Equity & Grantmaking Impact Group
Grantmaking practice is an opportunity for justice.
Equity & Grantmaking Impact Group
The last few years have made it increasingly clear that the challenges of our education system cannot be sustainably addressed simply through more programs or scaled interventions, no matter how impactful. Education sits within an interconnected set of social, economic and policy systems that are systemically unjust. If we are committed to furthering racial justice in education, educational philanthropists must be part of deeper conversations about what needs to change within systems as well as within grantmaking itself.
Based on interest and feedback from members, Grantmakers for Education launched a new impact group in 2022 focused on equitable grantmaking practice. EdFunders believes that how we do philanthropy is as critical to moving forward commitments to racial justice and equity as what we fund. This group was formed to provide space for education funders to learn together about their practice and integrate more focus on equitable grantmaking into EdFunders programming overall.
The impact group launched with several organization-wide programs and a six-month learning community for close to 40 funders in 2022. In 2023, the impact group is broadening its programming for the entire EdFunders community to help inform funders about key issues in conversations about equitable grantmaking and create space for funders to engage with one another on how to shift practice. Programming will include webinars, in-person conference events, peer consultancies, funder meetups and practice-oriented podcast content.
Impact Group Goals
- Explore the root causes behind inequities in the education system and funders’ role in upending inequities.
- Build community among education grantmakers interested in implementing more equitable grantmaking practices.
- Create a peer learning space for funders to share challenges, work through ideas and provide feedback to one another.
- Explore strategies for shifting the way we fund, who we fund and how we engage and partner with the organizations and leaders we fund.
- Drive an equity agenda through our grantmaking, acknowledging that these ideas intersect and impact one another.
If you are interested in learning more, contact Rebecca Goldberg, impact group facilitator, at rgoldberg@edfunders.org.
More Impact & Learning Groups
Arts
Education
We pursue national support for educational experiences in the arts and culture making these available to youth through member advocacy and professional development.
Equity & Grantmaking
We learn in community with members about changes funders can make to their investments and grantmaking practices in order to more equitably serve young people and communities.
Learning, Evaluation
and Data
We empower deeper engagement among members to collect, interpret, value and act on educational data to improve philanthropic practice, policies and strategies.
Out-of-School
Time
We create space for members and practitioners to stay connected and informed of evolving needs in the Out-of-School Time field and create ongoing conversations about how funders can respond.
Postsecondary Access
and Attainment
We work to increase the number of learners who access and complete postsecondary education or training, with a focus on historically underserved populations.