| Name | Kate |
|---|---|
| Last Name | Sylvester |
| Home Address | 1920 Chestnut Street #437 Chattanooga, TN 37408 United States |
| Organization Name | United Way of Greater Chattanooga |
| Describe Your Role In The Organization | As Director of Community Investments and Partner Relations Kate oversees our grantmaking and grant writing |
| Organization Address | 630 Market Street Chattanooga, Tennessee 37402 United States |
| Website | https://www.uwchatt.org |
| Best Phone Number To Reach You | 4237523100 |
| Alternate Phone Number | |
| Email Address | katesylvester@uwchatt.org |
| Alternate Email Address | abbygarrison@uwchatt.org |
| Please Describe Your Project In Detail | United Way of Greater Chattanooga is requesting funds for its nonprofit capacity building initiative, Venture Forward (VF), to increase the impact and effectiveness of all greater Chattanooga nonprofits negatively impacted by COVID-19. VF will use ARP funding to remove the cost of annual membership for all nonprofits operating at or below $1 million annual budget to access vital capacity-building resources, and to enhance VF’s staffing capacity and resource training offerings to meet the needs of all nonprofits in greater Chattanooga, all of whom suffered some sort of direct impact from COVID, and many of whom saw a reduction in staffing. Nonprofit organizations build healthy communities, encourage economic stability, and fill gaps in areas such as health, hunger, arts, education, and safety. Nonprofits amplify the voices of the people they serve—people right here in our community. VF strengthens nonprofits and the community by sharing information, providing training and professional development, and fostering collaboration. 92% of nonprofits operate with less than $1 million annually, and 88% are less than $500,000. Less than 3% of nonprofits lobby to advance their missions compared to 100% that have the legal right to do so. The value of nonprofits is unquestionable, and the potential is unmatched, yet nonprofits still struggle with the capacity to execute on their missions and the value of their impact. At 8.5% of the workforce in Tennessee, nonprofits are a major regional employer, critical not only to the vibrancy of our community, but also to our regional economy (https://independentsector.org//www/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Tennessee-1.pdf). As a founding member of the Chattanooga Nonprofit Alliance, Venture Forward helped research and produce reports in 2020 and 2021 about the impact COVID has had on local nonprofits. (https://www.ventureforwardnow.org/covid-impact-reports) Both the initial and follow-up results tell a powerful story of the impact the social sector has in creating the vibrant community we enjoy. They also tell a sobering story of the precarious financial situation in which many organizations now find themselves. Continued (and in some cases increased) support for nonprofits will be needed as the impact of COVID-19 persists and societal need continues to outpace financial capacity. We hope to conduct a third round report in 2022 to examine more deeply the impact COVID has had on staffing but know anecdotally that nonprofits have suffered some of the highest levels of staff turnover and burnout of any sector. We know that many organizations are still in the “Response” phase, figuring out how to feed families who’ve lost jobs, how to help people pay the rent, how to find shelter for the homeless who need to quarantine. Some organizations have begun to plan for “Recovery,” but that will require significant investment of funding, time, and imagination. Emerging from the COVID impact surveys, priorities emerged that align with the work of Venture Forward and are efforts we are well-positioned prioritize and grow in the coming months and years: 1. A regional coalition to advocate on behalf of the sector 2. Increased cooperation and transparency between funders and nonprofits 3. Robust collection, sharing, and analysis of data 4. More diverse representation across the sector including on boards and in funding decision-making 5. Additional learning opportunities to increase the capability and sophistication of our nonprofit operators and donors The community is already advocating and speaking out for what their needs are and how they will buy into a cooperative nonprofit alliance – and Venture Forward has listened and is primed to be the catalyst behind these needs. By continuing to align our resources and efforts around these priorities, we can strengthen the social sector and, by extension, our region. Venture Forward is excited to work in coalition with experienced nonprofit professionals, volunteers, and funders, as we navigate through the “Recovery” phase and together begin “Reimagining” and “Rebuilding” what our sector looks like in the future. It is time to rebuild the sector together with strength, professionalism, and raising the bar on outcomes, alignment, and innovation so that the sector can recover from COVID and weather the next storm with more strength and resilience. |
| Please explain how your project meets the requirements of the American Rescue Plan | Venture Forward meets the “Small Business and Non-profits" requirements through its capacity-building programs and training classes that build a more resilient and equitable nonprofit sector to weather the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects better. VF builds stronger communities through better nonprofits. To achieve this, VF walks with greater Chattanoogan nonprofits on their journey towards sustainability, efficacy, and resiliency by providing education and training, consulting services, relationship-building opportunities, and access to resources. Balancing the right mix of theory and practical application, Venture Forward's training classes provide professional development opportunities for staff, board members, and key volunteers. Our capacity-building programs include, but are not limited to, Board Development; Financial Management; Fund Development; Impact Analysis; Marketing & Public Relations; Organizational Development; Program Planning & Evaluation; Social Innovation; Technology & Database Management; and Volunteer Management. As a result of the pandemic, Venture Forward began the COVID Community Task Force in April 2020 as an effort to convene community leaders to address the social needs that arose due to COVID-19’s impact on the Greater Chattanooga region. This Task Force was open to anyone involved in delivering support to address the various social, economic, and health impact needs of Greater Chattanooga. The Task Force’s intent was to ensure the broad range of social impact challenges were being addressed and to help maintain and pass along important actions and information. Approximately 200 individuals and 65 organizations participated in the COVID Community Task Force. During this process, many organizations found opportunities to collaborate providing support to their clients. One participant remarked, “I believe because of the collaboration and unification through Venture Forward we are all in a better place and ready for future rapid community responses.” The post-survey results included the following: --100% of participants rated the overall effectiveness of the collaborative efforts as very or extremely effective --62.5% of participants formed new relationships with other partners Venture Forward set four goals with objectives after learning the successes and challenges during the 2020 iteration of the Task Force: 1. Create a “living” tool to coordinate crisis and continued recovery response to disaster and recovery efforts in the Chattanooga community by increasing innovative approaches to problem-solving. 2. Increase community fluency and support through COVID-19 Community Task Force identified priorities. 3. Reduce community inequity by developing inclusive strategies for neighborhood level leadership and affinity group volunteerism. 4. Increase participant and agency leadership capacity through Venture Forward. |
| Where would your project take place? | Venture Forward’s is a service of United Way of Greater Chattanooga, located on Market Street in downtown Chattanooga. We serve nonprofits in the greater Chattanooga region and have an active membership of just over 250 organizations, with 79% headquartered in Chattanooga. |
| How much will your project cost in total? | 1500000 |
| Do you have any matching funding sources from other local governments, private entities, non-profits, or philanthropic entities for your project? | Yes |
| Please describe the source and list amounts of any other funding. | United Way of Greater Chattanooga will match and/or raise the matching $500,000 annual investment to operate Venture Forward. Venture Forward respectfully requests a consideration of a commitment of $500,000 annually for 3 years (totaling $1,500,000) to support VF in achieving its mission of serving greater Chattanooga nonprofits by building their capacity to be more efficient and effective in fulfilling their missions and serving their communities. VF is the only organization in the 6-county region uniquely dedicated to serving nonprofits and their specific needs, and with your support, VF will be able to continue to serve as a catalyst for collaboration aimed at reducing duplication and increasing cooperation among nonprofits seeking to address community issues. VF’s services are critical to the success of our region’s nonprofit sector, their recovery from COVID as key service providers and employers, and the overall health of our communities. This request will double the current annual operating budget. Currently, Venture Forward can only staff one full-time director, one full-time coordinator, one part-time marketing and outreach coordinator, and a roster of paid experts. Our peer organizations in Nashville, Knoxville, and Memphis have 4-11 full time staffers and a complete bench of paid, on-call consultants that nonprofits members can utilize. To match the level of expertise and offerings of our counterparts, VF must scale up our operational funds to make a true impact on the health and resiliency of nonprofits as we recover from the impacts of COVID. |
| What portion of the project are you asking the city to fund? | 50% |
| If funded, when would your project start? | July 1, 2022 |
| How long would your project take to complete? | 3 years |
| What milestones would you use to measure your project’s progress? | VF is committed to measuring both outcomes and outputs. Outcomes are unique to each VF nonprofit member but may include enabling the nonprofit to increase the number of clients served; improve their management practices; increase their funding levels; and improve the overall capacity of the organization. VF is continuing to build a more robust approach to data gathering; nevertheless, the organization is accumulating a meaningful data set that includes: 1. Individual participant evaluations following every training; 2. Pre- and post- assessments and one-year follow-ups for all consulting engagements; 3. Year-over-year comparison of individual organizational metrics based on self-reported data; 4. Internal, VF-specific organizational metrics; and 5. Personal testimonials from program participants. Perhaps the most instructive measurement of VF’s effectiveness is the fact that in the most recent year, over 90% of VF members chose to renew their memberships. VF aims to more than double its impact over the next 3 years, by annually engaging 100 new members. This recruitment and outreach would have a specific focus on small and medium sized organizations and BIPOC-led organizations. In tandem, we recognize the dire need for programming to help build and support the pipeline of BIPOC-leadership within the nonprofit sector; according to a recent study by the Urban Institute, 97% of nonprofit board chairs and executive directors are non-Latinx white. (https://www.urban.org/urban-wire/nonprofit-leadership-out-step-americas-changing-demographics) With support of this funding, we would shift our model to provide free membership and participation in our programs for all organizations with annual operating budgets under $1,000,000, thus greatly reducing barriers to access since approximately 92% of the nonprofit community falls into this budget category. Of note, this shift in approach mirrors our colleagues Momentum Nonprofit Partners in Memphis, which dropped all fees several years ago and have meaningfully increased access and representation in the sector. (https://momentumnonprofitpartners.org/) |
| How would you ensure accountability and transparency throughout the project lifecycle? | In addition to impact metrics above, Venture Forward is committed to leading the growth and strength of the nonprofit sector, as well as providing accurate data to map our community’s assets and gaps. Inspired by our COVID reports but desiring much more robust data and design, VF would commission an annual state of the nonprofit sector report from the Ochs Center. Included in that annual report would be impact analysis of Venture Forward’s programmatic effectiveness itself, as well. This has never been done year-over-year in the greater Chattanooga region and is crucial to accomplish sector goals and provide thorough accountability and transparency with all partners, donors, advocates, volunteers, and the community. We would commission this report every year, using it to guide the health of the sector and impact of our work at VF. |
| If successful, how would your project benefit the community? | Venture Forward will invest in systems change through supporting and building the nonprofit sector's lack of capacity and systemic underinvestment. The nonprofit sector in turn will be better managed, better positioned, and stronger financially, which leads to greater operational capacity and the ability to rehire jobs lost or unable to be filled due to the pandemic. Venture Forward will work to recruit and support organizations that are historically underfunded and under-resourced to help maximize the potential for excellent fundraising, financial management training, growth and sustainability, grant research and attainment, sophisticated operating plans, the ability to self-advocate, increase leverage for community-centered assistance, and marketing to tell their stories and amplify their missions. Investing in Venture Forward pays back in dividends due to the multiplication of efforts to uplift the nonprofit sector. Rather than a dollar being spent in one place at a time, investment in VF spreads across an entire network of individuals and organizations to maximize the potential for impact, recovery, and growth in the future. During the height of COVID-19 in 2020, we saw nonprofits deeply struggle in comparison to other sectors when accessing PPP due to infrastructure requirements. Enormous waves of turnover deepened the impact of nonprofits already struggling with manpower and human capital. Investing in innovative solutions through VF will help the sector be more creative in problem solving and tackling root issues and challenges. VF is uniquely positioned to sit at intersection of business and nonprofits, bringing a business-forward mentality to nonprofits to help strengthen through a network of support rather than searching for solutions independently. |
| How will you attract community buy-in for your project? | As an initiative of United Way of Greater Chattanooga, Venture Forward (VF) has been working in its role as a non-profit capacity builder since 1999 and already enjoys a broad coalition of support--from its approximately 250 members and deep working partnerships. VF works collaboratively everyday in this community to strengthen impact in the social sector through community building, professional development, advocacy, and innovation. Its purpose is to inspire and spark innovative solutions and positive momentum for nonprofits and the community across the greater Chattanooga region. VF strengthens nonprofits and the community by sharing information, providing training and professional development, and fostering collaboration. It serves nonprofit staff, volunteers, boards, and neighborhood leadership seeking to engage with the sector. Last year, VF offered approximately 50 different workshops with over 1,100 registrants attending those courses. Course topics include nonprofit management, board development, leadership, fund development, human resources, financial management, marketing, and advocacy, among others. Additionally, VF shared over 300 nonprofit job openings on its job board, convened over 200 individuals for the COVID taskforce, and had over 650 attendees at VF’s monthly nonprofit townhalls. In 2021, VF also launched a new program “Circles” that brought together 165 nonprofit professionals to connect and learn from one another. A significant part of VF’s activities involves bringing together various nonprofits, as well as government and the business sector, to address community-wide issues. VF will strengthen advocacy efforts for the local nonprofit sector, but also invest in advocacy tools and trainings for local nonprofits to own for themselves. All that said, VF still has significant room to grow its community and approach toward impact. This funding would allow VF to hire dedicated staff for outreach, community engagement, program development to support BIPOC and grassroots leadership, among other things that would organically and responsively build community buy-in and partnerships. |
| Name | Abby Garrison, VP Community Investments United Way of Greater Chattanooga |
| Contact Information | abbygarrison@uwchatt.org |
| Name | Jeannine Carpenter, chair of Chattanooga Nonprofit Alliance |
| Contact Information | jeannine.carpenter@gmail.com |
| Name | Maryanne Cunningham, Executive Director Ochs Center |
| Contact Information | maryanne.cunningham1@gmail.com |
| Is there anything else you would like us to know about your project? | |