Philanthropy’s Quest for Equity: Past. Present. Future.

Examining milestones in the history of American philanthropy

Have you ever wondered why things are the way they are and how we got here?

Covering over 150 years, this session will present a historical timeline to describe and analyze milestones in the history of American philanthropy. We will weave perspectives to analyze modern philanthropy’s quest for equity as practice, process, and vision.

Following this presentation, you will be invited to explore how this shared context shapes your own work, and then to envision what may be in store for the future of equity in philanthropy.

This course will help participants:

• Understand the historical context for equity in philanthropy to reach an individual and shared understanding of the future needs to advance equity.
• Build confidence and patience in persisting in their individual and organization’s journey to advance equity.
• Identify barriers to the equity process and approaches that have been effective.
• Consider their own organization’s future by addressing changes in paradigms, wealth, and power.

You’ll leave the session with historical context, ideas shared by fellow participants for advancing equity, and a resources/tools reference list to explore further in your work.

 
Who should attend this course?
This interactive workshop is designed for anyone currently working in the field of philanthropy. The session will NOT be recorded.

Questions about this event or about your registration?
Call 616-331-7585 or email emily.brenner@gvsu.edu.

Gladys Hairston, M.A., is the director of learning, research, and evaluation at the John Rex Endowment. At the Endowment, Gladys supports grantees on their current initiatives, refines and implements internal and external learning practices to support the gauge of impact on grantmaking, and follows philanthropic landscape trends for equitable evaluation purposes. Prior to her time at JRE, Gladys worked as a civil rights and African American history researcher as well as a program officer at the Harvest Foundation of the Piedmont in Virginia. Learn more about Gladys.

Emily Brenner, M.P.A., is a program manager at the Johnson Center for Philanthropy. In this role, she assists the learning services team in providing professional development opportunities for the philanthropic sector. Emily’s primary responsibility is management of The Grantmaking School, where she handles the course calendar, works with current instructors and onboards new ones, and develops private and custom course offerings for clients. Learn more about Emily.