LearnPhilanthropy is sparking an effort to learn about learning officers in foundations — who they are, what they do, what they want to learn from each other, and what resources already exist to support their work.
The LearnPhilanthropy team has been interested in creating a list of books that would be helpful to grantmaker learning and development. We've assembled an initial LearnPhilanthropy Bookshelf and would like to hear your thoughts about this collection. The Bookshelf is intended to be a dynamic list of books, articles and reports suggested by practicing grantmakers and those committed to effective philanthropy. We started off thinking just about books for those wanting to ground themselves in philanthropy, but many of the suggestions we received caused us to expand this idea to include seminal articles, frequently mentioned monographs and reports and a few recommended subscriptions.
Philanthropy Northwest has released a new report chronicling five years of work "to build and strengthen relationships between organized philanthropy and Native Americans and First Alaskans" in that region.
As the report notes, "Misunderstandings and disappointment are inevitable in any relationship - particularly in a relationship challenged with cultural differences, power imbalances, and very different communication styles. Philanthropy, no matter how well-intentioned, is not immune to these realities. Things will go wrong. But, as our grandmothers told us, the important thing to do when we fall down is to get back up."
Check out the report here: http://learnphilanthropy.net/resources/332
As a first step, we will draw from field experience to describe what learning officers need toknow and be able to do, and what types of resources, tools, and learning experiences are available to help.
In August and September, we'll interview and conduct informal focus groups with people who are responsible for learning within foundations, develop a draft map of the competencies required to be effective, and gather and share examples of useful tools.
If you're interested in being part of creating a draft map of this rapidly growing "learning officer" role, contact Jessica Bearman at info@learnphilanthropy.net .
As we transition from summer to fall, our thoughts turn to back to school reading lists. At LearnPhilanthropy, we're interested in capturing a list of great books in philanthropy. We want classic works and contemporary suggestions. What are your recommendations for must read books in the field?
We’ve recently featured several Content Partners as guest bloggers on the LearnPhilanthropy site. We’re glad to help spotlight your work – so if you have a new resource, event or idea related to grantmaker learning and professional development, to share with the LearnPhilanthropy community, please let us know by contacting info@learnphilanthropy.net.
Will you be attending the Council on Foundations’2012 Annual Conference in Los Angeles,April 29-May 1?
The level of personal giving in the U.S. hovers at 2-3% of income.
The Council on Foundations has set an early application deadline of February 20, 2012 for its Career Pathways leadership program. Career Pathways is a twelve-month experience that seeks to increase the number of candidates from diverse backgrounds in the philanthropic leadership pipeline.
The program is conducted annually for approximately a dozen mid-career professionals who have a serious interest in pursuing executive and senior leadership positions in philanthropy.
The program was developed as a response to the field's commitment to diversity and inclusion practices. For the purposes of the program, "diversity" encompasses but is not limited to ethnicity, race, gender, sexual orientation and identification, age, economic circumstance, class, disability, geography, and philosophy.
The Career Pathways program is open to individuals currently employed in COF-member and non-member grantmaking institutions and foundations.
