Redemption in the Dean’s Office

Academic deans, like all leaders trying to create principled-based positions, are subject to the hubris of power and the often divergent demands of many stakeholders. Dean Clements discusses how a leader’s failures, as well as successes, are all necessary to properly cultivate this role

A Tale of Two Cultures: Why Culture Trumps Core Values in Building Ethical Organizations

As research demonstrates that organizational culture is a primary influence of employee behavior and that leaders shape this behavior, this author explores the influence of the effects of organizational culture on ethical behavior by considering two separate, and very different, corporate case studies: Enron and Zappos

From laboratory to praxis: communities of philosophical inquiry as a model of (and for) social activism

This article discusses the conditions under which dialogical learner-researchers can move out of the philosophical laboratory of a community of philosophical inquiry into the field of social activism, engaging in a critical and creative examination of society and seeking to change it. Based on Matthew Lipman’s proposal that communities of philosophical inquiry can serve as a model of social activism in the present, it presents the community of philosophical inquiry as a model for social activism in the future. In other words, Lipman’s central ideas in his earlier and later thought—including meaning as a mode of action, relevance as a way of examining life and stimulating influence for change as a form of creating a democratic society—establish two parallel circle of influence: the present time, in the shape of the philosophical community of inquiry that allows activist skills to be honed, and a social space that extends into the future as a forum for applying principles and bettering society. Finally, this paper adduces several forms of social activism that may be anchored in philosophical awareness of real conditions and their contexts. Through them, the community of philosophical inquiry not only constitutes a place in which young people’s thought processes can be developed but also one in which they can aspire to become activists in various areas

A Compass in the Woods: Learning Through Grantmaking to Improve Impact

The field of philanthropy is under increasing pressure to produce – and be able to demonstrate – greater impact for its investments. A growing number of foundations are moving away from the traditional responsive banker model to becoming more thoughtful and engaged partners with their grantees in the business of producing outcomes. In the process, they are placing bigger bets on larger, more strategic programs and initiatives.  What the field is striving to do now is to ensure that this evolution is based on validated theory, not wishful thinking or shots in the dark. The larger the investment, the more skilled foundations must become at managing risk – making informed decisions, tracking progress, adjusting action and learning – throughout the life of a program, so that foreseeable and unforeseeable changes do not torpedo an otherwise worthy collective effort. The traditional grant?to?evaluation?to?adjustment cycle is very long. Because many traditional grantmaking practices are proving to be too slow to adapt, these foundations are striving to better integrate real?time evaluation and learning into their operations in order to become more adaptive; more innovative; more impactful.We undertook this research project to inform how the tools and practices that support Emergent   Learning (described in the next section) can best help foundations and their communities – grantees, intermediaries and other stakeholders – improve the way they learn in complex programs and initiatives

Making Visible the Invisible Power of Community

Outlines the need to strengthen the organic infrastructure and culture of rural communities in development work to allow for adaptations that preserve connectedness and enhance social health. Explains Wildflower's methods and tools, with case studies

Strengthening Cultural Competency in California's Domestic Violence Field for High-Need, Underserved Populations

In 2012, The Blue Shield of California Foundation (BSCF)'s program area Blue Shield Against Violence (BSAV) launched a project called "Strengthening Cultural Competency in California's Domestic Violence Field for High-Need, Underserved Populations" (BSAV CC) to support and promote promising culturally competent practices within the domestic violence field. BSCF enlisted RDP Consulting (RDP) to manage the $2.6 million initiative and to provide capacitybuilding services, and provided two-year grants to 17 community partners across the state of California. The BSAV CC Project specifically sought to support domestic violence-related outreach to Tribal communities, African Americans, and recent immigrant populations.Social Policy Research Associates (SPR) received a grant from BSCF to support the learning and evaluation of this project. Over the two years of the evaluation, SPR conducted 78 phone interviews with community partners, RDP consultants, project-level evaluators, and field leaders. SPR also conducted one-day visits to 11 programs—visits that included interviews with executive directors, board members, outreach staff, key program partners, and clients. Finally, SPR attended project convenings and events, reviewed project documentation (e.g., proposals, reports), and administered two rounds of a social networking survey to all community partners. This Final Report highlights the outcomes of the two-year evaluation, at both the organizational and field levels