For Nonprofit Organizations

The New Philanthropists (TNP) has developed a Board Matching Program founded in the values that support our mission to create a more racially diverse, equitable and inclusive nonprofit board sector. As a nonprofit organization, this program is designed to help you gauge your board’s readiness for matching with a board prospect of color, and provide you with the necessary resources to strengthen or begin your board’s diversity, equity and inclusion journey.  At TNP we believe in creating a cultural shift on boards that challenges institutional systems and fosters diversity, equity and inclusion. As a nonprofit organization, we value your commitment and willingness to take on the work it takes to transform governance.

Overview of the process

As part of our comprehensive approach, The Board Matching program is focused on closing the diversity gap within nonprofit boards. TNP is committed to placing board prospects of color primarily with nonprofit boards that have ignited, are accountable for and hold a high-degree for creating a culture of inclusion, where diversity and equity are ingrained into their practices. Concurrently, we identify and train leaders of color who are best suited for these nonprofit boards and who will be advocates of our mission.

The Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Journey

You might have asked yourself by now, “Why does TNP keep referring to a journey?” We know that referral systems do not work for diverse board recruitment and that in order to create a cultural shift on your board you have to be intentional and strategic in your approach.  We refer to this transformative work as a DEI journey.  Specifically, there are two journeys that take place through our programming: an internal journey that leads each board member into understanding where they are in their cultural competency and an organizational journey that helps the board as a group understand their baseline and the direction that needs to be taken as a collective.  

Outcomes

There’s a lot of work to do and we’re just getting started! It all begins with cultivating relationships within Latinx, Black, and Asian communities and serving as a matching source for nonprofit boards and board prospects within those communities. However, matchmaking for us goes way beyond a checkbox. At TNP, we understand that in order to make our impact sustainable we must work from the inside out to educate, empower, and uphold responsible nonprofits and leaders of color on the importance of diversity and the benefits that result from it.

  • Fulfill TNP’s mission to build a pipeline to leadership for people of color, cultivate diversity, equity and inclusion among mainstream nonprofit boards, and enable nonprofits to be more effective stewards of public trust and produce better outcomes for the people they serve.
  • Increase the effectiveness of nonprofit boards through diversity and inclusion 
  • Increase representation and expand on informed decision making 
  • Increase relationships among mainstream nonprofits and communities of color
  • Increase access and opportunities for BIPOC board prospects
  • Increased engaged community members
  • Board candidates learn to navigate Austin nonprofit boards and become advocates of the TNP mission
  • Decrease cultural missteps 
  • Create cultural shifts on boards that disrupt institutional racism

Your Commitment

  • Nonprofits must commit to the Board Matching program and its goals.
  • Nonprofits must be looking to get matched before the end of the year. 
  • Nonprofits must complete the full application (incomplete applications will not be considered.)
  • Nonprofits must complete the *Board Diversity Analysis. This analysis helps determine how well your board forsters diversity equity and inclusion. Here are some sample questions and information needed: 
    – Your board’s racial and gender demographic make-up.
    – Do you require your board members to attend a yearly diversity/unconscious bias training? 
    – How many organizations do you partner with that provide support to marginalized communities?      
    *Some nonprofits may not be able to answer these questions or know they need to do some work before applying. We encourage you to proceed with completing the Board Diversity Analysis in order to understand what is lacking for your board structure and how TNP can be a resource to you in order to begin or strengthen your DEI journey. 
  • Nonprofits must commit to utilizing the TNP match making process.
  • Nonprofits must commit to using the TNP toolkits and/or guides 
  • Nonprofits must commit to providing feedback throughout the program, including post placement.

The Application