Operationalizing our New Strategic Plan

Dear Friend,

Recently The San Francisco Foundation Board of Trustees approved our Strategic Plan and so marks the completion of this stage of the Strategic Plan. The Strategic Plan as it was codified sets a direction, and we are now in the midst of operationalizing that direction into an implementation plan.

Thank you for your input, insights, and advice in shaping the plan. Community input has been essential in informing and guiding our strategic plan over the past several months. We appreciate the diverse perspectives we received from our donors, grantees, funding partners, civic leaders, and key groups and individuals from the government and private sectors.

As we are developing the implementation phase of this plan, we share with you our general direction and focus areas. These areas are both for the near term in response to the economic downturn, and for the longer term to enhance our impact in community.

We aim to increase our internal coordination and effectiveness, and thus our community impact. As such, we developed a unifying framework consisting of four program-wide focus areas that will guide our work in the future:

• Policy: We are investing in efforts to strengthen the effectiveness of state and local public systems. We will intensify our focus in public policy, advocacy, community organizing, and systems change designed to achieve social justice and promote progressive social change.
• Nonprofit Sustainability and Vitality: We are fostering excellence in institutions that serve as our core partners to carry out their mission to support strong and equitable communities.
• Community Investment: We are sharpening our focus on place-based initiatives where we act as a catalyst for change. By investing in collaborative efforts to infuse targeted neighborhoods with comprehensive resources and support, we nurture equitable and sustainable communities
• Leadership: We are enhancing the investment in our theory that strong leaders create and move strong communities. This is a strategy to identify and support individual and organizational leaders who themselves are catalysts for motivating and empowering diverse constituencies.
  

In response to the economic downturn, and its collateral effects, the plan calls for focused funding that targets safety net partners, jobs, and affordable housing for the next two to three years. Our strategy maximizes our collaborations with other funders, extraordinary nonprofit organizations, government, and the business sector to leverage the most impact.

• Safety Net: The recession has left many of the Bay Area’s most vulnerable families unable to meet their basic survival needs. We are funding our nonprofit partners to prevent families from homelessness, alleviate hunger, and provide safe harbor and hope for women and children facing domestic violence.
• Jobs: Economic security provides a strong platform from which individuals and families can build sustainable livelihoods. We are focusing on job creation and training initiatives that provide pathways out of poverty.
• Affordable Housing: With unemployment and foreclosures at record highs, more families than ever are facing economic crisis and risk losing their homes. We are working with partners on prevention and long term solutions. Keeping people who already have stable housing housed is the best and least costly way to combat homelessness.

As a community foundation with social justice at our core, striving for the greater good is our driving force. As we develop our new structure and approach, we will continue to build on our core Program strengths – expertise and leadership in Arts and Culture, Community Development, Community Health, Education, and the Environment.

In the coming months we will be defining any new processes and priorities that will effect our community partners, including grantees and potential grantees. We are looking forward to sharing this news through our website, emails, and community in-person meetings.

If you would like to be kept updated by email, please click here to provide your contact information. If you received funding from us since July 2008, we already have your information and you do not need to complete this online form.

Thank you for your steadfast support and all that you do to help make the Bay Area a better place for us all.

Sincerely,

Sandra R. Hernández, M.D.
Chief Executive Officer