the change they want to see. In an era where immigrant communities in particular face daily pushback, Maria and the New York Foundation are engaged where it matters most, on supporting neighborhood leaders and developing community infrastructure. 

Maryland Legal Aid is a lifeline for low-income people facing eviction, living with substandard housing conditions, seeking veteran's benefits and overcoming domestic abuse. MLAB, under the leadership of bridge-builder and advocate Wilhelm Joseph, is a robust nonprofit organization with 12 offices across the state. The newest program innovation, The Community Lawyering Initiative, is a mobile resource that connects people in need with lawyers. The Initiative partners lawyers with libraries, offering people help in non-threatening and comfortable surroundings within their communities. The experience of having decades old convictions expunged from their records is transformative in ways that are both pragmatic and psychological. They are now able to get employment and have access to housing and benefits. And they are freed from the weight of a record they have moved beyond. Amy and Meaghan's insights are instructive and enlightening. Learn about this model for serving and building power in disenfranchised commu

Alejandra Castillo has been a Special Advisor in the Clinton administration and National Director of the Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency under President Obama. Even so, she says that being CEO of the YWCA National is the hardest job she's ever had. Now celebrating its 160th year, the YWCA, this nation's first fully integrated institution, has an explicit mission to eliminate racism and empower women. In addition to providing day to day programs and services for women and children impacted by domestic violence and trauma, the YWCA advocates for progressive policies in state houses and on Capital Hill. And, as Alexandra points out, there is the ongoing challenge of raising foundation dollars and seeking new forms of revenue that allow for innovation. Whether meeting with members of Congress or engaging with separated families in McAllen, Texas, Alejandra is a change maker. Stay tuned for more information abut the YWCA's Exchange Traded Fund!

Washington, DC is not only our nation's capital, it is a city of neighborhoods, rich in African American arts and culture. In this episode of Power Station, Fair Budget co-director Monica Kamen, explains how shifting  demographics and significant public and private investment in affluent communities, have made citizen engagement in policy and budgetary decisions all the more critical. Monica Kamen and her co-director Stephanie Sneed, train local nonprofits and their grassroots constituencies in how to engage with the City Council budget process, testify at public hearings and advocate for their own policy and budget positions. The Fair Budget Coalition has developed a network of 60 nonprofit members who collaborate to demand a Fair Budget process that prioritizes racial justice. They are creating capacity and shaping better, and more, transparent, policy decisions. 

Isabel Rubio, executive director of Hispanic Interest Coalition of Alabama, which serves the Latino immigrant community, explains the push and pull between progressiveness and regressiveness in Birmingham. In 2011, the passage of HB 56, allowed law enforcement to detain and arrest people for "reasonable suspicion" of unlawful status, creating profound fear in the community. More recently, the Latino community was an essential part of electing Randall Woodfin, a former Board member as Mayor of Birmingham and Doug Wood as US Senator. Isabel underscores the importance of organizing, advocacy, capital and assets in building community, influence and power. And, as always, Isabel advocates for the building of capacity to make all of the above possible. 

For Evelyn Brito, access to healthy food is more than an abstract policy goal. It is a driving motivation for her new web-based series, My Bodega Makeover, which documents her collaboration with bodega owners and customers in her own neighborhood of Lynn, Massachusetts. The goals are ambitious. They include helping struggling owners to purchase healthy foods, access city grants and improve store design. Neighborhood residents are encouraged to make healthy food choices and to develop relationships with owners and the community at large. And nonprofits are engaged too, including The Food Project, which connects young people to agriculture and to urban stores. How does Evelyn do this? She is an independent producer, whose company, Keep it Simple Productions, explore social justice themes from a  community perspective. Do you want to bring My Bodega Makeover to your community? Evelyn would love to help!    

An important sea change is underway in the housing and community development field. Opportunity Starts at Home, a new campaign launched by the National Low Income Housing Coalition, has drawn our nation's leading civil rights, education, economic mobility, housing, homelessness and health nonprofits into a multi-sector effort to support the expansion of rental housing for lowest income Americans. Mike Koprowski, National Director, Opportunity Starts at Home and Eric Rodriguez, Vice President, Policy, at UnidosUS, the nation's largest Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization, tell the story of this Campaign and the committed organizations that are moving it forward. Funders for Housing & Opportunity, a collaborative including the Ford Foundation, Melville Charitable Trust and the Kresge Foundation share the vision and are all-in supporters of the strategy.

Amelia Lobo is an all-in advocate for women and immigrants who aspire to be small business owners. She has underwritten loans to new small business owners in NYC and trained Latinas in Iowa in how to open and expand a business. She has grappled with the limitations of the Small Business Administration and wants nonprofits to advocate for systems changes to better serve their communities. Amelia has seen first-hand how Latino owned small businesses have transformed the viability of Main Streets in rural communities. Even so, the rhetoric in this country about immigrants has become so poisonous that immigrant owners are rethinking their investments. You will be moved and amazed by the stories of people who have made their businesses work!                    

Kris Siglin does the work. And so do the members of Housing Partnership Network, a collaboration of 100 high-performing housing developers of single and multi-family housing whose reach extends to 50 states. As Senior VP of Policy at HPN, Kris advocates, with members, for public policies that increase the scale of affordable housing solutions to low-income Americans. As a trade association, HPN values both social mission and business acumen. Members not only create resources such as an insurance and a direct buying company, they engage in peer sharing of local strategies and solutions. They also identify and advocate for policy priorities on Capitol Hill and in their communities. Pending legislation, which Kris testified about before the House Financial Services Committee, includes expansion of HUD's Family Self-Sufficiency program. This program provides escrow accounts, instead of rent increases, for families in subsidized housing whose income increases over time. Listen, learn more, and do the work.        

As Sarah Mickelson, Senior Director of Public Policy explains, the National Low Income Housing Coalition recognizes it members, low-income people, as experts on the needs and experiences of those who are most impacted by homelessness and our nation's severe housing shortage. NLIHC is a constant champion of the housing needs of lowest income Americans. At a time in which federal budget cuts to programs serving people living in poverty are commonplace, the Coalition actually secured a public funding increase. Sarah credits this accomplishment to the engagement of NLIHC's low-income members with their Congressional members and its growing partnerships with many capable nonprofits that address related issues, including health, children and education.                                                                                                                                                   

Luis Granados, executive director of Mission Economic Development Agency, believes in and uses the power of organizing, services, policy advocacy and capital to strengthen the foothold and economic futures of Latino families in San Francisco's Mission District. MEDA's new 501c4 initiative now adds political engagement to the mix, elevating MEDA's role, along with fellow nonprofits, in determining representation of and public policies impacting the community. Luis sees policy engagement as an imperative for nonprofits and his vision is proving him right. Even in a time of hyper-gentrification in San Francisco, MEDA's strategies and capital investment are enabling Latino families to return to and prosper in the Mission District.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

Before Seema became executive director of National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development (CAPACD), she led  Chhaya, an influential local nonprofit representing South Asians in Queens, New York. That experience informs her work with CAPACD, whose 100 members provide housing, youth, and small business services for East Asians and South Asians across the nation.CAPACD's asset building efforts for low-income APIs has become increasingly challenging in our nation's hostile political environment. As Seema explains, an attack on immigrants is an attack on CAPACD's staff and members. Far from being discouraged, Seema sees the current moment as the time to exercise CAPACD's advocacy muscle. Learn how National CAPACD is making it happen.       

Affordable housing and quality jobs is a national imperative. But, as Frank Woodruff will tell you, it takes more than bricks and mortar to build a community. Frank leads NACEDA (National Alliance of Community Economic Development Associations) an organization whose members are local and state level nonprofits serving CDCs (Community Development Corporations) in their communities. NACEDA's members have the technical-know how, relationships with funders, community members and policymakers needed to fill the housing, jobs and public needs gaps where they live. Now, more than ever, the capacity to advocate for public policy that support these needs, matters. As Frank explains: the ideas of how we advance ourselves in changing.         

Paty Funegra took her experience as an immigrant and a business woman and created a new model for creating economic and social change. The result, La Cocina VA, prepares women to push past language and skills barriers and gain jobs, and in some cases, become business owners. La Cocina's bi-lingual culinary training program produces certified workers and it's partnerships with employers, from Hyatt to MGM Resorts, ensures that the employment is sustainable and successful. Women emerge from the shadows of abuse to having a voice and being able to take care of their children. Learn more about La Cocina's $2.5m expansion plan and how you can get involved.

As Isaac Bowers of Equal Justice Works explains, early exposure to public interest work can change the trajectory of a law student's career. That is why EJW partners with law schools, law firms and foundations to mobilize the next generation of public interest lawyers. These lawyers are making a life changing difference for homeless veterans, immigrants facing deportation and families facing foreclosure. But their ability to remain in these jobs, at less than stellar salaries, often depends on the Public Interest Debt Forgiveness Act, legislation passed with bi-partisan support in 20007. It provides a level of relief for professionals in the public interest arena.This Congress, however, has slated the Act for elimination in the 2018 Budget. EJW is leading a powerhouse coalition of organizations representing nurses, teachers, first responders and others who serve in the public interest. There's a lot to learn from Isaac and EJW and there are action steps to take too. 

Gustavo Torres, executive director of Casa, and a national leader on immigrants' rights, is a remarkably optimistic leader. His organization not only serves, it deeply engages, day laborers and domestic workers who are vulnerable to abuse, deportation and financial exploitation. Rather than seeing themselves as victims, they become informed members of Casa, with a vested interest in the well-being of the broader community. Casa has now taken the next step in building power and political influence by formed a 501c4. As Gustavo tells, "It's not that radical if you care about your community."