Blog
Together We Succeed
Yes, back in the day, Reading Results was, indeed, the Portland Reading Foundation, a small scrappy nonprofit with a big idea and a tenacity to move from a founder-led organization to a more established nonprofit. Serving 11 schools and about 60 kids, Social Venture Partners took the risk and in October 2009 funded the investment.
From Encore Fellow to Board Member at KairosPDX
I accepted the nine-month Fellowship and dug in to learn as much about the financial inner-workings of KairosPDX as I could. I treated this opportunity from the perspective of a start-up not-for-profit business and asked myself what financial management structure would I want in place if I were to “invest” in KairosPDX.
Results and Targets to Kick Off 2016
In 2015, we developed Key Performance Indicators (KPI) to report activity against our four Strategic Objectives. The KPIs are intended for Board review quarterly and full Partnership review at our Annual Partners Meeting. We have highlighted several key results and targets on which to focus.
Investing in the Future: Partnering with Latino Network to Build Capacity
‘Our newly enhanced infrastructure is starting to give us the strong base we need to keep growing,’ - Carmen Rubio, Latino Network Executive Director.Nearing its 20th anniversary of providing culturally specific solutions to the Latino Community, Latino Network had reached a critical crossroads. In working with SVP Partners to plan growth strategy it had become apparent, given expected growth in its programs and client population, that an investment in organizational capacity was needed. Supporting Latino Network to reach its potential meant investing in an administrative infrastructure that could support growth in its highly successful programs.
SVP's First Investment Remembered
It was a great partnership between SVP Portland and Morrison. It served as a role model for many years. In the end, we accomplished all that we had intended. Our biggest impact was actually on the financial side: we put in a new financial system that vastly improved their billing cycles, outsourced their building maintenance (saving $50K/quarter), and revamped their real estate management. Overall we calculated we did all of the above and saved them almost $2 million over the four years. We also contributed many, many hours of volunteer time. I can’t recall the total.
Updates & Reflections on Year 1 of KairosPDX Investment
A year ago, we set an extremely ambitious agenda for our capacity-building investment with KairosPDX. Nine generous and expert Partners and one highly talented Encore Fellow joined our team to “roll up our sleeves” across five+ capacity goals. What follows is some of the measurable progress we’ve made so far and what lies ahead for year two.
2015 Year-End Message: Here's My Dream
While I offer endless thank yous as well, we take responsibility for results at SVP, so it’s equally important that I share where we still need to stretch.
Progress and Priorities, Fall 2015
We continue to focus and increase our effort in driving numbers one and two but we have just begun to scratch the surface of the significant funding alignment role that we must play. Thus, we have set the following 2016 priorities to take important next steps to increasing that effort.
Investing in High-Quality Pre-K
After an intensive due diligence process, I went before SVP’s Capacity Investment Team with the final investment proposal agreed upon by TPP’s leadership and the SVP investment team. A 9-month, $5,000 investment was approved, including an SVP Partner volunteer effort to help develop a strategic plan, a marketing & communications plan and business plan. We now begin the search for a Lead Partner!
A Story Like Mine
SVP Investee The Children's Book Bank officially launched their A Story Like Mine project with an event at fellow SVP Investee, Kairos PDX with Latino Network and the Native American Youth and Family Center on Multicultural Diversity Day, Monday, October 19. The project is focused on better meeting the needs of the children by making more culturally diverse books available.
Laying the Foundation for Success
In May, a team of SVP Partners and volunteers was formed to partner with Latino Network staff and explore the ways in which Juntos Aprendemos—their early childhood program—could be scaled. Juntos Aprendemos prepares low‐income Spanish‐speaking children for success in kindergarten through classes that promote their cognitive, social, emotional and physical development, while in parent classes their mothers and fathers learn effective ways to support their children’s learning.
Re-investing in the Native American Youth and Family Center
I am pleased to share that SVP’s Capacity Investment Team--the group of Partners in charge of overseeing SVP's community investments--has approved the reinvestment proposal co-developed this summer by the Native American Youth and Family Center (NAYA) and the SVP Reinvestment Team. Our investment includes an additional two years of Partner time and expertise and a $50,000 general operating grant ($25,000 each year, contingent upon strong partnership progress).
Guiding Collaboration for a Common Goal
This unique investment is testing how SVP’s human capital can be utilized to facilitate improved coordination and collaboration among key early childhood players, ultimately increasing their ability to leverage each organization’s strengths for greater community impact. SVP Partners Bill and Kieren Porter are leading this investment.
Experiencing the Impact of Project Impact
Lizzie Martinez is an SVP Rising Leader and the Director of Development and Communications at Latino Network. She represented LatNet in their SVP-sponsored participation in Project Impact, a workshop series to help non-profits measure and improve their community impact.
My Journey as a Lead Partner
The Lead Partner plays a key role in Social Venture Partners’ venture philanthropy partnerships. The Lead is the primary liaison between an Investee and the SVP Partnership, and is pivotal to developing an effective, collaborative relationship and an impactful investment. This role requires regular attention to the relationships with Investee leaders and Partner volunteers, an eagerness to learn, good communication skills, and the ability to build a strong team.
Expanding Early Childhood Education at Adelante Mujeres
Adelante Mujeres is excited to announce that our Early Childhood Education (ECE) program is gearing up to serve more children. Our new partnership with the Oregon Child Development Coalition’s (OCDC) Head Start program will allow us to more than double the number of children we serve and expand the services we provide.
SVP Portland Status Report
There are 45,000 children under 6 years old in Multnomah County and 130,000 throughout Portland metro. To achieve the “all children ready” goal, we need to focus on those most affected by barriers to successful starts in school: children of color and English Language Learners (ELL) who are living in poverty. (See why below.) That gives us a total population of 17,000 children in Multnomah County and 35,000 metro-wide. Currently our investments are reaching an estimated 4,300 total children under 6 years of age.
Success with Small Bets
One of the key kindergarten readiness strategies that emerged from the Ready for Kindergarten (R4K) Collaborative was Transition to Kindergarten. This strategy has focused on creating an effective transition for children entering kindergarten (particularly those who have received little or no prior formalized childcare or preschool) and to help prepare families and schools for kindergartners.