The Center for Emerging Leadership provides training, consulting and technical assistance to new and emerging social justice groups, with a focus on groups that are youth-led and intergenerational.
New and emerging groups are faced with dozens of decisions, such as:
- How to determine if a new project is needed, and if so, whether it should be a free-standing organization, a project of another organization, and a short or long term initiative
- How to determine whether to apply for 501(c)3 status, the federally recognized nonprofit tax status
- How to hone a mission statement, vision and guiding principles
- How to find a fiscal sponsor, negotiate a fair agreement, and build a good working relationship with the sponsor
- How to identify allies, support networks, advisory board, and board members
- How to budget and establish financial management procedures
- How to fundraise, from grantwriting to grassroots fundraising
- How to build an organizational structure that reflects the values of the founders and members
- How to build accountability processes and early evaluation
- How to assemble an initial board
The Center for Emerging Leadership aims to help new & emerging organizations to answer these questions. Our goal is to support the development of a social justice movement with strong, effective organizations, in which young people and their adult allies learn the skills to build organizations that are sustainable and reflect their core values.