The Economic Inclusion Grant Round — part of SV2’s local Pathways to Opportunity focus — will look at approaches and organizations that are supporting economic rebuilding in just, equitable, and inclusive ways. At our Kickoff meeting, we’ll learn from our Funder Allies, The San Francisco Foundation and The Sobrato Foundation, what they are learning about this rapidly evolving sector, as well as their insights about the organizations they’ve nominated for SV2 to consider. 

As job displacement is accelerated by the pandemic, Partners will learn about a range of needs and how various groups of workers are being disproportionately affected — and what interventions are working to get people back to work. We’ll consider various approaches like upskilling or reskilling efforts, and intervention models including both direct services and advocacy.

Our Funder Allies, The San Francisco Foundation and The Sobrato Foundation, will nominate promising organizations from their portfolios and will share their insights and best practices with SV2 Partners at our kickoff meeting. This Grant Round will continue SV2’s new approach to the application process: verbal “coffee chats” between small groups of Partners and nonprofit applicants will take the place of written grant applications. Partners will learn about the sector and conduct diligence on the organizations over the course of five meetings from September to December. The chosen Grantee will receive a grant of $100,000 over three years, along with Beyond-the-Dollars support; two finalists will each receive $10,000.

The Grant Round is led by Partners Hillary Ford and JoAnne Tillemans and staff member Jody Chang. If you’d like to participate in the Grant Round, please join the Economic Opportunity Group on mysv2 in order to receive future communications and access to files. Please contact Jody Chang if you have questions about the Grant Round or trouble accessing mysv2.

Heightened awareness of deep racial injustice in our country, including the inequitable impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, has called us to grow, learn, and act together as a community. SV2 is responding with a range of programming for Partner engagement and learning, as well as the launch of a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Working Group.

This fall, SV2 Partners will have a range of opportunities to learn about the systemic racial injustice which underlies inequitable economic, health, and educational outcomes.

• Learning sessions will include a Conversation with Richard Rothstein about the roots of racial segregation in the US (September 1) and Investing for Racial Equity with Morgan Simon of the Candide Group and Daryn Dodson of Illumen Capital (October 26)
• The SV2 Social Impact Book Club will focus on racial injustice and its effects as they read and discuss Rothstein’s book The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of how our Government Segregated America on September 20.
• Our Fall Grant Round will focus on Economic Inclusion, launching on September 15, will look at approaches and organizations that are supporting economic rebuilding in just, equitable, and inclusive ways.

SV2 has also launched a DEI Working Group which is examining SV2’s grant-making and impact investing to increase incorporation of equity and racial justice considerations — for example, working to diversify SV2’s pipeline of prospective Grantees and Impact Investees by actively sourcing organizations led by people of color. The group is also assessing a variety of structured approaches for SV2 Partners who wish to engage in learning journeys around these topics. The Working Group is co-led by SV2 Board member Lisa Jones and staff member Jody Chang, and members include Paru Desai, David Dill, Shalyn Eason, Kwok Lau, and Harold Wang. This work just officially began in July, and we look forward to sharing more as the work proceeds. If you’re interested in learning more or sharing your thoughts, please reach out to Jody Chang.

Our hope is that the SV2 community will stretch and grow both individually and corporately this year in awareness and action to address racial justice and more equitable outcomes.

It is with deep appreciation that we celebrate the impact of two outgoing SV2 Board members: Shalyn Eason and Linda Lazor.  Both will continue as active, engaged Partners next year. 

Shalyn Eason has served on the SV2 Board for the past six years, serving on most SV2 Board Committees: the Grantmaking and Impact Investing Review Committee (also known as the “GIIRC”), the Finance Committee, and the Nominating and Governance Committee. Shalyn has also been a Partner leader for several Grant Rounds. She was a designer of the SV2 “Lightning” Grant Round approach as well as the financial analysis worksheet used to review applicant financial information in SV2 Grant Rounds.

Linda Lazor joined the Board three years ago and was a member of the SV2 Growth Committee.  Shortly after joining the Board,  Linda took on the role of SV2 CEO,  and served on both the Growth Committee and Nominating and Governance Committee.  In addition to her Staff leadership contributions,  Linda strengthened SV2 strategic alignment and organizational governance processes.

Join us in thanking Shalyn and Linda for their Board service and leadership.

We’re also excited to welcome three incoming board members this summer: Rachel Klausner, Rekha Pai Kamath, and Paul Work.   

Rachel Klausner consults with nonprofits and foundations, bringing over 20 years of experience in strategic planning, program design, and organizational effectiveness. Rachel began her career at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, joining shortly after its inception. During her tenure she managed the development of the Global Health five-year strategic plan and corresponding business plan, coordinating the $6 billion planning effort ensuring adequate financial and human resources for implementation. She also conducted research and analysis on new areas of potential giving for the foundation. Rachel is currently on the Board of Theatre Aspen. She has also served on the Board of Hidden Villa where she assisted with strategic planning, program planning, fundraising, and board development. Rachel earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from the University of California, San Diego and has Masters in Science degrees in Counseling Psychology from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo and Library and Information Science from the University of Washington. 

Rekha Pai Kamath is an angel investor and managing director at Kamath Family Foundation. Prior to this, she led New Business Incubation at Juniper Networks. She has 20+ years in various product management, marketing, and product development positions at companies such as Symantec Corp, Applied Materials, Sun Microsystems, and ProcketNetworks (acquired by Cisco). Rekha also serves on the board of Fast Forward, an Accelerator for Tech Non-profits based in San Francisco and Intelehealth, a tech nonprofit building Intelligent tech for Last mile health. Rekha also currently serves on the Alumni Council for Techwomen and has been a Foreign speaker for the US Department of State to several countries. She is also an investor, mentor, and advisor to several start-ups at Stanford Angels and Entrepreneurs (SA&E) and previously at StartX. She holds a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University and an MBA from Santa Clara University.  

Paul Work is the Chief Business Officer of Siris Medical, an early stage, venture backed company using AI to improve the radiation oncology treatment planning process. Other past experience includes being an Angel Investor at Tech Coast Angels and ACE Funds in Southern California, general management of several healthcare technology ventures, and business development at McKesson. Paul also worked in vertical industry sales at Ariba, Product Management at Oracle and Calico and was a corporate attorney at Latham & Watkins.  In addition to his extensive business experience, Paul was on the Board of Fresh Lifelines for Youth, an SV2 Alumni Grantee, where he chaired the finance and audit committees. He has also served as a Board member for AchieveMission. Paul graduated from Dartmouth College and has both JD and MBA degrees from Stanford University.

Amidst rapidly changing circumstances, SV2 is grateful for our community of Partners, Grantees, Impact Investees, and Colleagues who are allies in our work.  The multiple challenges facing our region and world required a rapid response and pivot this year – and created opportunities to give and learn together in new ways.  

Growth in Partner Giving and Community Engagement

Engagement in SV2 events has been extremely strong throughout the year. Our Partner community participated in a wide range of learning sessions, hands on grantmaking and impact investing, and family and community philanthropy. We quickly pivoted to learn and give together virtually when gathering in person was no longer feasible. 

This year, our issue-focused learning topics included affordable housing, inclusive democracy and climate change. A range of learning workshops such as Measuring and Monitoring Nonprofit Social Impact, Taking Your Board Service to the Next Level, Impact Investing 101, and the Art of Assessing Nonprofits were held to enable more effective giving practices. We also continued our “Get Proximate” learning initiative to more deeply understand the experiences of those in our community. 

SV2 Partners engaged in hands-on grantmaking in areas of Affordable Housing, Building Opportunity and Inclusivity through the Performing Arts, Environment with a focus on the Climate Crisis, and a place-based North Fair Oaks Community Grant Round. Our monthly Impact Investing Working Group heard exciting pitches throughout the year from social entrepreneurs addressing a variety of social impact challenges. 

Family service and giving was also strong. SV2 Kids events engaged the whole family in community service opportunities – even packing bag lunches virtually together in May to help address hunger during the Covid crisis. Our SV2 Teens learned about giving and changemaking and engaged in hands-on grant making around the timely topic of Criminal Justice Reform. 

Recent results from our Partner survey validate SV2’s positive impact on giving and community engagement. Since joining SV2:  

• 94% of SV2 Partners increased their level of knowledge about local community needs and solutions
• 85%  experienced increased confidence in effective giving
• 87% felt an increased ability to conduct effective diligence on social impact organizations 

Investments in Promising Social Ventures

SV2’s grant-making and impact investing provide unrestricted general operating funding and capacity building support.  Adopting funder best practices in times of crisis, SV2 provided proactive support for our Grantees facing the extraordinary challenges caused by Covid-19. For all of our Year 2 and 3 Grantees, SV2 reduced their reporting requirement and released funding on an accelerated schedule.

SV2 also invested in the impact of new promising social ventures this year with four Grant Rounds and monthly Impact Investing sessions.  This year SV2 invested almost $500,000 in new direct funding, and Partners self-reported over $800,000 in follow-on funding to organizations they learned about through SV2.

SV2 Non-profit Grantees this year are:

• SV@Home, a recognized leader in creating multiple stakeholder collaborative solutions for Silicon Valley affordable housing, received a three year grant in our Affordable Housing Grant Round.  Thank you to our funder allies, the Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative and the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, for your collaboration.   
• BAYCAT, an organization who opens up the media industry to underrepresented storytellers, was selected as SV2’s Grantee for our Building Opportunity and Inclusivity through the Performing Arts Grant Round. Thank you to the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation for your generosity in financially sponsoring this Grant Round. 
• One Life Counseling and Upward Scholars are the three year Grantees from our North Fair Oaks Community Grant Round.  At a time when mental health needs are rising, One Life Counseling provides accessible, readily available and comfortable mental health services through individual, community and school-based programs.  Upward Scholars is the only nonprofit in the Bay Area providing financial and academic support to adults struggling with economic hardship so they can transition from adult schools to community colleges and attend college part-time. Thank you to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation for your generous financial contribution to this Grant Round.
• GridLab was selected as SV2’s Grantee for our Environment Grant Round.  GridLab provides technical grid expertise to enhance policy decision-making and to ensure a rapid transition to a reliable, cost effective, and low carbon future. Thank you to The Sand Hill Foundation and Heising-Simons for your support as funder allies. 
• Our SV2 Teens chose restorative justice and criminal justice reform as their topic this year, and awarded grants to three inspiring organizations: Defy Ventures, Inc., Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth, and Young Women’s Freedom Center. 

Recent additions to our Impact Investment Portfolio are: 

• Amped Innovation who designs and engineers affordable, high-quality solar energy products for families in developing countries needing off-grid appliances.
• SV2 also invested in the CNote Rapid Response Fund, an impact fund addressing the specific challenges of Covid-19.  All funds will be re-loaned to small businesses through the CNote CDFI network.

We celebrate and support the innovation of this year’s Grantees and Impact Investees. Thank you to our funder allies for your support and collaboration. 

Innovating for Positive Change

In a year filled with unexpected challenges, SV2 continued to innovate new ways of giving and learning together.  This included embracing greater virtual engagement across our community while sheltering in place – to strengthen strategic giving and invest in promising social ventures at a time of unprecedented change.  SV2 was also an early signer of the Council on Foundations pledge, a call to action for philanthropy’s commitment during Covid-19.  We quickly acted to reduce Grantee reporting, accelerate the release of funding, and provide curated resources and support.

SV2 is committed to strengthening the capacity of promising social ventures to scale their impact. This year we put in place new tools and approaches to assist our Grantees improve their capacity, and focus SV2’s resources and network connections in areas that most support their long-term health and impact. And although there is still more to do, SV2 innovated new approaches this year to make our giving more equitable and inclusive.  We embedded “Get Proximate” practices into our giving to more deeply understand the experiences, challenges and opportunities of our community neighbors.  We piloted innovations in our grantmaking practices – sourcing our grantee pool from the voices of the community, and conducting  in person interviews with Executive Directors in place of written applications.  

Although our region and world face upheaval on multiple fronts, SV2 sees this as an opportunity to address challenges both from the pandemic and long standing racial injustice. As we transition from crisis relief to recovery next year, we look forward to exploring emerging possibilities to bring about a more equitable and resilient post-pandemic world.  SV2 remains committed to rethinking and innovating, and becoming more inclusive and impactful in the way we, with others, catalyze meaningful social change.  

With every immense challenge comes immense opportunity. Although our country and our region face major upheaval on multiple fronts—from public health to the economy to racial injustice—SV2 sees this as an opportunity to rethink and reinvent, and to become more inspired, inclusive, and impactful in the way we address Silicon Valley’s challenges and support effective solutions.

This is also a time of transition in SV2’s Staff team. Starting in July, Chief Relationship Officer Lisa Van Dusen will become the next Executive Director of the Palo Alto Community Fund, sharing her talents and experience as a long-time community leader in a new way. Our  Communications and Events Manager Mariam Nur will be moving on at the end of July to pursue a Masters in Public Policy (MPP) at the Harvard Kennedy School with a concentration in International & Global Affairs (IGA). 

SV2 Chief Executive Officer Linda Lazor will also be transitioning later this year in September. Linda will return to her retirement, which she had stepped away from to lead SV2’s current three-year strategic plan. As we come to the end of this plan, Linda decided the time was right for SV2 to transition to a new leader.

SV2’s board of directors has already launched a professional search for an experienced leader who will help us continue our growth while reimagining the critically important role that SV2 can play in our rapidly changing world. Both Linda and Lisa will remain engaged as SV2 Partners. 

Over the past several years, SV2 has significantly increased its impact, growing the size and strength of our Partner community as well as support for the promising social venture organizations we have backed. We have also embraced greater virtual engagement, allowing us to deepen and extend our community while continuing to catalyze meaningful social change. We are thrilled by the benefits of our new, online approach; it not only saves time and the environment, but it has also democratized the ability to participate from any location.

Thank you to Lisa, Mariam and Linda for their extraordinary contributions to SV2’s mission. At the same time, the need for strategic social investors and strong social ventures is greater than ever, given the economic, physical, and social disruptions brought on over the last several months by the COVID-19 pandemic and the heightened awareness of deep racial injustice across our country. As SV2 plans for its future, we believe our accomplishments have positioned us well to continue to transform the lives and prospects of more individuals and communities in years to come. We are thrilled about our future possibilities – and look forward to the steadfast support of our entire SV2 community as we continue to evolve and expand our impact.

As SV2 staff members Lisa Van Dusen and Mariam Nur are both moving on to new adventures this month, please join us in celebrating their many accomplishments and thanking them for their service to SV2’s mission.

After nearly two years with SV2, our Communications & Events Manager Mariam Nur will begin a Master in Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School with a concentration in International & Global Affairs. From day one, Mariam fit seamlessly into the SV2 team, and her contributions have been an immense gift to the organization. Mariam’s creative story-telling, attention to detail, and commitment to excellence have been evident as she’s coordinated countless small and large events for SV2, managed our eNews, website, Impact Report, and social media presence, and served as a founding staff leader in our Young Professionals group and our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion work. 

In her own words, Mariam has expressed: “My time at SV2 has been very special. It is difficult to capture all my fond memories and experiences into a short statement. I have been so fortunate to work alongside an incredible team, who’ve welcomed, celebrated, and valued my skill sets and contribution since my first day. As I look forward to this next chapter in life, I can’t help but feel saddened at the thought of soon departing from SV2’s unique and vibrant community. I feel an immense sense of gratitude when I reflect on all the learning, growth, and thoughtfulness I’ve witnessed from SV2 Partners, staff members, grantees/impact investees, and other social impact leaders during my time at SV2.

I look forward to hearing more of Partners’ compelling thoughts and statements at upcoming events, celebrating moments of impact with the staff team, and reveling in all that is SV2 before my departure at the end of July. Thank you all for welcoming me into this community, I plan to stay in touch!”

This month, Lisa Van Dusen will become the next Executive Director of the Palo Alto Community Fund starting in mid-July, sharing her talents and experience as a long-time community leader in a new way. Through almost seven years as SV2’s Chief Relationship Officer, Lisa’s deep commitment to people, innovative spirit, and can-do attitude have shaped SV2’s culture and helped many, many givers join the SV2 community. During her tenure, Lisa helped launch multiple key SV2 initiatives including impact investing, advocacy, the Environment Partner Interest Circle (EPIC) , and Get Proximate. She also conceived of and co-created the Visionary Leadership Circle, through which SV2 Partners invest in SV2’s organizational capacity and sustainable future. Most Partners at SV2 could point back to a first meeting or conversation with Lisa, in which she was genuinely interested in their life and giving journey, and warmly welcomed them to this community of givers. While we will miss Lisa’s many talents on the staff team, we are delighted that Lisa and her husband, John Kelley, will remain in the SV2 community as Partners.

Lisa has expressed, “While I will miss working directly alongside the unparalleled SV2 staff team, board, community of Partners, Grantees, Impact Investees and collaborators, SV2 has never been stronger as an organization. I am thrilled to take much of what SV2 stands for into my new role as Executive Director at the Palo Alto Community Fund—and to grow their impact in the greater Palo Alto area at this pivotal time. 

I have learned a tremendous amount—from and with the members of this extraordinary community. It has been an honor to get to know you, to collaborate and innovate with many of you, and to work to roll up our sleeves to realize our collective vision, mission and values with a spirit of optimism, determination, rigor and joy. I am immensely grateful for the last seven years together, as well as what’s ahead.” 

Please join us in thanking Mariam and Lisa for their years of service to SV2, and wishing them the very best in their next adventures.

Did you know that at any one time roughly one-quarter of the SV2 Partnership puts their hands up to serve as active volunteer leaders? 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
• Facilitating Partner-led Interest Groups and/or Events
• Facilitating educational programming and social events
• Leading SV2’s Get Proximate initiative
• Supporting SV2 Partner recruiting and onboarding as an SV2 Buddy Partner or Ambassador or Buddy Partner
• 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 volunteer leadership role at SV2, please contact Lucinda Brommersma, SV2’s Director of Partner Engagement.