A Message from Anthony Simmons - EPIP Advisory Board Chair:

As this year’s Black History Month comes to its conclusion, I am taking the theme of EPIP’s 20th Anniversary, Re/Imagine, as an invitation to reimagine Carter G. Woodson and Jesse E. Moorland’s intent to promote the achievements by America’s descendants of the African Diaspora. Beyond the opportunity to recognize those great iconic legends – like Garrett Morgan, Dr. Charles Drew, Fannie Lou Hamer, the Honorable Shirley Chisholm, and Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. – and appreciate their contributions to American society, I now wonder: what does Black history mean to me personally? What is my own Black history?

This summer, the EPIP community will come together for the signature event of our 20th Anniversary: 

The EPIP 2021 National Virtual Conference
June 7th - 11th, 2021

We are currently looking for session proposals for the conference. See below to learn more about our conference theme, tracks, and session formats, or click here for a PDF of the application.

Our call for sessions is now closed - thank you for your contributions!

This month, join EPIP chapters to talk about building a better sector, whether it's by examining power dynamics between grantmakers and non-profits, learning from the journey of leaders and changemakers in the sector, focusing on the importance of racial justice within philanthropic leadership, or thinking through the ways that philanthropy can help make the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out an equitable one.

EPIP is also thrilled to be partnering with ABFE on an in-depth workshop on Centering Racial Equity in Grantmaking. We hope you'll join us on Thursday, February 25th to learn more about the tools that can be used to support racial equity grantmaking.

What is leadership? A year ago, when I accepted the role as EPIP’s Executive Director, I sat with this question for quite some time, reflecting on the models of leadership that I had seen held up as exemplary.

Leaders are fearless. 

Leaders are confident. 

Leaders are focused, stoic, unflappable, and always poised.

Those models didn’t resonate with me, though. And as the year went on, and the events of 2020 came crashing down upon us like unrelenting waves upon the shore, I realized why. Any model of leadership which removes the fullness of human emotions for the sake of performing perfection was more isolating than it was liberating. I wanted more than that for myself, more than that for EPIP, and more than that for the work ahead of us. 

Philanthropy and the social sector grapple with the wake of the recent Capitol insurrection and presidential inauguration...

• In Inside Philanthropy, Mike Scutari looks at the role that philanthropy could have played in fighting misinformation and the tools and resources that can be used in this effort going forward.
• In Nonprofit Quarterly, Crystal Hayling calls for the transfer of power to Black women, communities of color, and lasting movement work.
• Vu Lee reminds us on Nonprofit AF that the collective trauma we have experienced over the last year and beyond may continue to reverberate for some time to come.

...and the turning of the calendar year gives us the opportunity to look back at 2020 to see how philanthropy has stepped up and where to go from here.

• The Center for Effective Philanthropy’s Foundations Respond to Crisis reports find that foundations have shifted in their giving and practices in response to COVID-19 and the fight for racial justice.
• TCC Group’s report Approaching the Intersection: Will a Global Pandemic and National Movement for Racial Justice Take Philanthropy Beyond Its Silos?, however, argues that moving beyond funding silos, even in this time of crisis, will require fundamental changes in the way philanthropy operates and sees its role.

From funders to founders, chapter leaders to champions, EPIP would not be the organization it is today without the leadership of women of color. In summer 2020, five women of color leaders from EPIP’s past and present came together for a conversation about the past 20 years of EPIP, their personal leadership journeys, and what the philanthropic sector can learn from the past to change its future.

Listen in as EPIP ED Storme Gray, EPIP Board of Advisors Treasurer Michelle Jaramillo, former EPIP Board Chairs Jasmine Hall Ratliff and Melissa Hewitt, and EPIP's initial angel funder Linetta Gilbert have a no-holds-barred conversation about the role of EPIP in their individual journeys and philanthropy as a whole. 

This summer, the EPIP community will come together virtually for our 2021 National Conference - a time to celebrate our past, take stock of our present, and look towards the future. To make this the best conference it can be, we’re looking for volunteers to help us shape conference content and programming as members of the 2021 National Conference Planning Committee.

Members of the committee will focus on areas of planning including conference workshops, virtual networking opportunities, and ways to showcase our upcoming 20th anniversary. This is a great opportunity to make new connections, build invaluable leadership skills, and give back to the EPIP community. The anticipated time commitment will be 5 hours per month from February - June 2021.

If you are interested, please fill out this interest form by Friday, January 29th. With your support, EPIP 2021 is sure to be a big success!

Last week, domestic terrorists stormed the US Capitol in a violent insurrection. EPIP wholeheartedly condemns their actions and the ongoing hateful and racist rhetoric that made them possible. This attempted coup was white supremacy culture in action - an effort to maintain the oppressive system that undergirds this nation’s founding and holds us back from living up to its promise. Just as alarmingly, it was met with minimal initial law enforcement response, a stark contrast to the overwhelming force deployed against peaceful Black Lives Matter protestors a few months ago. 

I have struggled to find the words to articulate the multitude of emotions that I am feeling in this moment. I struggle still. And I imagine that for many of you, the events of yesterday have left you angry, hurt, disappointed, unseen, and stunned. So allow me to say this. We see you. And you are not alone. 

Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy (EPIP) is seeking thoughtful, inclusive, and talented leaders to join our Advisory Board!

EPIP strives for a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive sector that innovates with intention, takes risks, and leads more boldly so that we may bring resources to communities and organizations to advance equity. EPIP’s Advisory Board plays a pivotal role in reaching those goals. 

The Advisory Board is also an opportunity for board members to serve our community while further developing their own leadership, skills, and networks. We are seeking dedicated leaders who believe in our mission and our work. Specifically, we are seeking values-aligned leaders who meet some or all of the following criteria:

• Demonstrated commitment to equity, social justice, and excellence in philanthropy (required);
• Knowledge of philanthropy, non-profits, community organizing, and/or equity work; and
• Skill in one or more of the following: non-profit governance, finance and accounting, law, fundraising, human resources, communications, and/or policy/advocacy.

EPIP Director of Network Resources Adriana Loson-Ceballos shares some ways that fundraisers are thinking differently about resource mobilization that parallel the move towards equity in the philanthropic sector:

• Community-Centric Fundraising is a fundraising model grounded in equity that prioritizes mobilizing resources for the community as a whole over individual organizations. 
• Decolonizing Fundraising works to dismantle inequities built into the fabric and structure of fundraising.
• Giving Circles provide a democratic, community-centered approach to philanthropy. 
• Initiatives like The Rooted Collaborative and Women of Color in Fundraising & Philanthropy bring together BIPOC leaders working on these and other aspects of resource mobilization.

And we continue to look at the ways philanthropy intersects with racial justice in its giving practices and internal policies.