PEAK Grantmaking

Yielding is not an option if we want to undo the systemic damage that keeps people from opportunity and abundance. At PEAK, we believe that spurring philanthropy to drive toward racial equity and make transformational shifts to better serve disadvantaged people and communities begins with us. 2023 was a year of organizational growth and evolution. We advanced along our equity journey, leaned into the practice of emergent learning, sharpened our strategy, and deepened our commitment to be a people-centered workplace. Read more in our 2023 Impact Report.

Welcome, new PEAK Organization Members! A. Green Results Building Equity and Alignment for Environmental Justice Greater Rochester Health Foundation Jewish Community Foundation Lohengrin Foundation Multiplier NeighborWorks America Raikes Foundation Terra Foundation for American Art Turning Tides Learn more about our Organization Members: https://lnkd.in/gG8579bf

We all know that grants professionals are strategic drivers for impact. In this edition of our Journal, we celebrate the unique superpowers you bring to these roles and philanthropy. Members from across the PEAK community have generously shared stories about how they are wielding their superpowers to build relationships that foster personal and professional growth. We hope their contributions inspire you to break down organizational barriers that have historically blocked inclusive decision-making. And we hope that organizations heed our call to reenvision the role of grants management as the requisite skills of the profession continue to expand. We offer deep appreciation to guest editors Indya Hartley, MPA, Kelly Hayashi, and Bonnie Rivers, and to board liaison Kelli N. Serrano Rojas—who partnered with the PEAK team to shape this edition.

Driving Equity Through Technology, Transparency, and Data: Stephanie Richards of the Morgan Family Foundation shares how grants management teams are uniquely poised to advocate for more equitable practices by using new tools that support transparency and access to demographic data.

Join PEAK on October 31 to virtually dig into some key learnings from this year's edition of A Consumers Guide to Grants Management Systems for Public and Private Foundations, a collaboration with Grantbook, Technology Association of Grantmakers, and Tech Impact. Explore how your GMS can advance equity-centered philanthropy, along with strategies for simplifying and automating grant applications to improve functionality and reduce grantee burdens. We'll also provide an overview of key innovations in oral reporting and knowledge management that promote inclusivity and how artificial intelligence can potentially be used in grants management. Join us!

PEAK2025 registration is now open! Change begins with us, and each member of the PEAK community is an inherent leader. We live in a moment that requires us to courageously lean into the headwinds that challenge us. To this, we say: Onward! PEAK2025 is a call for our community to build on our momentum and to constructively engage with our feelings of discomfort to transform philanthropy. Join us in leading with courage and boldly moving toward a future where justice and equity prevail. We hope you'll be joining us at #PEAK2025nola! Last year, we reached capacity months before the convening, so we recommend reserving your place early.

In this highlight from the Learn, Share, Evolve issue of our Journal, Angela K. Frusciante, PhD shows you how to include and honor all grant partners by making three key shifts in how you understand and approach knowledge work.

Join PEAK Grantmaking on October 31 to virtually dig into some key learnings from this year's edition of A Consumers Guide to Grants Management Systems for Public and Private Foundations, a collaboration with Grantbook, Technology Association of Grantmakers, and Tech Impact. Participants can expect to: 🔺Understand how to streamline GMS applications to reduce grantee burdens 🔺Identify tools for tracking relationships and managing data in a GMS 🔺Implement oral reporting practices to capture qualitative insights 🔺Discover opportunities for utilizing AI to enhance grants management and grantee experience Register today!

We're so grateful for the support of members, allies, and champions like the Stupski Foundation who share our fervent belief that, together, we can transform philanthropy. “We are all about breaking fake rules at Stupski and our grantmaking practice team are some of the greatest rule breakers of all. That's why we are proud to support PEAK and its community of changemakers through our Sustaining Membership and grant support.” —Glen Galaich, Stupski Foundation Support PEAK today: https://lnkd.in/g2jBV-Za [image description: Glen’s quote is featured in gray, along with a headline on red, "Why we support PEAK" and a headshot of Glen.]

Will the changes needed to confront the crises of 2020 result in lasting change? In this contribution from the Learn, Share, Evolve issue of the Journal, Center for Effective Philanthropy’s Elisha Smith Arrillaga, Ph.D. and Kevin Bolduc say that early signs point to yes—but continuously building driving change will depend on supporting five imperatives.