FCYO is seeking a highly experienced development consultant to create a fundraising strategy for a new fund. This fund is being launched as part of our 20^th anniversary celebration and will support young people organizing for social justice over the next twenty years. The consultant will conduct an initial feasibility study and help develop and implement a fundraising strategy which will allow FCYO to connect with foundations and donors beyond our current set of relationships.

About the Fund

The Funders’ Collaborative on Youth Organizing (FCYO) will be celebrating our 20th anniversary in 2020. This is an opportunity to both celebrate the impact of youth organizing groups and FCYO over the last twenty years and launch a bold vision for youth leadership for social justice over the next twenty years. We will take a multifaceted approach to our plan including:

• Sharing stories and data through a new national field scan
• Hosting a national youth organizing convening where youth organizers will develop a vision for youth leadership in social justice over the next 20 years
• Launching a new effort to raise $10-20 million to support young people organizing for social justice and sustain FCYO as a critical anchor for the field over the next twenty years.

 As part of our 20th anniversary celebration, we hope to raise significant new resources to support young people on the forefront of social justice movements over the next twenty years. Broadly speaking, this fund will:

1. Provide a critical infusion of new resources to support young people organizing around the most pressing current issues.
2. Support infrastructure that connects organizations to each other and builds their capacity to create meaningful change.
3. Sustain FCYO as a key anchor institution for the youth organizing field.  

Our nation is facing some tremendous challenges including climate change, wealth disparity, racial and gender oppression, and more. A new and highly diverse generation of young people has the potential to lead us to a more just, equitable, and sustainable future, but this will not happen without significant investment in their leadership.

FCYO is uniquely positioned to raise resources and support youth leaders to make a leap forward in their work. We have a twenty-year track record of supporting the youth organizing field, significant knowledge of the opportunities and gaps across the country, and deep relationships with both organizers and funders. Our preliminary fundraising goal of $10-20 million will require both additional gifts from current funders and reaching significant new funding sources beyond our current funder members.

Role of the Consultant

We are seeking a highly experienced fundraising consultant to help us refine our goal and strategy and implement a fundraising plan. This will include:

• An initial feasibility study to assess potential support from current and new funders and development of more specific fundraising goal based on the findings. This includes interviews with key stakeholders, potential donors, and other key informants and development of a set of recommendations for the campaign.
• Creation of fundraising plan including a revised description of the new fund, a list of potential new donors, and an overall strategy and timeline.
• Support for FCYO staff and key stakeholders in the implementation of the fundraising plan including coaching of staff; help in identifying and connecting with new donors, support for donor meetings and follow up, tracking progress; and development of materials, scripts & other related support materials.

Target Timeline

July 12, 2019 - Proposals submitted to FCYO

August 7, 2019 - FCYO finalizes consultant selection & contract

August 15, 2019 - Consultant begins feasibility study

October 31, 2019 - Completion of feasibility study

November 31, 2019 - Completion of initial fundraising plan

December 1, 2019 - Begin support of FCYO staff in plan implementation

• Support fund development throughout 2020

March, 2021 - End project

Desired Qualifications

• Experience coordinating fundraising campaigns greater than $10 million.
• Demonstrated commitment to social, racial, gender, and economic justice.
• Broad knowledge of philanthropy including institutional philanthropy, major individual donors, family foundations, donor advised funds, and experience particularly with social justice philanthropy and new high net worth donors.
• Ability to identify and strategize on connecting FCYO with potential new funding sources.
• Knowledge of the youth organizing field a plus but not required.

To Apply

Applicants should send proposal to FCYO including:

• Detailed description of qualifications including description of similar projects
• A preliminary outline of how you would approach this project
• A proposed fee structure
• Three client references

Send proposals to [email protected] by July 12, 2019.

About FCYO      

Founded in 2000, the Funders’ Collaborative on Youth Organizing (FCYO) is a dynamic collective of social justice funders and youth organizing practitioners dedicated to advancing youth organizing as a strategy for youth development and social change. FCYO’s mission is to increase resources to the field of youth organizing and promote the leadership of low-income young people and young people of color in social justice organizing. Our work is focused on the following program areas:

• Strategic Grantmaking & Capacity Building: to strengthen the organizational capacity, sustainability, power, and efficacy of youth organizing groups
• Infrastructure Development: to build a more connected youth organizing field with shared strategies to engage more young people, expand power, and address pressing issues
• Funder Advocacy, Advisory, and Learning: to build an aligned and growing base of funders committed to youth organizing
• Research and Communications: to expand the base of knowledge about the impacts of youth organizing and develop a shared narrative around this work

Over the last 20 years FCYO has helped to build a strong and vibrant youth organizing field across the United States. We developed much of the initial research and knowledge capital on youth organizing, built a core group of funders committed to youth led social change, kept youth organizing on the radar in philanthropy through various high and low points, made over $10 million in grants while leveraging many times that sum, and convened youth organizers to build a stronger and more interconnected field. Essential to all of this was bringing funders and youth organizers together to build shared strategy.