Neighborhood Groups Work for Social Change, Report Says

Community Organizing Toolbox: A Funder’s Guide to Community Organizing, by Sally Covington and Larry Parachini, a report from the Washington-based Neighborhood Funders Group, surveys the work of groups nationwide that organize community members for such purposes as increasing employment opportunities, combatting crime, or improving school systems. Prepared by Sally Covington, of the National Center for Schools and Communities, and Larry Parachini, a consultant, the report seeks to inform grant makers about what the authors define as “a values-based process by which people—most often low- and moderate-income people previously absent from decision-making tables—are brought together in organizations to jointly act in the interest of their ‘communities’ and the common good.” The report’s first section provides a history of community-organizing groups, describes the differing types of organizations, and examines the work they do. Section Two explains how grant makers can help such groups, and includes advice about how to choose organizations to support and how to evaluate their proposals. In the third section, the authors provide in-depth case studies of two foundations that have awarded grants to community-organizing groups, the Hyams and the Charles Stewart Mott Foundations. Throughout the text, the authors provide short case studies of foundations and nonprofit groups. The report is available in portable document format at the Neighborhood Funders Group’s Web site.

Publisher: Neighborhood Funders Group, 1 Dupont Circle, N.W., Suite 700, Washington, D.C. 20036; (202) 833-4690; fax (202) 833-4694; nfg@nfg.org; http://www.nfg.org; 121 pages; $20.