Collective Impact

"Collaboration is messy and time-consuming, but it is the students that truly benefit from a collective model." -- Dr. Hannah Gourgey, E3 Alliance


Today we gathered at the Austin Community Foundation to hear from the experts at E3 Alliance,  about the concept of Collective Impact - a model that is actually at the very core of Central Texas Education Funders.


Collective Impact models look for better ways to leverage limited investment dollars for greater impact. Doesn't that sound a lot like what we are trying to do with CTEF? E3 had been employing this philosophy for years without giving it a particular name. According to Susan Dawson, President & Executive Director of  E3 Alliance, a collective impact model "aligns goals, measures progress, and changes the student experience." It seems to me that through our Common Grant Application, Common Grant Report, and the growing list of Common Indicators, CTEF is addressing goals and measurements with the desired result being an improved student experience.   

BUILDING BLOCKS OF COLLABORATION

Adapted from concepts from "Collective Impact" by J. Kania & M. Kramer 

It sounds like we may be on the Collective Impact track, but first let's take a closer look at how E3 defines this model. Moving away from traditional philanthropy models that have great intentions but only an isolated impact, collective impact has a broader vision. It is a strategy to address complex social issues through focused collaboration. It is a data driven model that drives a common agenda to measure progress, and it is a community solution to impact policy and practice.


So how can funders implement this philosophy into their grantmaking? One way is to align your mission and funding priorities around a common agenda that embraces collaboration. For example, you can prioritize proposals that indicate they are part of a collective impact model. Perhaps you could even make that a criteria of receiving a grant -  hold out finds unless the grantee has joined a group that is working towards collective impact.


After hearing all this from Susan and Hannah, CTEF members had a chance to brainstorm about how to grow this movement in central Texas. Luckily, many of these ideas are things that we're working on or already exists in the area!

• Common Indicators -- even if they are not required, the suggestion is very helpful and influential
• Mapping of what programs are running where - Youth Service Mapping does this!
• A willingness to fund evaluation and research
• Frequent gatherings to help build partnerships through making connections
• Broadening reporting deadlines to allow for collaborations to work
• Consider a flexible grant writing option that would allow for a quick application deadlines
• Foster understanding about the power of collaborative funding to our boards through events that bring us all together

One powerful suggestion that is timely due to the decreased budgets that schools are working with, is to make school attendance a priority in your next grant cycle. The more kids that are in the classroom, the more funding eligibility for the school. Simply by stressing attendance in the grants that we write, we can help ensure that more funding dollars are directed to our partners. 

All in all, this was an incredibly inspiring event that reminded me of the potential power in our CTEF work. Just by being involved in this organization you are fostering the communication and collaboration necessary to bring change to the education sector. Please continue to support this mission by being an active member! 

In that spirit, we are working to make our event accessible to our members around the state! At this event we experimented with streaming live on the web. Unfortunately, it wasn't as seamless as we had hoped, but we will keep trying to find ways to improve the experience for our out-of-Austin members. The recording from that meeting is still online though, so please go and check that out!


For further information on Collective Impact please see the abstract and article on which much of this presentation was based.