In a first for SV2, the Pathways to Opportunity year combines a full season of learning (September-December) and then a full Grant Round (January-May), all focused on proven pathways out of poverty. We’re excited to kick off the Grant Round in January and hope you’ll join us! If you’d like to join the Grant Round, please fill out this short survey to indicate your preferred meeting days/times.

This fall, Partners heard from three panels of experts, sharing perspectives ranging from research to funder to practitioner, and then shared their top learnings and interests with the leader team.

Partner Leaders Linda Lazor and Alison Elliott have done a terrific job collating Partner feedback and interest, panelist perspectives, and research from the field into a thorough summary of the most promising levers for impact. A Partner research team is working in November to source pipeline organizations, and Partners will meet in person on December 5 (RSVP here) and virtually on December 6 (RSVP here) to choose the areas on which to focus the spring Grant Round. Details are still being planned, but stay tuned for some creative approaches including a possible “Pitch Night” as part of this Round in the spring. If you missed any of the learning sessions, you can access audio and video links of the panels, as well as the collated learning summary, here on my.SV2.

We’re thrilled to highlight Nepris, one of our earliest Impact Investees from 2016. Nepris received a one-time $50,000 investment from SV2 and will have access to support and networking opportunities through SV2.

Nepris offers real-time video conferencing and virtual tours to bring classroom teachings to life and promote student engagement. The platform is unique in connecting teachers to skilled professionals with a focus on matching teachers’ curriculum needs with professional skillsets. By carefully matching teacher needs to skillsets, Nepris inspires deeper student engagement and shows how classroom learning translates to real world careers. To date, Nepris has made over 3,800 virtual connections, with 97% of educators saying they would use Nepris in their classrooms again.

Nepris’ platform also overcomes the limitations of geography to reach over 148,000 students with live virtual sessions. While Nepris provides unique learning opportunities for all students to benefit, their virtual conferencing and tours are especially helpful to students in rural school districts and underserved communities. In a recent survey, Nepris found that 55% of the students reached were economically disadvantaged. As the data shows, Nepris actively extends education outreach and creates equity of access to empower all students on their learning journey. Learn more about Nepris and their exciting work on their website.

We’re pleased to announce the winner of SV2’s latest Resilient Youth Lightning Grant Round – and to let you know that you still have a chance to participate in a second Resilient Youth Lightning Grant Round, kicking off in January.

SV2’s Lightning Grant Rounds are a shorter grantmaking experience, taking place over just four to six weeks. SV2’s Lightning Rounds rely on funder allies, foundations who collaborate with SV2, by nominating organizations from their own portfolios and sharing their diligence materials with us. This lessens the burden for nonprofits and allows Partners to learn how to conduct due diligence from experienced philanthropy professionals. During Lightning Rounds, participating Partners review the diligence materials online, participate in conference calls with the funder allies, evaluate the finalists against a rubric we’ve developed, and collectively select a single Grantee. Lightning Round Grantees receive a one-year general operating support grant of up to $30,000.

“As a Grant Round participant, I walk away with a coherent strategy and framework for supporting this work in my personal philanthropy.”

– Keith Calix, SV2 Partner

Led by Partner Shalyn Eason and staff member Ashley Clark, the November Resilient Youth Lightning Grant Round had an outstanding group of applicant organizations, each working in distinct ways to support resilient youth in the Bay Area. The November Round winner is Youth Law Center, an organization which advocates to transform the foster care and juvenile justice systems so that every child and youth can thrive. Youth Law Center will receive a one-time grant of $30,000.

 Partner Keith Calix participated in November and shared this perspective: “The recent Giving Code report illuminated the tremendous need here in Silicon Valley. Among those most vulnerable are ‘resilient youth’, which for our work, we defined as young people in the juvenile justice and/or foster care system who face tremendous adversity, trauma and/or stress. Those participating in the Resilient Youth Lightning Grant Round assembled because we firmly believe that “EVERY young person deserves the support of a stable family environment and the chance to thrive in their community.” Participation in this round has allowed Partners to collaborate with and utilize the knowledge capital of funder allies who have deep sector expertise; generate a deeper understanding of the resilient youth ecosystem, including the host of direct service and advocacy supports needed to support this population, as well as a deeper appreciation of the work of local nonprofits working to support this population. As a grant round participant, I walk away with a coherent strategy and framework for supporting this work in my personal philanthropy.”

If you’re interested in joining the next Round, please email staff member Ashley Clark as soon as possible, but no later than January 5. In-person meetings will be on Thursday, February 1 and Thursday, February 15 from 12:00-2:30pm at SV2. The Round will begin in mid-January with diligence pre-work, which includes reviewing materials and participating in conference calls with our funder allies. We hope you can join us!