Alaska Board Match is an online match tool created to help nonprofits establish more diverse, inclusive, and welcoming board rooms. This site also assists in pairing Alaskans ready to serve local nonprofits in need of board members. Have you created an account for your organization? Find your next high performing board member today!… Read more »

Alaska Board Match is an online match tool created to help nonprofits establish more diverse, inclusive, and welcoming board rooms. This site also assists in pairing Alaskans ready to serve local nonprofits in need of board members. Alaska Board Match is designed to address barriers to access of information, networks, and resources. Unfortunately, there is a historical gap in the demographics of many boards and the populations they serve. There is an increased demand nationwide to identify, recruit, and retain qualified candidates from under-represented groups who are diverse in race, age, gender, and lived experience. Also, a growing number of volunteers want to put their professional and personal skills to use in their communities. You can find the site here.    … Read more »

In June, we debuted our From Bias to Belonging℠ services and stated again our commitment to talking about and doing something about the very real challenges of diversity, equity, and belonging in the nonprofit sector. Indeed, every day in some way we are dedicated to looking deeper, to asking more questions, to listening more, and to learning more. That is our path, and this is the work – to take the lessons learned, turn them into new goals that stretch us, then achieve them, then tackle the next set, and the next. At Foraker, we acknowledge that as a capacity builder we must constantly be learning what the data and our experiences tell us while we meet people and missions where they are. We talk internally about our work as… Read more »

The right people at the right time to move your mission forward – this is how we approach our work at Foraker. It is a central tenant in the Foraker Nonprofit Sustainability Model and it applies to both board and staff. Beyond a slogan, this idea encapsulates the work of planned succession for both board and leadership staff, addresses the essential relationship between the board and the CEO, and aligns the goals and values of the organization with the people in charge of stewarding those ideas. Importantly, it also speaks to the necessity for representation in all our leadership spaces. There is a historic and current gap between the demographics of most boards and leadership staff – based on race, age, gender, and experience – and the populations they serve…. Read more »

Our core values are reflected in our acknowledgement of the land where we live, our commitment to serving nonprofits and tribes in urban and rural Alaska, and our obligation to address the systemic racism and oppression that is deeply rooted in our history as a state. It is from this, that we begin our understanding of the oppressive systems and structures in our sector that impact people. For some time now, the Foraker board and staff have been exploring what it means to be a diverse, equitable, and inclusive organization. The following is a high-level summary of the five tenants that describe our commitment. We are part of the journey. We believe we are a catalyst. We recognize that our understanding will deepen and grow and that no single path… Read more »

The work of change is loud and strong and in the street. It is also quiet and subtle and continuous. It is inside and outside. It is in a person’s head and body and soul and woven throughout an institution’s culture – glimmering in its people, practices, and principals. It is personal and collective. It is not about better or worse ways. It is not about ending or stopping but about starting and momentum. It is about the commitment to change. It will take all of us. Some things will be simple and obvious, but mostly it is hard, and it is worth it. We each begin this journey in different places so the idea that there is one way might be a good way to sell something or promise… Read more »

Talking about and even doing something about the very real challenges of diversity and equity in the nonprofit sector is not a new topic for us and for many others across the country. And yet, the challenges remain. When I became CEO five years ago, Foraker took an additional step to advance our work by making diversity and equity central tenants in our plans. While we have taken many steps, we are far from where we want to be and where our sector needs to be for lasting change. Still, we have endeavored to bring thoughtful leadership, compelling data, and a range of national experts on the topic to Alaska’s nonprofits to not only keep the conversation going but to incite true reflection and change. Admittedly we have struggled because… Read more »

Take a minute and picture your dream team – both board and staff. Got it? Okay. Why? Why are they your dream team? Is it because of their skills or their approach? Or their experience or their understanding of the world? Or their connection to mission? Or their ability to ask hard questions? Or their ability to get along? Or something else? Jot down a few thoughts. Now ask yourself: Does your dream team reflect your mission, the issues, the community, and the context in which mission and your larger cause operates in the world? The challenge for most nonprofits – maybe including yours – is that the answer currently is no. Addressing the challenge of creating a diverse team is an important part of our decision making tool, the… Read more »