Education Leaders of Color is a membership organization that ensures young people of color have the support they need to thrive, capitalize on opportunities, and build generational wealth. To reach our vision, we aim to catalyze cross-sector collaboration through a network of values-aligned leaders, help drive policy change, and directly support senior leaders of color who are explicitly focused on dismantling systemic barriers to the academic and economic advancement and success of young people of color. We are proud of our impact in 2021.
MAKING AN IMPACT
THROUGH INVESTMENT
Our direct financial investments in 2021 supported leaders of color positively impacting their communities and the world. We look forward to expanding our investments in 2022 and beyond.
We gave nearly a million dollars
in total grants during 2021
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$45,000
Policy Support & Microgrants
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$150,000
2020-2021 Changemaker Grants
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$800,000
2021 Boulder Fund Grants
THE MEMBER EXPERIENCE
EdLoC connects members with each other and to additional supports and resources they need to amplify their impact.
744 Active EdLoC members
2021 MEMBERSHIP DEMOGRAPHICS
Race and Ethnicity
70% Black or African American
23% Hispanic, Latinx, or Spanish Origin
9% Asian or Asian American
2% American Indian or Alaskan Native
Unique Life Experiences
51% Pell Grant Recipient
48% First-Gen College Graduate
20% First-Gen U.S. Citizen
3% Formerly Undocumented
Career Seniority
45% CEOs
41% 1-2 Levels Removed from Top of Organization
A Glance at Our 2021 Programming
974 People Attended EdLoC events in 2021
Network Leadership Development
EdLoC Career Chat Series
Mastering the Hire with Chaka Booker (Chief People Officer, The Broad Foundation)
Who’s Your Leadership Sponsor and Why It Matters with Michael Balaoing (Changemaker & Strategic Communications Expert)
Evaluating and Negotiating an Offer with Hoa Truong (Human Capital Consultant)
Career Liftoff with Cam Valentine (Founder, Heartwork Human Capital)
Why Joining a Board is Great for Your Career with Anika Warren Wood (Operating Partner & Chief Organizational Effectiveness Officer, Draper Kaplan Richards Foundation)
The Empowered Candidate with Chaka Booker (Chief People Officer, Broad Foundation)
Four-Part Just Work Series with Trier Bryant (Co-Founder and CEO, Just Work LLC)
EdLoC Mastermind Group Series with Andrea-Foggy Paxton (Entrepreneur in Residence, EdLoC) and Mike Montoya (Founder & CEO, Stronger Consulting)
Accessing Philanthropy and Capital as Leaders of Color
You’re Not Looking for Charity, You’re Looking for Investments with Eleisha Nelson-Reed (Executive Director, Powell Foundation)
How To Get Seed Funding When You Don’t Have a Track Record with Frances Messano (President, NewSchools Venture Fund)
Tap Into Funding to Feed Children in Your School or Program with Robert Simmons, III (Head of Social Impact, Micron Foundation & Senior Diversity Equity and Inclusion Consultant)
Big Dollars Doesn’t Mean Big Compromise with Cheryl Dorsey (President, Echoing Green)
Special Programming
"Pregnant Girl" Book Talk: Author Nicole Lynn Lewis (Executive Director and Founder, Generation Hope) in conversation with Shavar Jeffries (National President, Education Reform Now)
Black Speaker Series Feature Event: Supporting the Children of Incarcerated People: A Conversation with Mike Africa, Jr. (Activist, Writer, & Podcast Host, On a Move) and Sharif El-Mekki (CEO, Center for Black Educator Development)
EdLoC Experiences
EdLoC Town Hall: Our Vision, Growth Plans, and Opportunities to Join Our Team with Sharhonda Bossier (CEO, EdLoC)
EdLoC’s 2021 National Convening “Celebrate Our Resilience”
COALITION ENGAGEMENT & IMPACT
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RISE UP Coalition
EdLoC serves as a convening organization and co-hosted 5 events with nearly 40 organizations to formulate a national policy agenda toaddress compounding inequities.
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Build it.
EdLoC is a member of the READY SET Coalition to support the recruitment of mentors, tutors, and volunteers to support young people impacted by COVID isolation. READY SET was created by CAA Foundation and is supported by MENTOR, VolunteerMatch, AmeriCorps, and Schoolhouse.world.
OUR VALUES
In 2014, EdLoC began to identify the unique role a new group of education leaders of color could play in expanding the faces, voices, and emphases of education reform and charting a path for creating transformational change on a scale we all seek. To ground our approach, we outlined these values to anchor all of our outreach and strategic decisions.
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Our end goal is ending generational poverty by ensuring that low-income and underrepresented children have access to a high-quality education that enables them to become critical thinkers, have choices, capitalize on opportunities, and secure continuing economic advancement.
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As members of local, ethnic communities, we value the often overlooked assets in our communities and are committed to building the capacity of local leaders as agents of change. For change to take root and get us to our goal, solutions must be developed with and come from those directly affected.
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We must redefine expectations about what good schools are: all children deserve schools where they attain high levels of academic skills AND also receive the broad range of opportunities, activities, and experiences provided to more affluent students
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Rather than just talking about education, we must address and support potential allies fighting for the other resources, supports and policies low-income and underrepresented children and families also need. At the same time, we reaffirm our belief that improved social conditions should not be a precondition for improving schools.
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To meet our goals, we must reject one-size-fits-all solutions and the false binaries that persist in the education field. We must recognize the complexity of the challenges facing our children and families and advance multiple strategies and innovations across and within individual communities.