Broad Coalition Fights to Improve the Reentry Process

In 2011 counties throughout California began taking on the responsibility of incarcerating and supervising non-violent felons. This was state-mandated realignment and as time went on, many counties began exploring new ways of addressing reentry, diversion and the supportive services that could potentially prevent crime or the revolving door to the criminal justice system.

Los Angeles County, however, took a more established approach, directing a full 80 percent of its $1.1 billion from the state toward incarceration and supervision in the first four years of realignment. An LA Times editorial lamented that the state's largest county has yet to become the "leader in smart and effective justice" it ought to be. 

But that's exactly what a growing coalition of cross-sector service providers is pushing for. Under the smart and strategic guidance of project leader Peggy Edwards, the Los Angeles Regional Reentry Partnership has become a major player in the reentry policy arena since it formed in 2012. Member organizations number about 350 now and work in the areas of physical and mental health, homelessness, family reunification,  housing, legal services, and substance abuse prevention and treatment.
 

As part of its mandate to promote positive race and human relations, the Los Angeles County Commission on Human Relations wanted to help strengthen and amplify the good work of the many local nonprofit organizations addressing hate violence around the region. 

They turned to Community Partners to help start a dialogue among L.A.'s most influential social service organizations representing populations who experience the highest rates of hate crimes. By February 2014, many came together to form the Hate Violence Prevention Practitioners Network. Made up of six organizations throughout the County who work to reduce hate violence, the network provides opportunities for practitioners to share best practices on education and prevention, while exchanging relevant and timely information about hate violence in the region. With five months of training and support from Community Partners staff, leading organizations such as BIENESTAR and CARECEN worked together to outline strategic prevention tactics, develop fundraising plans, and design social media campaigns to enable them to more effectively address hate violence as a collaborative effort. (Learn more about our work with networks here.)

And their work together has now resulted in a grant from the California Community Foundation! The funding will enable the network to usher in a new wave of community alliances and continue their work to not only establish ways to respond to acts of hate violence, but also improve their capacity to prevent them. 

Community Partners "helped lay the foundation" for the network and was "critical to the formation of this group," said Elena Halpert-Schilt, Assistant Executive Director at the Human Relations Commission.

-- Somer Greene, Cornuelle Summer Fellow, Occidental College '16

Celebrity culture in Los Angeles is as ubiquitous as palm trees and sunshine. So it's no wonder that many nonprofits are looking to capitalize on big-name endorsements. But what might appear to be a savvy shortcut to greater visibility and funding, isn't always.

Carol Ramsey, retired vice president of philanthropic services for the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF), offered some tops tips for engaging celebrities when she spoke recently to a gathering of the Fundraising Academy for Communities of Color, co-hosted by Community Partners.

1. Make sure you can handle it. If you don't already have a robust donor program and communications strategy, it's hard to fully capitalize on a celebrity's involvement in your cause. Before you invest time and money in celebrities, first invest in strengthening your organization's fundraising and communications programs.
2. There is no magic list. Nonprofit leaders regularly turned to EIF for a ready-made list of celebrities' interested in working with nonprofits. It doesn't exist. You can, however, use the same tools EIF uses: IMDbPro, WhoRepresents.com, and looktothestars.org.
3. Think like a talent manager. It's the manager's job to find the most lucrative opportunities for their clients, so don't be surprised if the celebrity you booked months in advance for your event backs out at the last minute. What interests the manager, second to money, is visibility. So, if you can guarantee hundreds of thousands of eyes on the celebrity (not just a few hundred), that could be appealing, especially for someone who is trying to get back into the limelight.
4. They could end up costing, rather than earning, you money. While the celebrity might agree to make an appearance at your event or record your PSA for free, you might end up paying for their transportation or their stylist or other needs. And don't always expect them to make a gift of their own funds. Many give very little of their own money and instead appeal to their fans to support a select cause.
5. Be creative. Seek easy ways for celebrities to support your cause: They can show up at an event, accept an award, walk through the room of a VIP reception, or donate signed items to an auction. They can provide a photo and quote for use in a fundraising appeal. If you want them to support your work on social media, be sure to provide their staff with exact language to be used for tweets and posts. But, remember:  Do your homework!!!  Be sure to get all the approval and clearances required by contract or arrangement with the celebrity's publicist or management.

Most of all, stresses Carol, keep your expectations low. When you finally do attract the interest of a celebrity, it can feel like doors will open magically. But even though many of them are compassionate and would like to do more, the reality is they are not in control of their time. So, try your best, be nice to their publicist, and don't neglect your other donors! -- Priscilla Hung

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