We’re pleased to share that CollegeSpring is the winner of this year’s Education Lightning Grant Round, which was led by Jim Basile and Aarti Chandna. College Spring will receive a one-time $30,000 grant and opportunities to leverage our partnership over the next 12 months.

CollegeSpring is closing the college opportunity gap by implementing unique learning programs that equip low-income students to increase their SAT and ACT scores. We are delighted to welcome CollegeSpring into our portfolio and look forward to supporting their important work throughout the year. 

We’ve completed our 2017 All-Partner Survey designed to assess SV2’s impact on Partners and provide our Partners with the opportunity to share their ideas for how we can collectively deepen our impact, improve our programming, and strengthen our vibrant community. Partners’ timely and constructive feedback has already informed staff and Board planning for the upcoming year and provided critical input into our strategic and business planning efforts. Thank you to all the Partners who took time to complete the survey!

Here are some of the highlights:

• SV2’s Net Promoter Score (NPS), a measure of customer loyalty, increased significantly from 41 to 56 over the last year!
• Our Partners make it a point to give locally: In the last year, nearly half of the survey respondents dedicated 50% or more of their giving to local community-based organizations
• SV2 Partners gave ~$475K in follow-on funding to SV2 Grantees and Impact Investees, which roughly doubles SV2’s grants out the door this year
• When asked what Partners value most about SV2, respondents overwhelmingly mentioned SV2’s vibrant community and the rich, varied opportunities to learn about philanthropy and social impact

You can find the full report on our collaboration platform, my.SV2, here.

Each June, the SV2 Board Grants and Impact Investment Review Committee (GIIRC) hears updates on SV2’s entire grant and impact investment portfolio and approves the renewal of multi-year grants. The GIIRC is led by Kelly Pope and committee members include Bill Brownell, Alison Elliott, Lisa Jones and Tony Stayner. This year, for the second time, the Portfolio Review meeting was open to the entire Partnership, in order to maximize this rich opportunity to learn about SV2’s impactful and impressive portfolio.

Each of SV2’s Grantees and Impact Investees is paired with two Lead Partners, who serve as liaisons between the organization and SV2. Part of their role is to report annually to the GIIRC on the progress, work, and impact of each organization. Their written reports, paired with reports written by the organizations themselves, serve as the basis for the Lead Partners’ verbal reports to the GIIRC.

After hearing all the reporting, Partners reflected on the portfolio, especially on commonalities, with these insights:

• Struck by scale and/or innovation
• Impressive breadth
• Broadly diversified
• Local presence
• ED’s desire/ability to engage with SV2 is a key factor

Other key insights included an assessment of SV2’s “beyond-the-dollars” (BT$) capacity building efforts:

• Grantees seem to find most benefit from fundraising and networking support
• Much of what SV2 offers most effectively (follow-on funding, networking) may not be fully articulated as a BT$ benefit
• SV2 networks provide more benefits to some Grantees than to others
• Matching BT$ support to Grantee needs can be an issue
• BT$ can actually be a detraction to the Grantee, if the timing or fit for a project is not right
• Think about settings where Grantees can “teach” each other to best utilize the SV2 community

We are eager to explore ways to use these Partner and Grantee-generated insights to continue to sharpen our grantmaking approach and Beyond-the-Dollars service to Grantees in the future. Thanks to all who joined us!

Three cheers to SV2’s three outgoing board members in 2017: Lucy Caldwell Donovan, Alison Elliott, and Diane Parnes! Join us in thanking them for their remarkable leadership and thoughtful stewardship.

Alison Elliott and Diane Parnes concluded six years of board service this June. Alison has been a spectacular leader in so many areas during her tenure, including co-leading SV2’s strategic branding process and drawing on her design thinking expertise to lead SV2 through designing key innovations in our 2014-17 strategic plan. As Board secretary, nonprofit finance expert, and leader of SV2’s 2013 Executive Director search, Diane has strengthened SV2’s board governance and organizational health and has brought a deeply valuable perspective from her nearly 20 years as a Partner. Lucy Caldwell Donovan completed one three-year term of service in June. Lucy has been our in-house expert on innovation and inspiration, serving on the steering committee for SV2’s new Visionary Leadership Circle and advising on key strategic planning initiatives. Thanks to these three leaders!

We’re also thrilled to welcome three incoming board members this summer: Jim Basile, Linda Lazor, and Sayuri Sharper. Jim, Linda, and Sayuri are all experienced SV2 leaders who will bring an impressive skill set to the Board. Read their full bios here.

Jim Basile is a litigation partner at Kirkland & Ellis. He co-led this past spring’s Education Lightning Round and is on the board of current SV2 Grantee Silicon Valley Urban Debate League. Linda Lazor is Chief of Staff at former SV2 Grantee Partners in School Innovation and brings a strong technology marketing background. She currently serves as Lead Partner to Silicon Valley Urban Debate League. Sayuri Sharper is a retired high-tech executive and business litigator. She is currently Lead Partner to SV2 Grantee Global Press Institute and SV2 Impact Investee Learners Guild, as well as co-lead of the Impact Investing Working Group. 

We’re thrilled to welcome Courtney Martin to the SV2 team as our new Office & Communications Assistant. Courtney brings a strong background in communications, content creation, research, and project management. Prior to joining SV2, she worked as a Project Manager at a start-up data collection platform and worked in communications and events support at her college’s art gallery. She holds a BA from Grinnell College. Please join us in warmly welcoming Courtney to the SV2 community!

The Art of Yoga Project, a 2014-2017 SV2 Grantee, provides teenage girls in the juvenile justice system a pathway to a more positive future through its yoga interventions. As the three-year tenure of SV2’s collaboration with The Art of Yoga Project comes to a close, we’re celebrating their achievements since joining our portfolio.

The Art of Yoga Project uses evidence-based neuroscience and therapeutic models to address the emotional effects of young adult trauma. The Art of Yoga Project’s trauma-informed yoga programming addresses the root causes of behavioral problems to foster self-awareness and self-respect in teen girls. Using over a decade of research, The Art of Yoga Project recently published Wise Inside, a best practices curriculum for mentoring trauma-impacted populations.

Highlights of the Art of Yoga Project’s achievements include mentoring over 2300 at-risk teenage girls, with up to 91% reporting increased self-awareness and self-respect; securing a $100,000 grant from the hope & grace fund; and developing a unique certification program to train over 50 new teachers throughout the Bay Area.

In describing their experience with SV2, The Art of Yoga Project said, “The access to SV2 Partners and their extensive network enables us to articulate our issues and then quickly find experts that can help us brainstorm solutions and move forward.” As one example, The Art of Yoga Project was able to trademark their logo and tagline with pro bono legal services from the Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati law firm, thanks to connections forged through SV2. Thanks to Lead Partners Lucy Caldwell Donovan and Nancy Yu for serving as liaisons during SV2’s collaboration with The Art of Yoga Project.

As the Art of Yoga Project graduates from the SV2 portfolio, you can find more info on how best to support The Art of Yoga Project here. Join us in celebrating The Art of Yoga Project’s incredible work and inspiring impact!

Did you know that at any one time roughly one quarter of all of SV2’s 200+ Partners put their hands up to serve as active volunteer leaders across the SV2 Partnership? Check out this year’s impressive leadership cohort here and let us know if you are interested in a leadership role next year.

Central to what makes SV2 work so well are the many Partners who “power” our special SV2 community through their leadership. Some of these volunteer roles include:

• Leading Classic and Lightning Grant Rounds
• Leading the Impact Investment Working Group
• Serving as Lead Partner liaisons to Grantees and Impact Investees
• Spearheading SV2 Kids Family Service activities
• Facilitating educational programming and social events
• Supporting SV2 Partner recruiting and onboarding
• Serving on SV2’s Board of Directors and its various committees

Partner Leaders are supported in their volunteer leadership by the SV2 staff team.

If you are a new or veteran Partner interested in a meaningful volunteer leadership role at SV2, please contact SV2’s Chief Relationship Officer Lisa Van Dusen. In particular, if you are interested in leading a Grant Round next year, please contact SV2’s Grantmaking Officer Jody Chang.

SV2 is pleased to announce its newest Grantee, The Stride Center, selected in this year’s Economic Opportunity & Employment Grant Round. The Stride Center offers hope for a brighter future by providing quality technical education and professional skills in a structured environment that will ensure success for every student in its program.

The Stride Center was chosen as the 2017 Economic Opportunity & Employment Grantee and awarded a three-year grant of $175K, following a rigorous five-month diligence process. Partners were impressed by Stride’s leadership and client outcomes, and excited about its new expansion to Santa Clara County.

Partners also chose to award a finalist grant of $25K to Employment Training Center (formerly Asian Neighborhood Design). ETC’s mission is to reduce poverty and revitalize neighborhoods in the Bay Area by building healthy communities and providing opportunities for low-income residents to become economically self-sufficient.

The topic of Economic Opportunity & Employment was chosen as the sector focus for this Round in response to interest expressed in last year’s All-Partner Survey. After landscape learning from sector expert Elena Chavez Quezada of the Walter & Elise Haas Fund, Partners chose to focus on Job Training in this year’s Round. Sixty-six organizations expressed interest, and Partners dove into a thorough diligence process involving written materials, conference calls with Executive Directors, site visits, and group discussions. At the end of this process, two finalist organizations – Employment Training Center and The Stride Center — were invited to make in-person presentations. ETC was awarded a finalist grant of $25K, and The Stride Center was chosen as our newest Grantee with a three-year grant of $175K.

This Round was generously sponsored by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, enabling SV2 to make its largest single grant to date. Special thanks to Partners Shalyn Eason and Paru Yusuf for their leadership of this Grant Round!

In May, we wrapped up our 9th year of SV2’s popular Teens program. Not only did our Teens learn about effective philanthropy, engage in meaningful service learning, and together make grants to three stellar local community organizations focused on STEM education, but the SV2 Teens program received well-deserved accolades in Gentry Magazine this month. Congrats, Teens!

Gentry featured SV2 Teens in their annual Philanthropy edition. Guest Editor and longtime SV2 Partner Noosheen Hashemi’s article ‘Start ‘Em Young’ highlights the ways that our SV2 Teens program empowers teens to explore best practices in experiential learning, grantmaking, and service. SV2 Teens offers 7th-12th graders the opportunity to participate in hands-on grantmaking that culminates in the giving of actual dollars to the grantees they collectively select. To learn more, read the full article here.

In 2017, our teens chose to focus on education for underserved youth, and selected three new Grantees: the Multicultural Institute, Khan Academy, and buildOn Bay Area. Hats off to our SV2 Teens facilitators, Janet Oh, Elizabeth Newton and Karin Scott, and SV2 staff liaison Jody Chang, for skillfully guiding our Teens through their learning and service.

Ever wanted to learn more about SV2 Grantees’ progress in the second and third years of their relationship with SV2? Curious about lessons learned from our first two years of Impact Investing? Interested in better understanding SV2’s overall portfolio of grants and impact investments?

Each spring, the SV2 Board’s Grant and Impact Investment Review Committee engages with questions like these through its annual review and evaluation of SV2’s full grant and impact investment portfolio. All current SV2 Partners are invited to participate in this unique learning opportunity.

 

On Wednesday, June 7 from 10am-2:30pm, all Partners are welcome to join the annual SV2 Portfolio Review meeting.

• 10am-12pm: Lead Partners will share reports on our seven current “classic” (3 year) Grantees
• 12pm-12:30pm: Lunch and Impact Investing Overview
• 12:30pm-1:15pm: Lead Partners will share reports on our three Impact Investees from 2015-2016 program year
• 1:15pm-2:15pm: Portfolio Insights and Learning discussion
• 2:15pm-2:30pm: Board Grantmaking and Review Committee Executive Session

Partners are welcome to join for the entire meeting, or to choose a segment of particular interest to them, such as

• Grantee reporting from 10am—12pm
• Impact Investing reporting 12pm–1:15pm
• Overall Portfolio discussion from 1:15pm–2:15pm (attending other parts of the meeting will give helpful context for this discussion)

In the interest of time, we ask that Partners who are not on the Board Grantmaking and Review Committee take an “observer only” role during the Lead Partner reporting sessions. All attendees are welcome to fully participate through questions and discussion during the Impact Investing overview and Portfolio Insights and Learning session. Please RSVP to Jody by May 25 – this will enable you to receive the written reports for advance review before the meeting. We look forward to learning together in a day of discussion and insight!