E. Theory of Change
The East Bay Community Foundation believed that public education about the true impacts of Proposition 54 was critical in defeating it. The foundation's efforts focused on changing the rhetoric from hysteria around race to the everyday, practical consequence of the proposition such as impacts on epidemiology and health care. The foundation felt that these messages would be persuasive among donors and grantees.
F. Outcomes (impacts)
The foundation's involvement in the fight against Proposition 54 has prepared the organization to have a more proactive attitude. The organization - its staff and trustees - see that its role is more than taking in and passing out money. As a community foundation, it has an obligation to actively work toward supporting inclusion and equal opportunities in its target region.
The foundation's experience on the Proposition 54 campaign is one of a series of steps the East Bay Community Foundation has continued to take to transform itself into a "catalyst organization" aimed at providing leadership in important issues of public policy surrounding festering, long-term, or controversial community problems.
This transformation squarely involves the foundation in conceptualizing campaigns, convening stakeholders, brokering alliances, creating financial support, attracting talent, and providing guidance, leadership, and oversight.
As part of this transformation, the foundation is currently in the initial stages of defining its role in two important public policy initiatives:
Systemic reform of the juvenile justice system aimed at addressing inequities that sometimes create a downward spiral of encounters between the system and minority youth; and
A fundamental redesign of the Oakland Unified School District in order to restore it to educational and fiscal integrity.
G. Lessons Learned
The East Bay Community Foundation's experience demonstrates the importance of building consensus and agreement within a foundation before public policy activities are taken on. Once the October 2003 recall election was confirmed, opponents to Proposition 54 had little time to galvanize support against the measure. In the absence of the recall election, the initiative would have appeared on the spring 2004 ballot, giving organizers and advocates an additional five months to work on the issues. The huge and sudden ramp up of activities within the foundation resulted in some internal challenges. Decisions on what activities to engage in were often needed with little notice and little time for board deliberation. The foundation's experiences in the LBE process were invaluable in this situation. Because trustees and staff had already had deep conversations about the importance of uplifting equity issues in their work, the board understood the urgency of fighting Proposition 54 and authorized foundation staff to take action without strict board oversight as time necessitated. Although the foundation is small (with a total of 18 staff members at the time), a tremendous effort was put into responding to this time sensitive matter. All foundation staff was involved in some way. Again, this work was a reflection of the value and commitment to equity which crystallized through the LBE participation.
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