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FLNSD Partners with NCPC and AFP on Equity Journey

The Fieldstone Leadership Network San Diego will provide diversity and equity training to members of the North County Philanthropy Council and Association of Fund Raising Professional in a new partnership which will begin this  month.

Using The Equity Journey platform designed by the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance, another FLNSD partner, members of NCPC and AFP will be able to participate in the three part series over the course of the coming year.  This educational experience is being sponsored by Nordson Corporation Foundation.

“North County Philanthropy Council is thrilled to partner with Fieldstone Leadership Network San Diego to bring the Equity Journey 1.0 to our members. Fieldstone Leadership Network is known for bringing invaluable leadership training, collaboration and deep engagements to the nonprofit sector and beyond. When Nordson heard of the meaningful impact the Equity Journey was having on our community we jumped at the chance to sponsor this opportunity for NCPC members. We hope this is just the beginning of the journey for NCPC and Fieldstone and for our learning and growth together”

Sara Vaz, Community Relations Manager for Nordson Corporation Foundation and President of North County Philanthropy Council.

To date, approximately 500 nonprofit leaders have participated in The Equity Journey program, which provides the opportunity to earn a certificate in equity from Nonprofit Leadership Alliance and Fieldstone Leadership Network San Diego upon completion of each series.  The Equity Journey is a three-part series and FLNSD has facilitated multiple offerings of Part 1 and 2 in the last year.  Equity Journey 3.0 is currently under development and will be presented by FLNSD in 2022.  Learners who complete each of the three parts, can earn a badge in equity.

The world is requiring leaders in the nonprofit sector to navigate issues and challenges of diversity, equity and inclusion in all aspects of their work.  We are pleased to be able to provide an affordable platform for leaders to learn and reflect on their understandings and commitment to advance social justice at this particular time.  With a goal of supporting nonprofit leaders throughout their careers, being able to provide this program to our local leaders in a timely manner is critical to our mission.  We are grateful to NCPC, AFP and Nordson Corporation Foundation for partnering with us to bring this program to a new audience.

Janine Mason, Founding Director, FLNSD 

More information on the  program offering with NCPC may be found  HERE

More information on the Equity Journey and Fieldstone Leadership Network SD may be found HERE

FLNSD Earns TOP RATED Status

Thanks to member reviews, Fieldstone Leadership Network San Diego has earned a 2021 Top-Rated Nonprofit badge from GreatNonprofits. This is our second Top Rated badge, since joining the platform two years ago.  Thanks to all who have contributed to our page and shared their Fieldstone experiences with the public. If you would like to read our reviews or add your own, visit https: Fieldstone Leadership Network SD Great Nonprofits  

FLNSD will be featured on the Great Nonprofits site as a Top Rated Nonprofit for 2021.  This distinction is valid for one year and must be earned again to maintain elite status.  The official list of the 2021 Top-Rated list will be announced on October 31, 2021.

Introducing the Nonprofit Board Exchange

New Resource to Support Nonprofit Board Recruiting and Diversity

Understanding the vital role boards play in a nonprofit’s success, building and supporting effective, well-developed, and diverse boards must be one of our highest priorities. In response, Fieldstone Leadership Network San Diego has crafted the Nonprofit Board Exchange as a community resource to publicize openings on local nonprofit boards and supply information on available trainings for those who serve in this important role. It is Fieldstone’s hope that the Nonprofit Board Exchange will serve as an effective tool to advance equity and increase board diversity throughout our local sector.

While Fieldstone has taken the lead in designing and hosting the website, it has the support of varied community partners who have collaborated with FLNSD to bring this tool to the community.  We are proud to have the following partners:

• Alliance for Regional Solutions,
• Association of Fundraising Professionals,
• Athena,
• BIPOC Support Foundation,
• Leadership North County,
• Catalyst,
• Clare Rose Foundation,
• ImpactCubed,
• Kim Center for Social Balance,
• LEAD San Diego,
• North County Philanthropy Council,
• Rise San Diego,
• San Diego Workforce Partnership,
• Social Venture Partners San Diego,
• United Way of San Diego County and
• The Nonprofit Institute at the University of San Diego

 The support and contributions of our partners are invaluable and will help to ensure the that this new tool is widely used by many different populations in our community. The Nonprofit Board Exchange can serve as a valued resource for our nonprofit sector, individuals interested in serving, employers, higher education, chambers and other professional associations. 

NP Board Exchange (link)

The NP Board Exchange is the brainchild of Janine Mason, Founder of the Fieldstone Leadership Network.  After offering training on how to diversify nonprofit boards and diversity, equity and inclusion, Janine recognized the need for a new way to identify possible board member and share opportunities to serve.  Reflecting Fieldstone’s commitment to continual learning, the website also includes information on local board member trainings.   The NP Board Exchange was a natural next and important step to support what we are learning about the need to diversify our governance boards.  “As our world continues to evolve and become more and more diverse, it is imperative that leaders choose to be inclusive every day. We are better when we welcome people from diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences to help us do all that is required to lead our nonprofit organizations. And as people who serve the community with fundamental and important services, being better matters. I believe the Nonprofit Board Exchange will help us do better”, says Mason. 

The NP Board Exchange can be found at www.npboardexchange.org

@fieldstoneleadershipsd @kimcenter4sb @LEADSanDiego @risesandiego @SDCatalyst @sdworkforce @USDNPInstitute @unitedwaysd

Clare Rose Sabbatical Makes National News

Nonprofit Leaders Need A Break

In two recent articles, Inside Philanthropy reported on the growing need for sabbaticals to support nonprofit leaders on the verge of burnout.  Reporter Dawn Wolfe interview our founder, Janine Mason as part of her research and included our Clare Rose Sabbatical in both articles.  Along with the increased need for this program, the article focuses on the work of the Durfee Foundation in providing sabbaticals through their own program and its efforts to help others interested in creating their own program to get started.  Our Clare Rose Sabbatical program is modeled after Durfee’s program and Claire Peeps and Carrie Avery (pictured below) were instrumental in advising us as we crafted our program almost eight years ago.  We are forever indebted to them for their generosity!

Carrie Avery, Janine Mason and Claire Peeps

Our Clare Rose Sabbatical is one of only 13 programs across the nation offering opportunities for time away for nonprofit leaders. We are proud to be part of such an exclusive group, especially since it involves supporting nonprofit professionals at the highest level.

Renato Paiva on the Camino de Santiago before being called home due to the COVID pandemic.

And yes, the “rescued” sabbatical taker is our very own Renato Paiva (Access Youth Academy), who will be off again on sabbatical in 2022 – two years to the day that he originally left for his Clare Rose Sabbatical!!

To date, Fieldstone Leadership Network San Diego has awarded 27 sabbaticals to nonprofit leaders in Southern California.  A Clare Rose Sabbatical includes three months paid leave for the executive director and opportunities to lead for the senior leadership team in the ED’s absence.  The experience is augmented with an organizational consultant and a $5,000 professional development fund for the team.  A Clare Rose Sabbatical is valued at $50,000 and is underwritten by the Clare Rose Foundation.

Nonprofit Leaders Need a Break. Will More Funders Start Backing Sabbaticals_ Inside PhilanthropyTwo organizations are currently participating in a sabbatical capacity building experience:  Friendship Shelter and ElderHelp San Diego.  Next year, five organizations will begin their Clare Rose Sabbaticals:  Assess Youth Academy, Case de Amistad, Kids Included Together (KIT), License to Freedom and Promises to Kids.

Applications for the next cohort of sabbatical organizations will be accepted in January 2023. The program is now offered only to the nonprofit sector in San Diego County.

For more information, please visit our website.

Encore Offering: Equity Journey 2.0

Fieldstone Leadership Network San Diego and Nonprofit Leadership Alliance Continue Partnership to Offer Equity Journey 2.0 Again

As nonprofit leaders continue answering the call to provide social justice leadership for their organizations and clients, staff and board members have participated in The Equity Journey to learn how to advance equity through culture creation, hiring policies, board recruitment and program design.

Due to positive feedback and ongoing demand, Fieldstone Leadership Network San Diego and the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance are continuing their partnership to offer an encore presentation of Equity and Nonprofit Organizational Success.  It will begin on September 1st and registration is now open.  More information can be found at  HERE

Network News

Learn about the latest offerings from our Network.

We are excited to introduce you to the newest members of the Clare Rose Sabbatical Family and provide you with updates on all of our programs.  Registration is open now for Reading Groups, Learning Groups, Executive Coaching and Equity Journey 2.0. Click here to keep reading…

2021 Clare Rose Sabbatical Recipients Announced

Kids Included Together      License to Freedom       Promises2Kids 

Awarded $50,000 Capacity Building Grants

                                    

Congratulations to Kids Included Together and Torrie Dunlap, License to Freedom and Dilkhwaz Ahmed and Promises2Kids and Tonya Torosian on their selection to participate in this capacity building program.  Valued at $50,000, each of these organizations will receive:

• Individual stipends and expenses of up to $40,000 to cover CEO salary, benefits, and travel to reflect or otherwise renew themselves in whatever manner they propose;
• Additional support of up to $5,000 fund for professional staff development. The purpose of the fund is to make it possible for other staff to have access to training programs or short-term leaves that might enhance their professional capacities.
• A fund of $2,500 to appropriately compensate or reward the leader or team that filled the role of the Executive Director during the sabbatical.
• Up to 12 consulting hours to aid in the preparation for, to be on-call during, and assist in the re-entry from the sabbatical.

Our thanks to past CR Sabbatical Takers Renato Paiva, Access Youth Academy; Don Stump, North County Lifeline; Je’net Kreitner, Grandma’s House of Hope; and Barbara Reuer, Resounding Joy for joining Fieldstone and Clare Rose Foundation on the selection committee. Having past sabbatical participants join the selection and interview team is a hallmark of our program as we believe those with real-life experience understand best which organizations are ready for this powerful capacity building experience.

Wines for Leaders in our Field: A Gratitude Event

Reciprocity     The Third Place       Stone Catchers      Power of Stones      Cultivation of Care

In appreciation for all that our facilitators and coaches do to support the Network, we hosted a unique online wine tasting to explore wines aligned with our values and practices. Led by wine expert Courtney Quinn of Path2Wine we connected as a community and shared stories of how these wines represented our leadership work . As a special treat, Courtney secured personalized videos from some of our featured winemakers.  It was a wonderful way to further our understanding of how our values and practices align together.  With a theme of “Wines for Leaders in our Field • Crafted by Leaders in their Field”, we explored an offering of choice wines and hand selected cheeses while enjoying each other’s company.  It was an evening filled with deep camaraderie and affection and learning. 

Wine Kits were hand delivered to each guest, complete with charcuterie boards. For those not drinking wine, other non alcoholic specialty drinks handpicked for each guest were included. Accompanying the food and drink, was a unique pair of custom made wine charms – a cairn and a rose.  Charms mark a wine glass much the way our coaches and facilitators help those in our Network mark their personal leadership path. We hope these special charms will serve as a remembrance of our time together and of our  deep gratitude for their commitment to the Network.

Mason to Present at Family Philanthropy Conference

This week, Janine Mason, will join the National Center for Family Philanthropy for their annual CEO Retreat as a session presenter.  Sharing the lived experience and research data of the Clare Rose Sabbatical program, Janine will be leading a session called Taking and Making Space: Sabbaticals as Organizational Capacity Building within your Foundation and your Field.   

The National Center for Family Philanthropy (NCFP) was founded in 1997 in response to the need for a national source of knowledge and expertise that advocates for the value of family philanthropy. Grounded by the perspective of donor families, NCFP has helped define this burgeoning field and raise awareness of its unique issues. 

With a mission is to promote philanthropic values, vision, and excellence across generations of donors and donor families, and  recognizing the unique role of the family foundation CEO,  NCFP, offers a three-day CEO retreat. This year the retreat is virtual and has been designed to provide an opportunity to build community and reflect on practices essential to the successful leadership of a family philanthropy.  It has been crafted for both new and more experienced CEOs.  Participants will brainstorm practical and actionable solutions to a broad range of common challenges inherent within a foundation executive role including:

• Managing power dynamics between board, staff, and grantees
• Navigating family dynamics while maximizing the foundation’s grantmaking impact
• Working effectively with board chairs and board committees
• Addressing racial equity and diversity concerns among board and staff
• Setting up a meaningful assessment process for CEOs, foundation staff, and boards
• Developing the network and resources needed to set and achieve critical strategic plans
• Identifying, mentoring, and supporting next generation leaders
• Finding time for personal growth and renewal

The Clare Rose Sabbatical is offered as part of Fieldstone Leadership Network San Diego and is funded by the Clare Rose Foundation, a family foundation. To date, the program has awarded 25 sabbatical experiences to local nonprofit organizations.  This month, the program will announce the newest cohort, which will begin working on preparing for their 2022 sabbaticals. Each sabbatical is valued at $50,000.  More information on the program is available here.

Janine will be presenting her session on Wednesday, May 12, 2021.

For more information on the Center, visit NCFP

First Pitstop on The Equity Journey

For the past three weeks, 68 nonprofit leaders have been working through the first module of The Equity Journey.  Offered in partnership with Nonprofit Leadership Alliance, the Equity Journey is a online learning program focused on diversity, equity and inclusion.  This is an encore presentation for Fieldstone, as this program was first offered in Fall 2020.  Due to popular demand, we offered it again this Spring to allow more nonprofit leaders to participate.

Unique to the Fieldstone offering of The Equity Journey are monthly “pit stops” which allow us to come together in small discussion groups to reflect on our learnings.  Facilitated by Janine Mason, four separate groups came together this week  to meet each other, share  reflections, and get a sense of other’s experiences with the material. The conversations were rich and impactful. The word cloud above illustrates how people were feeling after the group discussions and reflects the hopefulness, and gratitude of those who participated. It also reflects the personal contribution each member made to creating welcoming space that nurtured these rich conversations. 

The group is now starting Module 2 and will gather again on April 27 and 28th for their next “pit stop”.