Fund for Santa Barbara 2020 Annual Report

2020 Annual Report

A Note From Marcos:

Our 40th anniversary year will forever be remembered as a year of transformation and growth through challenge. Marked by a global pandemic, a national uprising for racial justice and accountability, and a presidential election that challenged us to protect democracy against the threat of fascism and authoritarianism— 2020 will be remembered for all of the ways it compelled us to adapt and question how we coexist within a larger eco-system. Despite being apart, we got through the past year together.

2020 served as a clear validation of the need for our critical work as a trusted table along the Central Coast, and reasserted our commitment to advancing progressive change by strengthening movements for social, political, economic and environmental justice.

Reflecting on a uniquely unprecedented year, my most heartfelt appreciation goes out to the progressive collective that comprises The Fund for Santa Barbara. The FUND’s work could not be carried out without our talented staff, the leadership of our Board of Directors, our activist-led Grant Making Committee, our truly inspiring Youth Making Change Cohorts, the enduring support of our donors and the foundations that sustain us, and the pivotal work of our grantees and partner organizations. As we forge a path forward, let us reimagine what is possible as we actively work to create a future that is just and equitable for all.

In Solidarity,

Marcos Vargas Executive Director 2

Our Mission: Advancing progressive change by strengthening movements for social, political, economic, and environmental justice.

Our Strategies:

Influence Philanthropy

Nurture Coalitions by being a hub for collaborative efforts and serving as a trusted table to convene people and groups for strategy, resource sharing, and inspiration.

Make Grants to community groups and coalitions across the region supporting long-term movements and emerging needs.

to support community organizing and movement building.

Build Capacity of progressive organizations to help them be bold and effective.

Develop Movement Leadership

so that social justice movements and the progressive philanthropy sector look like the communities we serve: diverse, intergenerational, and values-driven.

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1980

1980: A group of Santa Barbara donors and activists established the FUND FOR SANTA BARBARA to support organizations in Santa Barbara County working for progressive social change.

1983: As a form of development, a paid part-time staff position was created, and members of the community were invited to serve on an advisory board which later became the Board of Directors.

1980-1985: The FUND was fiscally sponsored by the Liberty Hill Foundation of Los Angeles.

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1988: The first full-time Executive Director was hired.

1985:The FUND became an independent 501(c)3 non-profit.

1996: The FUND became an affiliate of The Funding Exchange, by then a national network of 15 progressive foundations across the country.

1992: The Board of Directors established an Endowment Fund for the Future.

2000: The FUND began a partnership with the Santa Barbara International Film Festival to present an annual Social Justice Award for Documentary Film.

1997: The FUND began funding non-501(c)3 organizations.

2003: The MultiYear Grant Program was established and implemented.

2001: A staff member was hired to specifically work in, and address the needs of North and Mid County Communities.

2003: An office was opened in Santa Maria to better serve North and Mid County communities.

2020 Led by a dramatic increase in foundation partnerships and a rise in individual donor support, the last 5 years have seen a sharp increase in total income totaling $8.6+ million— a validation of the need, and support of the FUND’s work.

2008: The Youth Making Change program was launched in order to give young people the opportunity to learn about philanthropy 2011: Established through the act of the Central grant-making.

Coast Human Rights Fund.

2005: For the 25th anniversary of the FUND, a film was produced to document a quarter century of work and communitybuilding.

2010: Established the Clean Energy Fund.

2015: Divested the FUND’s stocks from the fossil fuel industry and called upon other foundations to engage in stockholder activism to address Climate Change.

2013: The FUND demonstrates its commitment to capacity building by hiring its first technical assistance program manager.

2018: The FUND undertook a comprehensive evaluation and 5 year strategic planning process to map out the organizations's future.

2017: The FUND, In partnership with the Santa Barbra Independent, launches SB Gives.

2019 2017 Over 3 years, SB Gives raised $1,015,817 in support of local nonprofits.

2019: The FUND convened the first Central Coast Funders Briefing on Environmental and Climate Justice.

2018: As a response to dramatic rise in threats to the immigrant community, the FUND established the Immigrant Legal Defense Fund and convened the Immigrant Legal Defense Collaborative.

2020: Amidst a global pandemic, the FUND celebrates its 40th anniversary.

2020: Established the Mickey Flacks Social Housing Fund to support housing justice efforts in our region.

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$350,000+ Grant Funds Distributed

2020 By the Numbers:

300+

Groups served through capacity building initiatives

15

Workshops Convened/Co-Convened

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56

Grants Awarded

1,000+

Hours of free consulting

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Activist Brown Bag Lunches

Going Digital:

Despite being apart, we got through 2020 together

From staff check-ins, to Grant Making Committee meetings, capacity building workshops, Grant Awards Celebrations, Youth Making Change retreats— and everything in between— we stayed connected, and carried on our vital work, digitally.

The culmination of our virtual experience took place safely and boldly online at our 27th annual Bread & Roses Community Celebration. While we certainly missed being physically together, it was an honor to have Jane Fonda and Dolores Huerta join us in virtual community as our special guests.

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Central Coast Regional Equity Study The Fund for Santa Barbara, in partnership with the UCSB Blum Center on Poverty, Inequality, and Democracy, and the USC Equity Research Institute launched the first Central Coast Regional Equity Study in the course of 2020-21. The goal of this research project is to deepen our understanding of regional disparities, facilitate a region-wide conversation, and support the planning and implementation of initiatives focused on advancing social, health, environmental, and economic equity. Covering Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, the study is designed to yield a periodically updated equity database, of use for teaching, research, policy, and action. The initial data compilation component of this two-county regional project was initiated in the summer of 2020.

Over the past several decades, socio-economic inequality has been on the rise, manifesting as disparities in income, employment, education, and health that affect communities of color in Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties. The depth of these systemic inequities has been both revealed and deepened by the pandemic. They also put equity at the forefront of our priorities as we set our sights toward recovery, and a future of genuinely shared, environmentally sustainable prosperity. The Central Coast Regional Equity Study uses rigorous, community engaged research both to bring socioeconomic inequities—and the price we pay for them—to light, and to establish concrete guideposts for regional equity. A roll out of the study's findings is anticipated in the second half of 2021.

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BUILDING A ROAD TO RECOVERY THROUGH AN EQUITY LENS

Our Collaborations Effective movements for progressive change require the work of multiple organizations working together in partnership and collaboration. In 2020 the FUND led and/or actively participated in numerous collaborative efforts as part of our movement building strategy.

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Central Coast Climate Justice Network Central Coast Immigration Network Central Coast Regional Equity Study Latinx & Indigenous Migrant COVID-19 Response Task Force Lompoc Prison Task Force Regional Capacity Building Collaborative SCF Funder Champs for Proposition 15 Santa Barbara Foundation Roundtable Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties Funders Forum

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Grant Making We believe that significant social changes require broad participation in, and democratic control of all social, political and economic institutions. Social conditions improve most dramatically when people organize on their own behalf, form alliances with other like-minded people & organizations, and build coalitions to confront and change the conditions that have denied them access, equity, and justice. The FUND gives preference to projects that address the root causes of social, economic, environmental, and political problems. We provide seed grants to new grassroots projects; general support or project grants to small organizations; and targeted grants to larger, more established organizations.

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Spring Grants Allan Hancock College / Beyond Incarceration Greater Education (BIGE) Club - $10,000 Children and Family Resource Services / Positive Solutions for Families - $10,000 Cultural and Creative Arts Center of the Santa Maria Valley / Corazón del Pueblo / ART-vocacy: Raising the Immigrant Latino Voice through the Arts $10,000 Conflict Solutions Center of SB County / Restorative Justice Training and Expansion - $10,000 Family Service Agency / Adelante Guadalupe! - $7,500 House of Pride and Equality (HOPE)/Casa de Orgullo e Igualdad (ESPERANZA) / Community Visibility and Awareness - $2,000 INCLUSION SYV / Education Task Force - $9,000 Santa Barbara Alternatives to Violence Project (SBAVP) / Referral System - $5,000 Santa Barbara County Action Network (SBCAN) / Youth ARTS Alive - $10,000 Santa Barbara County Action Network (SBCAN) / General Operating Support - $4,000 Santa Barbara Friends Meeting / Truth in Recruitment (TIR) - $10,000 Transitions-Mental Health Association / LEAD - $7,500

Since its inception in 1980, the FUND has given more than 8 million dollars to local grassroots community-based organizations.

Donor Advised Grants Future Leaders of America / 805 Undocufund - $12,000 Family Service Agency / Little House by the Park Census Outreach - $7,155 League of Women Voters Santa Barbara / Schools and Communities First - $7,500 Santa Barbara County Action Network (SBCAN) / General Operating Support - $10,000 Standing Together to End Sexual Assault (STESA) / Ending Sexual Trafficking of Youth - $7,500

Youth Making Change - North County CAUSE Youth Committee / Taste the Change! - $1,400 CE’ENI Club / International Women’s Day /A Celebration of Indigenous Women’s Resistance - $2,014 FLAMA / Educational Fair - $2,200 Full STEAM Ahead / The Amazing STEAM Race - $1,490 PVHS Gender and Sexuality Alliance / Paris is Burning Fashion Show – $1,582 Fesler Jr. High Gender and Sexuality Alliance / Pride Week - $1,140 Guadalupe Leo Ambassadors Club / Aprendiendo en Familia – $2,974 Spanish Honors Society / Alivio al Estrés - $2,200 Youth Making Change - South County Everybody Dance Now! / Teen Leadership Program- $2,330 Hermanos Unidos & Sigma Alpha Zeta / The College Link Outreach Program - $1,500 In Lak'ech Club / Siempre Unidos Conference - $3,000 ProgramHers / ProgramHers - $2,200 Voices of the Community / Her Festival - $3,000 Youth Leadership Council / Big & Little Pal Spring Break Mentoring Camp - $3,000

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Immigrant Legal Defense Fund Allan Hancock College / Building Immigration Legal Counseling and Assistance Capacity - $10,000 Santa Barbara County Legal Defense Center / Santa Barbara Immigrant Removal Defense Project - $31,000 Fall Multi-Year Grants Equalitech / General Operating Support - (2020 $10,000), (2021 $10,000), (2022 $10,000) Independent Living Resource Center / Rapid Response Committee - (2020 $8,763), (2021 $8,763), (2022 $8,763) Santa Barbara Alternatives to Violence / AVP leadership takes to the streets - (2020 $10,000), (2021 $10,000), (2022 $10,000)

Emerging Needs Grants AHA! / Spanish Language Social-Emotional Learning Program - $5,000 Community Environmental Council / Community Ambassador Resilience and Equity Response (CARER) - $5,000 Cooperation Santa Barbara / Building Cooperation Santa Barbara - $5,000 Cultural and Creative Arts Center of the Santa Maria Valley / Somos Esenciales - $5,000 Equalitech / Digital and Language Literacy Program - $5,000 Future Housing Communities / Urgent Need for Effective Communication Strategies to Fight Two Crises - $5,000 Future Leaders of America / 805 Undocufund - $5,000 Girls Inc. of Carpinteria / COVID-19 Emergency Response - $5,000 House of Pride and Equality (HOPE) / Showing Up for Racial Justice - Santa Maria (SURJ-SM) - $5,000 La Casa de la Raza / Covid-19 Service Gaps to the Latina/Latino Community - $5,000 Lompoc-Vandenberg Branch, American Association of University Women / Virtual Dual Language Candidate Forums - $2,640 Lower Westside Community Center / ADA 30th Anniversary Committee - $1,174 Nuclear Age Peace Foundation / Peace Literacy Community of Practice - $3,000 Save Our Solvang / Save Our Solvang, Yes on Measure (Urban Growth Boundary) - $3,000

$356,284

Grants distributed in 2020:

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Independent Living Resource Center

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Mission: to promote independent living and full access for individuals with disabilities through advocacy, education and action in our communities.

Project: Rapid Response Committee Funding timeline: $8,763 annual distribution in 2020, 2021, 2022 Funding to create a consumer-led Rapid Response Committee.

Through the operation of the committee, ILRC hopes to make a significant impact on policy that affects programs and services for people with disabilities.

"There are very few foundations whose operating values are to support work in systemic social change.

With the FUND's support, ILRC has been able to assist consumers to learn how to self advocate, as well as to interact with policymakers. This vital work has resulted in changes that support the ability of people with disabilities to have equal access to their communities. The Fund's continued support allows us to keep expanding the work we are doing to create equitably accessible communities."

- Brian Hollander, Program Manager 13

Equalitech

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In order to continue to thoroughly support the community's needs through turbulent times, funding will pay for necessary operating expenses which will allow Equalitech to focus on educational programs that benefit the wider community.

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Project: General Support for Goleta Valley Tech Center Funding timeline: $10,000 annual distribution in 2020, 2021, 2022

"As we have for four years now, Equalitech continues to evolve based on constituent and community needs. For The FUND to say that we are worthy of three years of grants is a wonderful validation of the immense amount of work we have done during this pandemic year, from loaning laptops to community members, to helping the city with the Census push, to expanding our staff to meet the online need for device literacy skills. The FUND’s grant is crucial to our continued growth and importance."

Danny Fitzgibbons, Executive Director

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Mission: is to remove barriers to learning, career opportunities and life skills by expanding free access to technology and education.

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Santa Barbara Alternatives to Violence Project

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Funding to train AVP youth helping peers to expand program into Santa Maria and Lompoc. This expansion will also work to adapt to the specific challenges youth are facing as a result of the pandemic.

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Project: Alternatives to Violence Leadership Takes to the Streets $10,000 annual distribution in 2020, 2021, 2022

"Knowing that the FUND is looking to SBAVP to give voice to this population of immigrant families with high school youth gives them skills and impetus to speak up for what is needed and to be seen as part of this community.

Training teens to do this provides a voice to the future.

This validation and three-year commitment by the FUND will open doors and pockets in order to respond to already received invitations to move into North County, expanding the county-wide impact of AVP." - Pat Hardy, Executive Director/Co-founder

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Mission: To empower people to lead nonviolent lives through affirmation, respect for all, community building, cooperation and trust

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Mission: Promote creative expression in the performing, visual and literary arts, preserving the heritages that make our multicultural futures powerful.

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Cultural and Creative Arts Center of the Santa Maria Valley

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Project: Somos Esenciales — $5,000 in funding used to create a mural in downtown Santa Maria and advocate for farmworkers who are deemed as essential workers but not being protected as such.

In 2020 we tripled our

In 2020 we tripled our Emerging Needs Grants increased the maximum In 2020 we tripled our budgetInand increased theour 2020 we tripled award amount to $5,000 in and Emerging Needs budget maximum award amount to and Emerging Needs budget order increased to better address the the maximum $5,000 in order to increased thebetter maximum unforeseen, extraordinary award amount to $5,000 in address theamount unforeseen, award to $5,000 in needs exacerbated by thethe order to better address extraordinary needs order to better address the pandemic. unforeseen, extraordinary exacerbated byextraordinary the unforeseen, needs exacerbated by the pandemic. needs exacerbated by the

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"The Emerging Needs Grant helped us to execute the Somos Esenciales project, highlighting the experiences of our farmworker communities during this critical time. Funding support was crucial in providing meaningful opportunities for local artists and young people. We are excited that through this work, we were able to expand the project to include collaborations with Cal Poly and Allan Hancock College."

- Alex Espinoza-Kulick, Executive Director

Enseñanzas de la Cultivación - Alberto Miguel Vazquez This mural appears at 617 W. Main Street in Santa Maria, California 17

Nancy Alexander Founder's Award The 2nd annual Founder’s Award, was awarded posthumously to beloved activist, Mickey Flacks. Her husband, Dick Flacks, received the award on her behalf at Bread & Roses.

During her 50 years in Santa Barbara, Mickey devoted herself to the advancement of social justice and democracy. She understood access to affordable housing and tenants rights as foundational to achieving the betterment of her beloved community, and eloquently argued for social housing —housing developed for people’s needs rather than for the market. In this spirit, the Fund for Santa Barbara is proud to carry on Mickey’s commitment to housing equity by way of the Mickey Flacks Social Housing Fund.

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Youth at the Center of Movements for Social Change

F ir e b r a n d At our Bread & Roses Community Celebration, the inaugural Firebrand Award was presented to local youth activists, Shakir Ahmad and Talia Hamilton. Their outstanding leadership was instrumental in organizing and mobilizing youth around racial justice and Black Lives Matter.

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"YMC has given me the chance to make change in my community by improving youth lives. It's made me a better social activist which has gotten me more involved in the community and given me more connections."

- Achante, North County Facilitator

"I joined YMC because I wanted to get a better understanding of what was going on in my community. Particularly, with people who have a different life experience than my own. I also wanted to learn how to make this community better in a real sustainable way."

- Roz, South County Facilitator 20

"I joined YMC to be able to directly impact my community. YMC has taught be how to find my voice and advocate for myself and others."

- Karissa, South County Facilitator

"YMC has given me the opportunity to become friends with people from different backgrounds and people that are passionate about different facets of social change.

My experience has also given me a new perspective on my community and what can be done to improve the lives of members of my community."

- Joelene, North County Facilitator 21

"By supporting The Fund for Santa Barbara, I support the community where I live and where I'm raising my children. It's important to me to reinvest locally, and I love that the FUND empowers grassroots organizations looking to make a difference. Knowing that I am helping fuel progressive change where I live is powerful, and the FUND targets the people and organizations that are most in need, and most ready to make an impact" - Alexis Weaver

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2020 Financial Summary Revenue

Expenses

Foundation Grants: $827,600 Fundraising Events: $167,199 Individual Donors: $487,934 Total: $1,482,733

Administration: $205,640 Fundraising & Development: $181,920 Grants & Sponsorships: $361,299 Program: $657,483 Total: $1,406,342

Fundraising Events 11.3% Individual Donors 32.9%

Administration 14.6%

Program 46.8%

Grants & Sponsorships 25.7%

Foundation Grants 55.8%

Fundraising & Development 12.9%

*the numbers presented as part of this report are pre-audit and subject to change. This is not an official statement of financial activities.

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We Envision A region that is environmentally, economically, and politically interconnected — where we understand and appreciate our interdependencies, our differences, and our mutual responsibilities.

A region where power and resources are distributed equitably, empowering everyone to participate in making decisions that affect them.

A community free of exploitation and oppression — one marked by optimism, joyous struggle, a spirit of problem solving, and a sense of belonging.

A community that encourages risk and innovation in the service of justice.

A collection of communities each proud of its own identity and committed to sharing a common destiny.

Join Us.

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Our Team Staff: Marcos Vargas Executive Director Patricia Solorio Associate Director Kristin Hsu Development Associate Lennea Lopez Administrative Assistant David Melendrez YMC Coordinator Alina Rey Keswani Dev. & Comms. Manager Tania Reyes Grants Associate Stanley Tzankov Capacity Building Manager Hugo Valdovinos Operations Supervisor Interns: Carmen Bordofsky Cali Poeu Huynh Rose Hoang Cristhy Olivera Perez Sara Viskanta

Board of Directors: Rev. Julia Hamilton President Kate Adams Vice President David Landecker Vice President Donna Will Treasurer Jennifer Hooten Secretary Maria Garcia-Cacique GMC Liaison Ruth Ackerman Marsha Bailey Diane Fujino Chelsea Lancaster Alejandra Mahoney LeeAnne McNulty Alice O'Connor Andrew Oman Pedro Paz Ted Rhodes Gloria Soto Susan Wax Alexis Weaver Honorary Board: Nancy Alexander, Founder Susan Bower (in Memoriam) Carnzu Clark (in Memoriam) Sevren Coon Nancy Franco

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Grant Making Commitee: Jennifer Navarro Co-Chair Suzanne Valery Co-Chair Emily Allen Feliciano Aguilar Maria Garcia-Cacique Lupita Cervantes Brian Hollander JP Herrada Rachel Johnson Lawanda Lyons-Pruitt Wendi Pacheco Lucerito Salgado Vickey Smith Bob Thiel Susan Wax Board Liaison Bill Skeen (In Memoriam)

Susan Jørgensen Don Olson Katy Peake (in Memoriam) David Peri Susan Rose

Youth Making Change North County Board: Achante Smith Facilitator Joelene Velasco Facilitator Adan Garcia Alicia Vasquez Andres Ramirez-Enriquez Carlos Gonzalez Cristhy Olivera Demarie Diel Eduardo Salgado Graciela Lopez Harry Mullin Jamielynne Lomibao Jasmin Olivera Jesus Martinez Jimena Zepeda Zarate Katrina Rodriguez Mickayla Piñon Olivia Patterson Sean Knowlton-Moyers Tiffany Vuong Wendy Chavez

Selma Rubin (in Memoriam) Naomi Schwartz (in Memoriam) Sarah Shoresman (in Memoriam) Herman Warsh (in Memoriam) Nancy Weiss

Youth Making Change South County Board: Karissa Fields Facilitator Roz Borah Facilitator Alexandra Mora Alina Villa Angie Ramirez Raygoza Clare Schneider Evelyn Marino Halie Bissell Hanady Shaqur Kim Mendoza Isa Alarcon Madeline Gunderson Marco Gomez Margherita Scussat Shakira Mamalompong Sophie Borden Victoria Hernandez Victoria Leyva

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